Women's Bowling 4-Peats as CIAA Champions (442 hits)
For the fourth time in as many years, the Bowie State University women's bowling team captured the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Bowling Championship at the AMF Lynnhaven Lanes on Saturday (3/24) afternoon. COMPLETE CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
In addition to this being BSU's fourth straight CIAA Crown, it is the eighth overall in school history. The endurance on the lanes paid off for the 2018 Champions as they went undefeated during championship play; earning them an automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA Bowling Championship.
The lanes became heated when Bowie State and Fayetteville State met yet again, this time in the Championship match. On day one (3/23), Bowie State knocked Fayetteville State into the loser's bracket, so the Broncos were ready for revenge. This time the Bulldogs knew not to take the Broncos lightly, but the match continued to the full seven games.
After Bowie State started out strong with a 196-116 victory in the first game, Fayetteville State countered with three big wins in the next three games with 161-152, 187-171 and 157-146 victories. The next game was a blowout by the Bulldogs winning 172-121. Both the sixth and seventh games came down to the tenth frame and both games the Bulldogs finished strong (163-152 and 170-161) to take home the 2018 CIAA Bowling Championship.
The final day of CIAA bowling competition began with Round Four of the double-elimination, championship bracket. The I-95 rivals, No. 4 Virginia State and No. 3 Virginia Union fought through six games, and with a 4-2 result, the Trojans of VSU continued their journey in the loser's bracket. They then faced the No. 1 Broncos of Fayetteville State, but were soon knocked out of the tournament after the Broncos took an early 3-0 lead (175-135, 151-135, 199-159). VSU was able to capture the fourth game 174-164, but FSU soon closed the match in the fifth with a score of 159 to 128.
Following the Championship match the 2018 CIAA Bowling Championship awards ceremony consisted of honors for the first (BSU), second (FSU) and third (VSU) place teams, the All-Tournament Team and the Championship MVP.
The All-Tournament Team consisted of Ariel Haith (Virginia State), Amaree Durfee (Virginia Union), Baylee Lexton (Chowan), Diamond Carter (Bowie State) and Savannah Sterling (Fayetteville State). Bowie State's Diamond Carter was also named to MVP of the Championships.
