READING, Pa. – The Felician University women's bowling finished in third place in the inaugural East Coast Conference Championship tournament, hosted by Kutztown University on Friday and Saturday at Hiester Lanes. Felician defeated Franklin Pierce University in an elimination match on Saturday to move into the top three, before bowing out to the host Golden Bears.
Individually, the Golden Falcons placed two bowlers among the top half of the field. Sophomore Jessica Zalewski (Barnegat, N.J./Barnegat) shot 894 for the five traditional team matches on Friday, for an average of 178.8. Out of 34 competitors to start at least one match, Zalewski's pin total placed her 12th. Right behind in 13th was Felician sophomore Kristin Natoli (Freehold, N.J./Howell) with an 880 (176.0 average).
The ECC had six members for women's bowling in 2015-16. The teams were paired against each other in five round-robin traditional matches to start the competition and then seeded based on won-lost record. The top two teams received a bye into Saturday's four-team double-elimination bracket.
The byes went to Kutztown (5-0) and Franklin Pierce (4-1). Felician (2-3, 172.3 avearge) had to win its way into the last four by participating in a four-team double-elimination round Friday evening and Saturday morning. The eliminations matches were in a Baker best-of-seven format, and the Golden Falcons knocked out Daemen University, four games to one, early Saturday to advance
In the four-team playoff, the teams started a separate double-elimination event. Felician lost in six games to Kutztown, the No. 15-ranked team in the nation, in the opening round. The Golden Falcons then defeated FPU, 4-2, before falling to the Golden Bears again, 4-0, to finish third.
Adelphi University, ranked 21st nationally, won the conference title with a championship-round victory over Kutztown.
Felician concluded the second varsity intercollegiate season in program history with a won-lost record of 45-64.
