Tournament Spots all but Locked up in Bowling
JACKSON - Going into the final day of the SWAC Bowling East Round-up, six teams are one step closer to punching their ticket to the 2012 SWAC Championship tournament.
Alabama A&M is the front-runner in the East at 9-1. The Bulldogs won all five of their matches on Saturday, running their overall record in the two round-ups to 20-4. Alabama State stayed close behind, winning 3-of-5 after going 5-0 on Friday. Jackson State is tucked in at third at 5-6, while Mississippi Valley is all but done at 0-11.
In the West, Prairie View is still on top, despite being bitten by the upset bug. PVAM was very impressive sweeping there five matches on Friday, but dropped a pair on Saturday, including a surprising loss to Grambling. At the end of the day, PVAM was 8-3, a game ahead of Southern who is 7-4. Texas Southern is in third at 4-6, while Grambling still has a chance going into the final day at 2-8.
The top three teams in each division at the conclusion of Sunday's matches will advance to the 2012 SWAC Bowling Championship tournament on March 2-4 in Arlington, Texas.
In addition to teams earning tournament spots, the hunt for individual honors is tightening up. The top five highest average bowlers will earn first team All-SWAC honors. The second five highest will make up the second team.
After Saturday, the five leaders in average are Melanie DeCarlo (AAMU) 202.3, Danielle Walker (ASU) 193.7, Shannon Pearson (SU) 193.2, Addileen Pointer (AAMU) 190.2, and Cynthia Veney (PVAM) 190.1. Walker is also the favorite to claim SWAC Freshman of the Year honors.
Here are Saturday's results.
Round 1 - 10:00 AM
*Southern 869, Grambling State 810
*Alabama A&M 874, Jackson State 799
Prairie View 978, Alabama State 810
Texas Southern 844, Mississippi Valley State 678
Round 2 - 11:00
Texas Southern 860, Alabama State 784
Prairie View 886, Mississippi Valley State 796
Alabama A&M 958, Grambling State 812
Southern 960, Jackson State 820
Round 3 - 12:00
*Grambling State 880, Prairie View 763
Alabama State 874 Southern 819
*Jackson State 931, Mississippi Valley State 740
Alabama A&M 957, Texas Southern 855
Round 4 - 1:00
*Alabama A&M 899, Mississippi Valley State 640
Texas Southern 939, Jackson State 843
Alabama State 872, Grambling State 803
*Prairie View 869, Southern 850
Round 5 - 2:00
*Alabama State 823, Jackson State 790
Alabama A&M 930, Prairie View 887
*Southern 877, Texas Southern 861
Grambling State 695, Mississippi Valley 662
