NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt’s Kaylee Hitt achieved a career highlight Friday when she won the U.S. Bowling Commission’s Intercollegiate Singles Detroit Sectional and advanced to the ISC Championship in April.
Hitt, a junior from Cold Spring, Kentucky, topped 179 other hopefuls at the Thunderbowl Lanes by compiling games of 245, 202, 276, 201, 207 and 205 for a 1,336 total. The top six bowlers from this sectional advanced.
Meanwhile, Commodore freshman Natalie Kent also punched her ticket to the nationals by coming in third at the Smyrna Sectional. Kent had monster games of 245, 258 and 254 among her six scores for a 1,373 composite.
The Intercollegiate Singles is a collegiate championship open to all collegians, not just NCAA bowlers. Vanderbilt All-American Brittni Hamilton is the only Commodore to have won this title (2011) while Robyn Renslow and Jordan Newham were runners-up.
Since each sectional only advances five or six competitors, Vanderbilt divided its nine hopefuls into sets of three to maximize their chances of success and competed in Detroit, Smyrna and Fort Worth.
Kailee Channell narrowly missed qualifying in Smyrna, finishing seventh. Channell, fresh off two consecutive all-tournament efforts, was the model of consistency but lacked the big game or two that generally is needed to finish higher. Haley Lindley was also competing at this site.
Victoria Varano and Paige Peters missed the cut in Detroit while Alyssa Ballard’s 13th place finish was the highest Commodore finish in Fort Worth. Amanda Naujokas and Caroline Thesier were also bowling in Texas.
The Intercollegiate Singles finals will be held April 17-20 at the Kingpin Lanes in Jeffersontown, Kentucky.
