DEPTFORD, N.J. – Making the scheduled 87-mile return trip a day earlier due to forecasted weather in the area, the Kutztown University women's bowling team concluded the Bud Whitman Invitational in fourth place with a pair of ranked victories to highlight a 5-0 record in Saturday's traditional competition at the Bowlero Deptford.
The Golden Bears (5-0 overall) were looking to find the same success from a season ago, and while they used different lineups in four of the five games on Saturday, all of them produced wins for KU. After a tight, 798-796 win over Coppin State, the Maroon and Gold had its way in each of the remaining four games against Caldwell (881-752), No. 22 Felician (824-791), Dominican (N.Y.) (849-821) and No. 17 FDU (923-900).
Kutztown's fourth-place finish in a field of 10 teams came by way of their overall pin total (4,275), just behind the likes of No. 11 Sacred Heart (4,709, 5-0), Dominican (N.Y.) (4,393, 4-1) and No. 17 FDU (4,304, 2-3).
Seniors Madison Brenneman (York, Pa./Central York) and Shelby Wunch (Easton, Md./Easton) bowled a 177 and 165, respectively, to lead the way for Kutztown's season-opening win over Coppin State, a two-point victory that would be the closest contest of the day. Head coach Angela Reynolds rolled out a starting lineup of Wunch, the Brenneman sisters, sophomore Miranda Pielhau (Waretown, N.J./Southern Regional) and rookie Isabella Hopper (Mifflinville, Pa./Berwick).
It was the younger Brenneman who took center stage in game two, as Kamryn Brenneman's (York, Pa./Central York) 199 and Wunch's 188 powered the Golden Bears past Caldwell. Wunch once again shined in the Felician contest, as the senior rolled a team-high 185 to push KU past a ranked Golden Eagles squad. The first 200-pin games of the year came courtesy of Madison Brenneman (York, Pa./Central York) and Wunch, who bowled a 210 and 201, respectively, to handle Dominican in game four, giving the Chargers their only loss of the day.
The Golden Bears faced its toughest-ranked opponent in No. 17 FDU, and Kutztown was up to the test in their final game of the night. Hopper rolled a team-high 213, with Wunch coming in with a 211 for her highest mark of a stellar day for the Easton, Md., native. Each Brenneman sister rolled over 175, and the Maroon and Gold was able to handle the Knights, 923-900.
On top of the Brenneman sisters, Wunch and Hopper starting all five games, Reynolds was able to get time for Pielhau, Ashley Kuster (Virginia Beach, Va./Tallwood), Brooke Heimbach (Boyertown, Pa./Boyertown), and Sydney Snyder (Morrisville, Pa./Conwell-Egan Catholic), with the latter playing in the second and final games of the afternoon.
Wunch took home All-Tournament honors after a fourth-place individual performance, amassing a five-game average of 190 with a day high of 211. Madison Brenneman (York, Pa./Central York), who finished ninth with a mark of 182.8, narrowly missed the seven-player field.
With the inclement weather canceling the final day of competition in New Jersey, the Golden Bears will hibernate until the home opener, the Golden Bear Invite, which will take place Saturday, Nov. 1, and Sunday, Nov. 2, at Berks Lanes in Sinking Spring, Pa.
