Penguins Top Vanderbilt in Dramatic Fashion, Finish Fourth at Southland Championship

Saturday, March 25

Rowlett, Texas (Rowlett Bowlarama)

9:30 AM

Youngstown State University

Vanderbilt

YSU Bowling at the MOTIV Penguin Classic - Oct. 14, 2022

Photo by: Robert Hayes

Penguins Top Vanderbilt in Dramatic Fashion, Finish Fourth at Southland Championship

3/25/2023 6:20:00 PM | Bowling

Youngstown State fought off elimination by beating top-seeded Vanderbilt but lost its second match of the day to Louisiana Tech and finished fourth at the Southland Bowling League Championship. The tournament is being held at Rowlett Bowlarama in Rowlett, Texas.

The Penguins turned in their second-best finish ever at the conference event, and they will hope that their regular-season success paired with their performance this week will be enough to earn an at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament. YSU was the fourth seed in the Southland Tournament, and it ranked seventh in the RPI heading into the week.

"I'm very proud of our effort," said YSU head coach Doug Kuberski. "We have been elevating our discipline and consistency across the board. We treat every shot the same from frame one, game one, to frame 10, game seven."

"It's truly an honor to coach this group. They inspire and empower me every day, more than I can express. We are excited to get back after it this week and keep growing together."

YSU will find out its fate as the NCAA announces its field on Wednesday at 4 p.m. on NCAA.com.

Match 1 vs. No. 1 Vanderbilt

The Penguins showed tremendous grit and resilience in their first match to come from behind and beat the top-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores 2-1 in the mega match format.

Youngstown State lost the traditional point, and it averaged 206 over the final three games of the Baker total pinfall set to force a best-of-seven tiebreaker. The Penguins trailed 3-1 in the tiebreaker but had great finishes in the final three games to prevail 4-3.

Jade Cote shifted from the leadoff spot to the anchor position for the final three games, and she answered the call each time in the 10th frame. She doubled in game five as the Penguins won 189-188. YSU then struck in its final six attempts in game six to come from behind for a 225-196 victory, and the biggest drama came in game seven.

YSU held a four-pin advantage and was riding a strike heading into the 10th, but Cote left 6-7-10 on her first ball. Vanderbilt anchor Mabel Cummins, the Southland Bowler of the Year, faced a much easier 3-6 leave. Cote picked up her split to send a shock of energy into the center, and Cummins opened. Cote added nine on her fill shot to finish up a 195-179 victory.

Vanderbilt won the traditional point 1,050-982, and YSU's Megan Grams kept up her solid play from Friday with a 274. She strung nine strikes together at one point as she shot her best total of the season.

In the Baker pinfall set, YSU had the upper hand in four of the five games and won 964-935. A 224-180 edge in the third game flipped a 30-pin deficit into a 14-pin advantage, and the Penguins won game four by 14 and game five by one to even the match.

Youngstown State carried the momentum into the best-of-seven to win the first game 223-186, but Vanderbilt won the next three games to take its 3-1 lead.

Match Scores

Traditional: Vanderbilt won 1,050-982

YSU's starting lineup: Cote, Grams, Bunk, Moore, Marx

YSU-Vandy
182-209
274-237
178-238
159-182
189-184

Baker: Youngstown State won 964-935

YSU's starting lineup: Cote, Moore, Grams, Bunk, Marx

YSU-Vandy
176-174
170-202
224-180
179-165
215-214

Best-of-seven Baker: Youngstown State won 4-3

YSU's starting lineup: Cote, Moore, Grams, Bunk, Marx

223-186 | YSU
195-211 | Vandy
184-202 | Vandy
205-206 | Vandy
189-188 | YSU
225-196 | YSU
195-179 | YSU

Match 2 vs. No. 6 Louisiana Tech

Facing elimination for the second time and coming off a four-hour match, Youngstown State fell 2-0 to sixth-seeded Louisiana Tech in the afternoon.

In the traditional set, the Penguins couldn't keep pace in the back half against Louisiana Tech and fell 957-898. Youngstown State had eight opens in the final four frames, and five of those came on splits.

The Lady Techsters had the edge at three of the five spots in the lineup and had a 71-pin advantage in the leadoff position. Bunk led the Penguins with a 211 in the fourth spot in the lineup, and Grams bowled a 193.

In the Baker set, the Penguins shot 157 and 145 in their first two games to fall behind by 88 pins. The teams were within two pins of each other over the final three games, but the early hole was too big for YSU to overcome as it fell 928-838. Youngstown State's best total in the set was in game four with a 196.