The Youngstown State bowling team split its two matches on the opening day of the Lansing Regional on Friday. The Penguins began the morning at Royal Scot Golf & Bowl with a 2-0 victory over Maryville, but YSU fell to fellow Southland member Vanderbilt 2-0 in the winners' bracket in the afternoon.
Youngstown State will have a rematch with the Saints in an elimination match on Saturday at 9 a.m. to get another chance against the Commodores. YSU would have to beat Maryville once and Vanderbilt twice in order to reach the Final Four. If the Penguins can win the first two decisions, the "if necessary" match against versus the 'Dores would be a best-of-seven Baker contest instead of a mega-match.
Every match this weekend at the Regional is being streamed on the Olivet College Athletics YouTube channel, and updates are posted throughout the day on the YSU bowling team's social media channels.
Post-Match Interviews
Match 1 vs. Maryville
Youngstown State posted back-to-back high-scoring sets to defeat Maryville in the opening round of the NCAA Lansing Regional on Friday morning.
Youngstown State topped 1,130 in both formats of the morning session at Royal Scot Golf & Bowl to advance in the winners' bracket and set up the match against Vanderbilt in the afternoon.
The Penguins took the traditional point by a large 1,138-907 margin as all five YSU bowlers shot above 210, and Youngstown State outlasted the Saints in a shootout in the Baker point 1,143-1,109.
YSU had just three opens in the traditional portion of the mega match to jump out to a big lead in the early frames. Jade Cote struck from the second through seventh frames from the leadoff spot to provide an early spark, and Madyson Marx threw the back six as the Penguins got a pair of 236 games from the front and back spots in the lineup. In between those solid bookends, Megan Grams bowled a 211, Hope Bunk matched Marx for a 236, and Kirsten Moore bowled a 225.
In the Baker round, the lowest score by either squad was 201 as both teams found good lines. The Penguins led by 32 pins after a 234-202 edge in game one, and they held a 30-pin advantage through three games. Maryville posted the highest game of the match in game four with a 269 to surge to a 22-point lead, but YSU responded in game five with a 257 that featured two different four-baggers. The second string was the big blow as Bunk and Moore laid the foundation in the eighth and ninth frames, and Marx was able to lock up the victory over the Saints by doubling in the 10th.
Traditional: YSU won 1,138-907
YSU's Starting Lineup: Cote, Grams, Bunk, Moore, Marx
YSU-MU
230-189
211-169
236-175
225-179
236-195
Baker: YSU won 1,143-1,109
YSU's Starting Lineup: Cote, Grams, Bunk, Moore, Marx
YSU-MU
234-202
201-234
234-225
217-269
257-201
Match 2 vs. Vanderbilt
In the battle to advance to the championship round, Youngstown State averaged 200.4 but couldn't keep pace with Vanderbilt as the Commodores won the mega-match 2-0.
The top seed in the Lansing Regional, Vanderbilt took the traditional point 1,018-991 and the Baker point 1,071-1,013.
In the traditional round, Cote marked in the final nine frames and strung five strikes together at the top of the lineup to post a team-high 227. Moore registered a 225 and threw the back six, and Grams added a 200. The Penguins had the edge in three spots in the lineup, but Vanderbilt had a 62-pin edge in the anchor position and a 49-pin advantage in the third slot to win the point by 27.
Youngstown State had the highest score in three of the five games of the Baker round, but Vanderbilt won the third and fourth games by a combined 110 pins on its way to the victory. YSU held a 425-400 advantage after two games, but Vanderbilt struck 11 times to post a 268 in game three to flip the match in its favor. YSU then dropped to a 147 in game four as Vanderbilt added 56 pins to its lead, and the Penguins shaved 27 pins off the final margin with a 227-200 advantage in game five.
Traditional: Vanderbilt won 1,018-991
YSU's Starting Lineup: Cote, Grams, Bunk, Moore, Marx
YSU-VU
227-222
200-163
156-205
225-183
183-245
Baker: Vanderbilt won 1,071-1,013
YSU's Starting Lineup: Cote, Grams, Doseck, Moore, Marx
YSU-VU
190-179
235-221
214-268
147-203
227-200
