NEC Championship Central | Video Highlights of KU-SFU (PA)
 
ALTOONA, Pa. – The 11th-ranked Kutztown University women's bowling team dropped a pair of matches on Championship Sunday as its time at the Northeast Conference (NEC) Championships came to a close in the semifinals at Holiday Bowl in Altoona, Pa.
 
Kutztown (80-49) opened the day as the only team that won both of its matches and went undefeated on Saturday. It faced off against St. Francis Brooklyn in the semifinal match, but dropped a 4-2 final to the sixth-seeded Terriers. KU then moved on to take on St. Francis (PA), with the winner advancing to the championship match.
 
The teams were tied at 2-2 through the first four games, as both teams showed great signs of why they are two of the top teams in the country. Kutztown notched five strikes in a row and in six of seven frames to trail by three pins after eight frames. Brooke Bower (Camp Hill, PA/Cedar Cliff), Lauren Stamm (Shillington, PA/Governor Mifflin), Rebecca Velazquez (Mohegan Lake, NY/Lakeland), Christine Gordon (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill East), Bower again, and Deanna DiRado (Greensburg, PA/Greensburg Salem) wrapped up the strikes for KU. Saint Francis (PA) responded by closing each of its frames in game five to win 214-211 and take a 3-2 lead.
 
Kutztown opened game six with a strike to get off to a great start in a must-win game six. Unfortunately for the Golden Bears, KU left the third and seventh frames open and dropped the sixth game, 213-170.
 
The Golden Bears will learn their fate in the NCAA National Championships on Wednesday, March 26 at 4 p.m. on the selection show at www.ncaa.com. Either way, Kutztown's season will conclude its season at the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) National Championships in Reno, Nev. on April 14-19.