INDIANAPOLIS, IN – The Notre Dame College bowling teams boarded a bus to Indiana to compete in the Hoosier Classic on February 15 and 16. Contested at Royal Pin – Western on the final weekend of the regular season, the Hoosier is the biggest college tournament of the year. The Falcon women finished 11th out of 64 teams, while the men placed 34th in a 77-team field.
Battling for a spot among the eight teams advancing to match-play, the women's team was in eighth place late in the second day of competition before stumbling in the final set of five Baker games. The team's strong showing still earned them enough Team Ranking System points to finish the regular season ranked among the nation's top-20 women's teams, a status they had previously enjoyed for eight consecutive seasons through 2017-18.
Senior
Jessica Shufelt led all Falcon bowlers, averaging 207 for six games on Saturday, with a high score of 241 in the second game. Shufelt's total pinfall was 20th among the 419 women competing in the event. Senior
Alexandria Dick and junior
Meghan Ritzinger each averaged 201 during Saturday's block of team games.
The men were led by junior
Dean Vargo, who averaged 197 for six games. His total pinfall was 77th among the tournament's 525 men. Junior
Conner Novak contributed a 194 average for Saturday's block of team games. Junior
Daniel Marriott averaged 201 for three games. Vargo and Marriott each posted a 246 score.
The Notre Dame men ended the regular season ranked 27th among 191 teams competing in the USBC Collegiate men's division, snapping a string of nine consecutive seasons in the top-20.
The men's division of the Hoosier Classic was won by St. Ambrose University, while Mount Mercy University claimed top honors in the women's division. Wichita State University topped both the men's and women's season rankings.
The Falcon bowlers will head east on March 14 and 15 to compete in an Intercollegiate Team Championships Sectional Qualifier in Stratford, New Jersey, where four teams from each 16-team field will advance to the national finals in April.
