Collegiate Ticker - Jan. 19, 2022

The Mount Mercy women collected their first Tier I title of the 2021-2022 season, and the St. Ambrose men successfully defended their title last weekend at the Kegel/Illinois State Bowling Proprietors Association Midwest Collegiate Classic.

The event was held at Stardust Bowl in Addison, Illinois, with BowlTV.com covering select pairs during the tournament. The women's varsity division featured 57 teams, while 68 men's varsity programs competed at the 84-lane venue.

The Kegel/ISBPA Midwest Collegiate Classic featured two squads each day, with five traditional games Saturday and 20 Baker games Sunday. Total pinfall determined the champion in each division.

The women's division featured a two-team battle for the top spot between Mount Mercy and Wichita State. Wichita State held a 13-pin advantage after Saturday's traditional block, with both teams averaging more than 208 on the day.

The two remained close during Sunday's Baker competition, but the Mustangs closed with 268, 246, 248 and 222 in their final four games to make up a 49-pin deficit and win with a 9,461 total.

Wichita State finished in second with 9,399, and Tennessee Southern was third with 8,968.

Mount Mercy's Jenna Williams earned top individual honors in the women's division with a five-game total of 1,194, a 238.8 average.

St. Ambrose's Megan Hess turned in her fifth consecutive top-five performance and finished second with 1,155. Davenport's Kasey Eaton (1,122), Wichita State's Addie Herzberg (1,105) and Tennessee Southern's Emily Crone (1,102) also made the all-tournament team.

In the men's division, St. Ambrose held a 33-pin lead over Savannah College of Art and Design-Savannah after five traditional games, averaging 222 as a team. The Fighting Bees continued to strike during the Baker block, averaging better than 223 for 20 games to earn the victory with a 10,021 total.

St. Ambrose won the 2020 edition of the Kegel/ISBPA Midwest Collegiate Classic, and the win marked the team's second Tier I victory of the year. They also captured the top spot at the National Collegiate Team Match Games in November.

SCAD-Savannah finished second Sunday with 9,773, and Wichita State was third with 9,644.

In his season debut, St. Ambrose's Cameron Crowe led the men's individual field with a 1,233 total Saturday, a 246.6 average.

Midland's Tyler Hunter finished second with 1,229, while SCAD-Savannah's Tyrell Ingalls (1,224), Tennessee Southern's Hayden Stippich (1,209) and Marian-Wisconsin's Gavin Suprenand (1,200) also finished in the top five.

In other collegiate action:

- At the Stormin' Blue and White Vegas Classic in Las Vegas, the McKendree women rolled 299 in the deciding game against Stephen F. Austin to record the 4-3 victory.

- At the Hawk Invitational in Rome, New York, the Erie CC men and Rochester Institute of Technology women finished at the top of the leaderboard.

- At the Southeastern Shootout in Anderson, South Carolina, the Webber International women and men completed the sweep.

- At the Devil's Duel in Glendale, Arizona, the Grand Canyon men recorded a one-pin victory over California State-Fresno.

- At the Antelope Shootout in Glendale, Arizona, the Grand Canyon men rolled in Baker competition to complete the weekend sweep.

- At the Viking Classic in Fairfield, Connecticut, the Sacred Heart women and Nassau CC men rolled to big wins.

- At the Garden City Invitational in Garden City, New York, the Nassau CC men and Sacred Heart women each added a second victory for the week.

For the full schedule of collegiate events, results and more, visit BOWL.com/Collegiate and CollegeBowling.Bowl.com.