Collegiate Ticker - Jan. 26, 2022

With the 2021-2022 USBC Collegiate postseason quickly approaching, the Calumet men and St. Ambrose women gained some momentum with strong performances in Baker competition to collect wins in their respective divisions last weekend at the Storm Baker Classic.

The event was held at Stardust Bowl in Addison, Illinois, and featured 11 men's varsity programs and 12 teams in the women's varsity division. All teams bowled 40 Baker games over two days, with the top eight teams in each division advancing to a bracket. Each bracket round featured a best-of-five Baker format.

In the men's division, Calumet averaged more than 217 during qualifying to earn the top seed for the bracket with an 8,701 total. St. Ambrose was second with 8,425, and Saint Xavier was third with 8,155. Lewis earned the last spot in the bracket with 7,179.

Lewis seized the early advantage in the first round against Calumet, taking a 2-1 lead. The Crimson Wave bounced back with wins in Games 4 and 5 to take the match, 3-2. Calumet collected a 3-1 victory over No. 4 Mount Mercy in the next round to set up a match against Saint Xavier for the title.

Saint Xavier advanced to the final with wins over No. 6 Purdue (3-1) and St. Ambrose (3-1).

In the championship round, Calumet captured the first two games and completed the sweep with a 256-177 win in Game 3.

Mount Mercy was the top qualifier in the women's division, finishing with a 7,419 total. St. Ambrose qualified second with 7,289, nine pins ahead of Saint Xavier (7,280). Coe advanced to the bracket in eighth place with a 6,689 total.

In the bracket, St. Ambrose recorded wins over No. 7 Rock Valley (3-1) and Saint Xavier (3-0) to earn a spot in the final against top seed Mount Mercy.

Mount Mercy posted wins against No. 8 Coe (3-1) and No. 4 Calumet (3-2) to advance to the title tilt.

The Fighting Bees and Mustangs exchanged wins during the first four games to move onto a deciding fifth game. St. Ambrose took the finale, 192-155, and collected the title by a 3-2 margin.

In other collegiate action:

- At the Northeast Classic in Deptford, New Jersey, the Vanderbilt women won the final three games in the bracket final to defeat top seed McKendree, 4-2.

- At the Peacock Classic in Waterloo, Iowa, the Valparaiso women averaged 221 in their final three wins to record a 4-3 victory over Marian-Wisconsin.

- At the Seahawks Invite in Staten Island, New York, the Adelphi women led the way in total pinfall.

- At the Ohio Bowling Conference No. 3 in Columbus, Ohio, the Muskingum men and Walsh women each collected wins by less than 25 pins.

- At the American Heartland Bowling Association No. 4 in Toledo, Ohio, the Lawrence Tech women made their run to the top of the standings during Baker competition, while the Wright State men rolled to victory.

- At the Mid-South Conference Cincinnati Collegiate Classic in Cincinnati, the Tennessee Southern men and St. Francis-Illinois women led the way over nine traditional games.

- At the Westchester Invitational in West Babylon, New York, the Westchester CC women and Suffolk-Grant men finished at the top of the leaderboard.

- At the Southwest Intercollegiate Bowling Conference (SWIBC) No. 5 in Dallas, the Newman men and Wichita State women were victorious.

- At the SWIBC No. 6 in Plano, Texas, the Wichita State women completed the weekend sweep, while the Wichita State men captured the top spot over seven traditional games.

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