Sam Houston State wins inaugural Track Kat Klash
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HUNTSVILLE, Texas - Tournament host Sam Houston State swept top qualifier Arkansas State, 4-0, on Sunday to capture the inaugural Track Kat Klash at Huntsville Lanes.
After the Bearkats took the first two games in the best-of-seven Baker final, tournament MVP Michelle Secours and anchor Dayna Galganski each made big shots in both the third game, and the clinching game, as Sam Houston won by scores of 223-174, 194-127, 215-206, 243-237.
"Kudos to them," Sam Houston State coach Brad Hagen said of Secours and Galganski. "Their experience played a part in that, controlling their emotions. Both are competitors. They want the ball in their hands to make the big shot."
In the opening Baker matches Sunday, Sam Houston State handed Arkansas State its first loss of the tournament, 4-2, to reach the championship match. Arkansas State came back to beat Nebraska, 4-1, to earn its own spot in the title match.
Vanderbilt took third place with a 4-2 victory over Nebraska, while Long Island University beat Stephen F. Austin for fifth place.
Secours took top individual honors with a 1,224 pinfall total over five games Saturday, a 244.8 average. Nebraska's Kayla Johnson (1,176) was second, followed by Brittni Hamilton (1,111) of Vanderbilt, Arkansas State's Amanda Labossierre and Sam Houston State's Neishka Cardona.
The three-day tournament started Friday with five sets of quad Baker matches (two teams bowled four Baker games, highest pinfall won match). On Saturday, the teams bowled five traditional team games, and the total pinfall from the first two days of competition set Sunday's bracket.
Arkansas State rolled through the first two days of the tournament with a perfect record (10-0) and was the top qualifier with a total pinfall of 9,310. Sam Houston State (9-1, 9,263) was the No. 2 qualifier followed by Vanderbilt (6-4, 9,169) and Nebraska (8-2, 8,995).