SMYRNA, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University women's bowling team went 1-2 in championship bracket play to finish 20th at the 2020 Columbia 300 Music City Classic.
Tusculum opened the morning with a 4-0 loss to 18th-ranked Adelphi University in Best-of-7 Baker format. TU bounced back with a 4-2 win victory over Drury University, but in a rematch with Adelphi, the Pioneers fell 4-1 and finish 20th in the 29-team tournament field.
In the victory over Drury, the Pioneers won the first game 180-140, but dropped the second by a score of 177-156. Tusculum dominated the third game 206-128, but DU edged the Pioneers by four pins, 162-158 in the fourth game. TU won the final two game 178-139 and 178-171 to avenge an earlier loss this weekend to Drury.
McKendree University, the top-ranked team in the country, lived up to the billing as they defeated host Vanderbilt and Arkansas State to claim the title. Arkansas State was second, followed by Vanderbilt, Louisiana Tech, Maryland Eastern Shore, Stephen F. Austin, North Carolina A&T, Nebraska and UAB round the top 10.
Lincoln Memorial finished 11th, followed by Sam Houston State, Tulane, Sacred Heart, Maryville (Mo.), Long Island, Wisconsin-Whitewater, Youngstown State, Adelphi and Tusculum to wrap-up the top-20 teams.
Tusculum rookie Raycine Mortensen bowled well during the weekend as she finished 16th of 189 bowlers with her 206 average on Saturday during traditional game play. She bowled over 200 in four of her five matches including a team-best 231 against Aurora. TU junior Tacey Ballen finished in the top-40 with her 194.2 average which included a 217 against Aurora and a 203 against #21 UAB.
Tusculum finished the weekend 4-8 with to move its overall record to 40-56. Six of those eight losses over the weekend came against nationally-ranked teams including three in the top seven in the nation. TU returns to action Mar. 20-22 as the Pioneers compete at the East Coast Conference Champion in Limerick, Pennsylvania.