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WICHITA, Kan. – After an exciting exhibition to start the season, the Bearkats kept rolling in their opening event of the season, taking the title at the Mid States Championships hosted by Wichita State Saturday and Sunday.
It was the third time in four appearances the Sam Houston bowling squad won the event, finishing second a year ago.
Head coach Brad Hagen is optimistic as the Kats show signs of continuing the national powerhouse they are known to be early on.
“Overall the weekend went very well and it was a full team effort,” Hagen said. “At an event like this we’re trying to maximize reps, manage routines, work out potential lineup flow, and really be process oriented as we move into the season.”
Competing in the USBC Tier 1 tournament, the Bearkats qualified for the 8-team bracket play as the No. 1 seed. Once, they got into the single elimination best-of-five matches, Sam Houston was in control.
The Kats beat Quincy and Lindenwood each 3-0 to set up a showdown with Newman in the championship. The title match went to five games with Sam Houston prevailing 193-134, 130-188, 205-178, 167-180 and 203-179 to claim the trophy.
The Bearkats finished with 9,038 pins, which also led the field.
During the tournament, the pair to pair transition was one of many obstacles the team faced.
“Pair to pair can be brutal with this tier one format and the championship pair sat for four hours before we got on it,” Hagen said. “Anytime we see that a lane or the pair can get real tight and the right lane was brutally tight which we identified early. I’m glad we took advantage of the left lane and being the higher seed was crucial to our win.”
With the MVP of the tournament going to Sam Houston freshman Emily Hart and Breana Chewens also being named to the All-Tournament team, Hagen was pleased with the team’s performance over the weekend.
“It’s nice to see the unity this early and I hope it continues to flourish organically and in the weeks to come,” Hagen said. “This team has the right ingredients to make a deep run”
The Bearkats take a little break to regroup and prepare for the TRACK Kat Klash of Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 at Emerald Bowl in Houston.