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READING, Pa. (January 29, 2011)—The Kutztown University women's bowling team moved up two positions and is currently in fourth place after two days of the KU Invitational at Hiester Lanes. Sunday will conclude the biggest NCAA tournament of the season with the best four of seven baker matches. (CLICK HERE FOR FULL RESULTS)
The Golden Bears (50-16 overall) enjoyed a special day that involved honoring senior Kayla Stamm (Reading, PA/Governor Mifflin) with flowers as she took center stage with her parents. That wasn't the only thing sweet treat in the packed Hiester Lanes. Family and friends of the KU bowling team had a bake sale that consisted of freshly baked cookies, chewy fudge brownies, donuts of every variety, and cupcakes of every color.
Kutztown gave its fans plenty to cheer about as it won five of its six matches on the day to raise its overall record to 50-16. The Golden Bears beat Saint Francis-NY 969-939, North Carolina Central University 1014-741, Penn State-Altoona 1038-957, Florida A&M 982-873 and Adelphi 975-850. KU's only blemish of the day was an 1101- 972 defeat to Vanderbilt.
To get things rolling Stamm led the Golden Bears with a 205 against St. Francis.
“She is a big part of our team,” Jara Cohen (Marlton, NJ/Cherokee) said. “She always steps up as a captain and upperclassmen and it's going to be sad without her but others will have to step up.”
After falling to Vanderbilt, the Golden Bears changed their vibe, found their tempo, and made some adjustments by changing the rotation with Cohen and Chelsea Adam (Reading, PA/Exeter Senior High).
With the help of Samantha Santoro (Reinholds, PA/Cocalico ) and Cohen, KU breezed by NCCU. Santoro rolled a 257 against the Eagles. She is fourth out of 185 bowlers with a 1310 pin fall. Cohen added a 223 in the victory.
In game four it was Deanna DiRado (Greensburg, PA/Greensburg Salem) who stepped up and led KU with a 238 against PSU-Altoona.
Cohen was the Golden Bears' guide as she brilliantly helped Kutztown close its final matches of the day. Adam put out a 249 performance against the Rattlers.
“It feels really great to be able to come off the bench and really help the team out,” Adam said. “You never want any teammate to do badly but if something like that happens you always feel good knowing that you're someone who can come in and help.”
But with all the treats and other luxuries going on during the tournament, all 28 teams knew that it was showtime. Before the six traditional team matches began, one could find the Rattlers of Florida A&M doing jumping jacks in unison. Members of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore doing arm stretches, Morgan State and Saint Peter's College stretching its quads, and Long Island doing exercises to help its legs. Some teams simply gathered for small pep talks and enjoyed the laughs of their teammates before they put their game faces on for the seven hour competition.
To keep the momentum and the entertaining atmosphere of the tournament, fans also enjoyed a raffle that featured several prizes. The cherry on top of the afternoon was the appearance of Kutztown's president Dr. F. Javier Cevallos. Since the inaugural Kutztown Invitational, Dr. Cevallos has made it a priority to support the women's bowling team in its biggest home event of the season.
The Golden Bears have a nice position with its secure fourth place position but know that they will have to work continuously to maintain or surpass that spot.
“This is the start to the second half of our season and we're not only proving to ourselves but to others that we are a force to be reckoned with as a top ranked team,” Cohen said.
The final day of the Kutztown Invitational will begin at 8:30 am. Fans can catch the tournament live on bowl.com.
