Youngstown, Ohio — Youngstown State's bowling team will make its fifth straight appearance at the Northeast Classic to kick off its spring schedule this weekend in New Castle, Del. The three-day tournament will be held at the Bowlerama, and it will be the first of six tournaments for the Penguins ahead of the Conference USA Championship.
YSU's 13 matches at the tournament will be streamed live on the YSUsports YouTube channel, and results will be posted throughout the weekend on the team's Instagram and Facebook stories and its X feed.
Tournament Preview
Youngstown State will be one of 36 teams competing at the Northeast Classic, which has developed into one of the largest tournaments in the country each season. The field features the top 14 teams and 20 ranked teams overall from the December's National Tenpin Coaches Association Top 25. YSU will also be one of 10 teams from Conference USA heading to Delaware this weekend.
A Look at the Field
Top-25 Ranked Teams (20):Â #1 Jacksonville State, #2 Vanderbilt, #3 Arkansas State, #4 Nebraska, #5 Louisiana Tech, #6 Wichita State, #7 Youngstown State, #8 Niagara, #9 Mount St. Mary's, #10 Maryville, #11 Sacred Heart, #12 Wright State, #13 North Carolina A&T, #14 Sam Houston, #19 McKendree, #20 Bryant, #22 Duquesne, #23 Kutztown, #24 Delaware State, #25 Central Missouri
Teams Receiving Votes (6): Dominican (NY), Felician, Molloy, UAB, UMES, William Smith
Additional Teams (10): Adelphi, Daemen, Holy Family, Howard, LIU, Morgan State, Norfolk State, Roberts Wesleyan, St. Thomas Aquinas, Wilmington
Conference USA Teams (10): Arkansas State, Jacksonville State, Louisiana Tech, Nebraska, Sacred Heart, Sam Houston, Vanderbilt, Wichita State, Wright State, Youngstown State
Format and Schedule
The Northeast Classic will follow the NCAA's standard 13-match format. Teams will bowl in five Baker matches on Friday beginning at 9:30 a.m., and total pinfall will determine the winners of each head-to-head match. Five traditional matches will follow on Saturday starting at 9:25 a.m. with total pinfall again determining the winners. The total pins from the first 10 matches of the tournament will determine seeding for bracket play on Sunday, which will consist of three matches beginning at 8:25 a.m. The bracket matches will be contested in a best-of-seven Baker format. Youngstown State is in Pool A, and it will bowl all nine teams in Pool B as well as one positional match during qualifying.
Friday at 9:30 a.m. — Five Baker matches
Match 1 vs. Felician — Lanes 25-26
Match 2 vs. No. 8 Niagara — Lanes 45-46
Match 3 vs. LIU — Lanes 37-38
Match 4 vs. Adelphi — Lanes 21-22
Match 5 vs. William Smith — Lanes 49-50
Saturday at 9:25 a.m. — Five Traditional matches
Match 1 — Position Round
Match 2 vs. Dominican — Lanes 57-58
Match 3 vs. Roberts Wesleyan — Lanes 7-8
Match 4 vs. No. 20 Bryant — 35-36
Match 5 vs. No. 22 Duquesne — Lanes 13-14
Sunday at 8:25 a.m. — Three best-of-seven Baker matches
YSU's History at the Northeast Classic
This will be the sixth time overall and the fifth straight season that Youngstown State will bowl in the Northeast Classic/Invitational hosted by Sacred Heart. The event has been held at three different venues, and the 2026 edition will be the third consecutive one held at Bowlerama. The Penguins have had success at the event, going 9-4 or better and finishing at least fifth in each of their first five appearances.
In 2025, Youngstown State's spring that ended with a national championship began with a strong showing in Delaware. The Penguins won their first 12 matches at the Northeast Classic before falling 4-0 to Nebraska in the championship match. YSU had ranked wins over Tulane, Maryland Eastern Shore and Merrimack on the first two days while qualifying third, and the Penguins topped Stephen F. Austin and Jacksonville State in the first two bracket rounds. Jade Cote was YSU's top individual finisher in 14th place a year after being the tournament champion in 2024.
2019-20 (AMF Bristol Pike Lanes)
- Team finish » 5th of 26
- Head-to-head record » 10-3
- Top individual finisher » Nikki Mendez (7th)
2021-22 (Bowlero Deptford)
- Team finish » 3rd of 18
- Head-to-head record » 9-4
- Top individual finisher » Emma Wrenn (17th)
2022-23 (Bowlero Deptford)
- Team finish » 5th of 33
- Head-to-head record » 9-4
- Top individual finisher » Kirsten Moore (9th)
2023-24 (Bowlerama)
- Team finish » 4th of 34
- Head-to-head record » 9-4
- Top individual finisher » Jade Cote (1st)
2024-25 (Bowlerama)
- Team finish » 2nd of 38
- Head-to-head record » 12-1
- Top individual finisher » Jade Cote (14th)
Recapping the Colonial Lanes Classic
The last time it competed, Youngstown State finished eighth out of 16 teams at the Colonial Lanes Classic to conclude its fall schedule on Nov. 23. The Penguins went 2-1 in bracket play with wins over Duquesne and Sam Houston to jump two spots in the final standings after qualifying 10th. YSU's wins came along with high scores, averaging 207.2 on the final day of the event.
Amy Chrzanowski was YSU's top individual finisher at Colonial Lanes, placing 15th in the field of 100 bowlers. She posted a 1,043 set for a 208.6 average. Gianna Varano and Kara Beissel also posted sets over 1,000 with Varano totaling 1,007 to finished 25th and Beissel posting a 1,002 to place 26th.
A Glimpse at the Guins
- Youngstown State is in a new era this season — one as a program that has won a national championship and one that has seven newcomers and just one returner from last season's title-winning squad on its 2025-26 roster.
- The Penguins were ranked seventh in the National Tenpin Coaches Association Top 25 Poll that released in December.
- YSU is coming off a storybook season in 2024-25 in which six seniors led the Penguins to the 2025 National Collegiate Women's Bowling Championship. It was the first national championship ever in a women's sport at Youngstown State and its first in any sport since 1997. YSU has been to the NCAA Tournament in five straight seasons and reached the Final Four three times.
- While the Penguins celebrated their momentous accomplishment, they're ready to turn the page with six freshmen, a junior transfer and returning sophomore Kara Beissel looking to carry on the tradition. Beissel waited her turn behind the veteran lineup last season, but she stepped up in a big way when she was called upon and was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Final Four.
- Beissel's scoring average is a team-best 20.31 pins per frame, and she's been the team's top scorer in Baker play with a 20.75 average per frame.
- Amy Chrzanowski, a junior transfer from FDU, is the most-experienced collegiate bowler on the roster. She primarily bowled fourth in the Knights' lineup last season, earning Second Team All-NEC honors and helping FDU to the NCAA Tournament. She placed 15th at two tournaments in the fall, the Chelsea Gilliam Penguin Classic and the Colonial Lanes Classic.
- Freshman Leyna Kratzer was the team's top individual finisher in its first two tournaments. She finished seventh at the Chelsea Gilliam Penguin Classic to open the season, and she placed 13th at Destination Orlando. Kratzer was injured and did not compete at the Colonial Lanes Classic.
- Kratzer owns the Penguins' top average in traditional play at 213.0.Â
- This is Youngstown State's 10th season as an intercollegiate program, and Doug Kuberski is entering his seventh full season as head coach. He took over midway through the 2018-19 season, and he has gone on to lead the Penguins to five NCAA tournaments and three Final Four appearances. Kuberski is a two-time National Coach of the Year (2020 and 2024) and a two-time conference coach of the year (2020 and 2023), and he earned his 500th victory at YSU on Oct. 19 against Vanderbilt. Madyson Marx, a First-Team All-American last season and a five-year member of the program, has joined the staff as a graduate assistant, and Mackenzie Olesky is in her third season as an assistant coach.
Up Next
Youngstown State will head to Arlington, Texas, next week for the prestigious PVAMU Invitational. The event at The ITRC will begin on Jan. 23 and finish on Jan. 25.
