PITTSBURGH - Eleventh-ranked Duquesne took No. 5 Stephen F. Austin to the final game of the Best-of-7 Baker match before falling to the Ladyjacks 2-1 in the elimination round of the 2023 NCAA Bowling Championship Pittsburgh Regional at AMF Mt. Lebanon Lanes in suburban Pittsburgh.

The Dukes, who earned the second NCAA Championship bid in program history, finished the event 1-2 overall, with a win over Stephen F. Austin on Friday, a loss to top-seeded Nebraska in Friday's afternoon session and the defeat in the rematch with SFA on Saturday.

Duquesne jumped out to an early lead and never let up in taking the traditional round, 1022-946. Shannon Small and Morgan Brookover led DU with a 226 and 224 respectively. Kiearra Saldi had a 199, Ranelle Ulanday posted a 192 and Brenna Gleim contributed a 181 in the win.

DU built a 24-pin lead through the first two Baker games, but saw the match take a 47-pin swing when the Ladyjacks took game three 194-147. The Dukes had four open frames in the game. SFA upped its advantage to 37 though four and pulled away to win 952-887.

The match came down to the Best-of-7 Baker round.

DU took game one 221-174, before dropping the next three to trail 3-1. The Dukes rallied for a 180-139 victory in game five to keep the match alive.

SFA opened game six with four-straight strikes, but left the door open with a pair of open frames. Duquesne marked in nine-straight frames to rally for a dramatic 214-201 win and force a deciding game seven.

The final game came down to the final frames with SFA taking a 192-180 decision.

The Dukes will conclude their season at the Intercollegiate Singles and Team Championships in Las Vegas beginning on April 16.

SATURDAY
Morning session - Elimination Round

vs. Stephen F. Austin (1-2)
Traditional
DUQ 1022, SFA 946
Ulanday 192, Gleim 181, Brookover 224, Small 226, Saldi 199

Baker
SFA 952, DUQ 887
169-157, 183-171, 147-194, 188-202, 200-228

Best-of-7
SFA 4, DUQ 3
221-174 (W), 158-200 (L), 169-190 (L), 227-239 (L), 180-139 (W), 214-201 (W), 180-192 (L)