MILLSBORO, Del. – Taking on four top-25 teams in five traditional team matches Saturday, the Lincoln Memorial University women's bowling team posted a pair of wins at the 2019 Hawk Classic Invitational in Millsboro, Delaware. The Lady Railsplitters (24-25) defeated the likes of 16th-ranked Saint Francis University and fellow East Coast Conference member Caldwell University inside Millsboro Lanes on the second day of the highly-competitive three-day, 18-team tournament hosted by the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.
 
Among a field of competition featuring 15 of the nation's top 25 programs and six of the country's top 10, 13th-ranked LMU sits in 14th place with a pinfall total of 9,318 after collecting 4,722 pins Saturday. Fifth-ranked Sam Houston State owns 10,104 total pins to lead all 18 teams, while sixth-ranked Arkansas State is in second place with a pinfall total of 10,065 and No. 11 Sacred Heart (9,997) third after leading day two with 5,091 pins.
 
Opening up the day with a tough out against 15th-ranked Delaware State, the Lady Railsplitters dropped a 934-897 decision despite strong bowling from freshman Jada Bassette and senior Mary-Kate Kersting. Bassette went 6-for-12 on strikes and was also 50 percent (3-of-6) on Baker double strikes.
 
"We had a difficult time making quality shots as a collective unit to open things up, but we stayed in the match throughout," Director of Bowling and Women's Head Coach Joseph Slowinski said. "Freshman Jada Bassette's 200 and Senior Mary-Kate Kersting's 197 led the team and kept us in the match."
 
Once again facing a challenging opponent in its second match of the day, LMU was unable to keep up with ninth-ranked Fairleigh Dickinson in a 937-856 affair. Freshman Sofia Colon led the way with a game of 186 in the match.
 
"We struggled to get into a flow from the start of the match," commented coach Slowinski. "However, the team maintained emotional control throughout the grind of the match."
 
Taking on 23rd-ranked Youngstown State in their third match, the Lady Railsplitters were narrowly edged by 26 pins (983-957). Senior Marisol Dodson was outstanding in the contest, posting a 257 game and striking on 7-of-11 (63.6%) shots while doubling on 4-of-7 (57.1%) strikes and filling 11-of-11 frames.
 
"We fought hard in the match and had an opportunity to win," stated Slowinski. "Our performance in the match symbolically turned our day around and set us up to be successful in matches four and five."
 
Building off its momentum from the competitive match with Youngstown State, LMU dominated No. 16 Saint Francis University by a 1,029-862 count. Four different Lady Railsplitters turned in 200-pin games led by Kersting's 217 and junior Chelsea Nakaoka's 211. Dodson posted a 209 game and junior Justine Brookover reached a 204, while Bassette subbed-in to strike in 6-of-9 (67%) shots. Nakaoka and Kersting both went 7-for-11 (63.6%) in striking as Nakaoka achieved an 83.3 percent (5-of-6) double strike rate and Bassette was 67 percent (4-of-6).
 
"The decisive match win was a true team effort with everyone making major contributions," added Slowinski.
 
LMU continued its strong bowling in its final match of the day, routing league adversary Caldwell University 983-838 behind Dodson's 235 game and Kersting's 203. Dodson was 70 percent (7-of-10) on strikes and connected on 5-of-7 (71%) double strikes, while Kersting owned a 50 percent strike rate and both Kersting and Dodson filled 90 percent of frames.
 
"We continued the great shot-making from our fourth match and led from the start," spoke Slowinski. "Unfortunate back-to-back pocket 7-10's in the 10th frame for both Mary-Kate and Marisol were a frustrating way to end the day as it cost us between 25 and 57 pins."
 
Kersting averaged a game score of 197.2 in Saturday's traditional team matches, totaling 986 pins to place 29th among 116 total bowlers. In four traditional games, Dodson averaged a 217.25 and collected 869 total pins to finish 60th in the individual standings.
 
Sacred Heart's Kelly Caitlyn led all bowlers with 1,101 total pins and a 220.2 game average as Monmouth's Saige Yamada claimed second place with a 1,100 pinfall total and 220.0 average. Sam Houston State's Lynne Fishler was third averaging a 219.6 with 1,098 total pins.
 
Up Next…
The Lady Railsplitters have earned the No. 14 seed for Sunday's three rounds of best 4-of-7 bracket play Baker matches. LMU will take on 24th-ranked and 13th-seeded Long Island University in the opening round of bracket play Sunday morning at 8:25 a.m. and has a chance to bowl for an 11th-place finish.
 
How to Follow
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Lady Railsplitter bowling throughout the 2019-20 season.