The Bowling Bears took on their first out-of-conference tournament Saturday, Nov. 2, at the third American Heartland Bowling Association (AHBA) event in Sandusky, Ohio. The men’s and women’s teams were originally scheduled for the Buckeye Classic in Columbus, Ohio, that weekend, but it was re-scheduled, and the Bears were able to pick up the third AHBA tournament in its place. In their first tournament outside of the OBC this season and first-ever participation in an AHBA tournament, they did not disappoint.
Out of nine women’s teams, Shawnee State came in second with a pinfall total of 5040. Leading the charge was senior Olyvia Bittner. With an average pinfall of 190, Bittner finished second in a field of over 50 female bowlers. The women’s team has only ever had two individual winners in previous years. Other notable showings for the women’s team include freshman Onesti Evans, who finished fifth with a 186 average as well as senior Hannah Rearick, who finished seventh with a 181 average.
On the men’s side, Shawnee State came in third out of seven total teams, with the highlight of the weekend being sophomore Zach Ison winning the program’s first ever individual championship. Ison threw a 938 tot
al over four games, finishing 15 pins above runner-up Lane Marlatt of Erie Community College. Also coming out of the tournament with a top-five finish was senior Sam Clay. Clay finished with an 867 total. In another notable showing, sophomore Jaylen Summler finished 11th with a total of 775.
“It was a great day for SSU bowling,” head coach Bryan Sturgell said after the tournament. “We competed on a very rough condition but battled towards the top all day. Men came away with a third-place finish, and the women came away with a runner-up finish. We had our first men’s individual champion with Zach Ison leading the field and striking out to win by 15 pins. Sam Clay also had a great day and came away with a fourth-place finish. Olyvia Bittner led the ladies with a nice second-place finish with a solid 236 in game four. Onesti Evans performed well and came in fifth. All four earned all-tournament honors for their performances. It was great to see both teams fight all day and be proud of their efforts! It was exciting seeing them compete for a win, even though we came up short, the effort was there.”
The Bowling Bears will be back in action this weekend, Nov. 9 and 10, in Dayton, Ohio, for the Raider Classic put on by Wright State University.
