LINCOLN, Neb. — The No. 2 Vanderbilt bowling team fought through a tough day on the lanes to earn the No. 4 spot on the team leaderboard after winning three and dropping two matches on Friday at Nebraska’s Big Red Invitational.
“Lanes were tough and execution was important,” head coach John Williamson said. “We need to be better at the things we can control tomorrow to keep in contention on Sunday.”
The Commodores improved their pin count throughout the round but struggled to overcome an early deficit in their opening match vs. top-ranked Jacksonville State, which the Gamecocks won, 1,057-991.
Vanderbilt rebounded in round 2, cruising to a 1,020-807 win over Western Illinois.
The Dores kept their momentum rolling in their third-round win over No. 5 Louisiana Tech. Vandy shot a day-high 289 in game 3 en route to its 1,100-950 win over the Bulldogs.
A hot-striking McKendree team, ranked 13th in the NTCA Coaches Poll, handed Vandy a 1,076-957 loss in round 4.
Vanderbilt ended its day in the win column, taking match 5 over Quincy by a score of 998-975.
Jax State is the top-ranked team after Day 1, followed by No. 4 Wichita State and No. 9 Maryville in second and third position, respectively.
Action at the Big Red Invitational continues Saturday at 10:10 a.m.
The Dores’ matches will be streamed live on YouTube and Facebook. Fans can follow Vanderbilt bowling on X and Instagram at @VandyBowling for updates.
