Collegiate Ticker - March 31, 2021

The 2020-2021 United States Bowling Congress Collegiate regular season wrapped up over the weekend, with the Clarke women and McKendree men emerging victorious at the Five Seasons Classic in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The event featured 14 women's varsity teams and 18 men's programs, with qualifying consisting of five traditional games and 16 Baker games. The top four in each division advanced to bracket play, with best-of-three Baker matches determining who advanced in each match.

In the women's division, Mount Mercy cruised to the top overall seed in qualifying with an 8,115 total. St. Ambrose was second with 7,813, while Lindenwood (7,540) and Clarke (7,525) claimed the final two spots.

After dropping the first game in bracket play to Mount Mercy, 224-167, Clarke rallied to win the next two games to advance to the title match, recording victories of 188-154 and 215-185. St. Ambrose swept Lindenwood, 2-0, to set up the championship match.

The teams exchanged victories the first two games of the title tilt, before Clarke claimed the final game and tournament win, 204-176.

St. Ambrose's Hannah Jaros rolled 247 in her final traditional game to finish at the top of the women's individual standings, posting a 1,056 total (211.2 average). Jaros was joined in the top five by Mount Mercy's Mackenzie Ullian (1,046), Clarke's Brooke Allen (1,043), Mount Mercy's Cassidy Courey (1,036) and Lindenwood's Renata Martinez (1,023).

The top four teams from the men's qualifying portion of the Five Seasons Classic were McKendree (8,167), Wisconsin-Whitewater (8,077), Iowa Central CC (8,036) and Mount Mercy (8,025).

McKendree averaged more than 244 during its two bracket wins on the way to victory, sweeping Mount Mercy (242-219 and 269-189) in the opening match and recording a 2-1 win over Wisconsin-Whitewater (262-191, 193-205, 256-204) in the championship round.

Wisconsin-Whitewater advanced to the title match by defeating Iowa Central CC, 2-1.

In the men's individual standings, St. Ambrose's Jordan Chavez finished with a 1,110 total to earn the spot, a 222 average. Raymond Wiegand of Iowa Central CC placed second with 1,100, and St. Ambrose's Zach Denton was third with 1,096. Mount Mercy teammates Luis Lugo and Jared Durant rounded out the top five with 1,091 and 1,089, respectively.

Just missing the top five was McKendree's Jeremy Kinealy, who rolled a 300 game on his way to a 1,078 total and sixth-place finish.

In other collegiate action:

- At the inaugural NAIA Men's and Women's Bowling Championship in Sterling Heights, Michigan, the Indiana Tech women went undefeated in bracket play to record the victory against Midland, while the St. Francis-Illinois men battled through the elimination bracket to defeat Martin Methodist for the title.

- At the Southwest Intercollegiate Bowling Conference (SWIBC) No. 3 in Shawnee, Oklahoma, the Wichita State men cruised to the top spot, while Stephen F. Austin narrowly captured the women's title by eight pins.

- At the SWIBC No. 4 in Shawnee, Oklahoma, the Wichita State men completed the sweep and were joined at the top of the standings by the Wichita State women.

- At the Ohio Bowling Conference Championships in Columbus, Ohio, the Northern Kentucky women finished strong the final Baker game for a 17-pin victory, while Northwestern Ohio registered the win in the men's division.

- At the Columbia 300 Western Shootout No. 1 in Indianapolis, the Calumet men and Tusculum women claimed the top spots in Baker competition.

- At the Columbia 300 Western Shootout No. 2 in Indianapolis, the Notre Dame-Ohio men and Judson women were the teams to beat in the traditional-game format.

- At the SCAD Collegiate Shootout No. 1 in Brunswick, Georgia, the Emmanuel women and Webber International men took home the wins in their respective divisions.

- At the SCAD Collegiate Shootout No. 2 in Brunswick, Georgia, the Savannah College of Art and Design-Savannah women collected the victory, while the Webber men finished the weekend with a second win.

- At the American Heartland Bowling Association Championships in Toledo, Ohio, Lawrence Tech swept the top spots in the men's and women's divisions.

With the conclusion of the regular season, sectional assignments will be announced Wednesday. The four locations in 2021 include Smyrna, Tennessee; Dayton, Ohio; Addison, Illinois; and Dallas.

The teams will be announced during the Intercollegiate Team Championships Sectional Assignment Show, which will air at 7 p.m. Eastern. The broadcast will be featured at YouTube.com/BowlTV and the USBC and Youth Bowling Facebook pages.

The ITC and Intercollegiate Singles Championships sectional qualifiers will take place April 16-18, and the teams and individuals advancing to the ITC and ISC will head to Wyoming, Michigan, in hopes of taking home national titles from May 3-8.

For more information on USBC Collegiate, visit BOWL.com/Collegiate or CollegeBowling.Bowl.com.