FIELD SET FOR 2019 INTERCOLLEGIATE TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS

ARLINGTON, Texas – The teams advancing to the 2019 Intercollegiate Team Championships were determined at four sectional qualifiers this weekend.

The ITC, the pinnacle event of the United States Bowling Congress Collegiate season, will welcome the top 16 men’s and top 16 women’s teams to Poelking Lanes South in Dayton, Ohio, from April 18-20 to determine which teams will claim the coveted Kerm Helmer Cup awarded to the winner in each division.

Both the men’s and women’s finals will be taped for broadcast and televised on CBS Sports Network in May. The women’s championship round will air May 7, and the men’s title match will be shown May 14. Both shows will start at 8 p.m. Eastern.

The teams advancing to the ITC were determined through four sectionals across the country – Stratford, New Jersey; Smyrna, Tennessee; Addison, Illinois; and Dallas – with the top four men’s and top four women’s teams from each sectional earning spots in Dayton.

Each sectional consisted of 64 Baker games over two days, with total pinfall determining the top four teams in each division.

In Stratford, the Maryland Eastern Shore women cruised to the top spot by more than 550 pins, finishing with a 12,476 total. Pikeville finished second with 11,915, Webber International was third with 11,885 and Delaware State earned the final spot with 11,804.

The Webber International men relied on the strength of a strong final round to record the victory in Stratford with 13,140. Notre Dame-Ohio was second with 12,823, while William Paterson took third with 12,451. Rochester Institute of Technology collected the final spot with a 12,396 total.

The top spot in the women’s field in Smyrna came down to the final frame as St. Ambrose’s Natalie Koprowitz delivered a strike on her first shot of the 10th frame to secure the win for the Fighting Bees with a 12,502 total. Stephen F. Austin was second with 12,497, while Indiana Tech earned its first trip to the ITC after finishing in third with 12,421. Mount Mercy took the fourth spot from Smyrna with 12,010.

The St. Ambrose men also were victorious in Smyrna after a dominating performance. The Fighting Bees led the field by 684 pins, finishing with a 13,518 score. Savannah College of Art and Design-Savannah was second with 12,834, and Wisconsin-Whitewater was third with 12,663. Emmanuel will make its ITC debut after finishing in fourth with 12,545.

Defending ITC champion Lindenwood rolled to the win in the women’s division at Addison, posting a 13,040 total. Robert Morris-Illinois was second with 12,838, while Duquesne will vie for the Helmer Cup for the first time after finishing in third place with 12,563. St. Francis-Illinois grabbed the final spot with 12,478.

Calumet finished at the top of the standings in the men’s division at Addison, recording a 13,078 total. Lindenwood was second with 12,674, while Lawrence Tech jumped all the way from 11th place to third Sunday, finishing with 12,387. St. Francis-Illinois was fourth with 12,363.

The Robert Morris-Illinois men, the top-ranked team at the conclusion of the USBC Collegiate regular season, did not advance out of Addison, placing in fifth with 12,312.

In Dallas, the McKendree women rolled to the top spot with a 12,913 total. Alabama-Birmingham was second with 12,410, and Wichita State was third with 12,389. William Penn edged Newman by 10 pins for the final spot with a 12,065 total.
 

Wichita State won the men’s division in Dallas with a 13,050 total. McKendree, the defending ITC champion on the men’s side, finished second with 12,913, and William Penn was third with 12,550. Grand Canyon will make its first ITC appearance after claiming the final spot in Dallas with 12,336.

The top individual performers also qualified for a spot in Dayton this weekend and will have the opportunity to win a national title at the Intercollegiate Singles Championships, which also will head to Poelking Lanes South. The dates for the ISC will be April 16-17 and 20.

The singles portion was contested at each of the sectional sites Friday, with the top 24 men and top 24 women advancing to the ISC based on six-game total pinfall.

Visit BOWL.com/ITC and BOWL.com/Sectionals for results, livestream links and more.