KENOSHA, Wis. – The Vanderbilt bowlers ended Day 2 of the Ladyjack Classic in fifth place, setting a program record along the way.
“We struggled to end yesterday and started poorly today, unfortunately digging too big of a hole to get out of,” head coach John Williamson said. “But we did a remarkable job in making it interesting and getting better as the day went on. The win against Nebraska at the end of the day was a good showing on difficult pair of lanes. We were down most of the game but made some big shots in the 8-9-10 to win. I’m proud of the girls for fighting throughout the day, and we’ll look to make the best of tomorrow.”
Vandy posted the highest team traditional game score in school history during its Match 3 bye, totaling 1,237 pins. Haley Lindley had the team’s highest individual score of 260. Alyssa Ballard and Kailee Channell each bowled 248s, while Isabel Allen posted a score of 247. Natalie Kent contributed a 234 to the record-breaking match. The previous program record, which was 1,236 pins, was set in 2015 at the NJ Jamboree.
The Dores’ day got off to a slow start, losing their opening match with Wichita State 985-908, but it would be Vandy’s only loss of the day.
In Games 4 and 5, Vanderbilt recorded wins over McKendree and Nebraska to add scores of 1,043 and 948 to its two-day pin total.
Eight of 11 Commodores saw game action Saturday, including freshman Saphyre Nofuente who made her first career start in the Wichita State match. Allen was the Dores’ top individual finisher, placing second overall. She compiled scores of 216, 259, 247, 213 and 195 to average 226.0 pins per game. Jacksonville State’s Annaliese O’Bryant won the individual title by 22 pins. Lindley collected scores of 176, 195, 260, 220 and 194 to finish top 20 in the individual standings.
Nebraska leads the field after two days of qualifying with 10,350 pins. Jacksonville State sits in second and is trailed by Maryville and Youngstown State to round out the top four.
Vandy will have a rematch with Wichita State in the opening round of bracket play Sunday beginning at 8:30 a.m. Fans can watch the Dores’ matches on YouTube and receive live updates by following @VandyBowling on X/Twitter.
