Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University bowling team earned runner-up at the 2024 NCAA Championship Pittsburgh Regional Saturday at AMF Mt. Lebanon Lanes. The Dukes opened with a monumental comeback over No. 15 Maryland Eastern Shore, 2-1, to advance to the regional championship, where they battled No. 1 Jacksonville State before dropping a 2-1 decision. Duquesne tied a program record for victories, matching its 70-34 (.673) overall record from last season.
NO. 15 UMES
In its first elimination match of the Pittsburgh Regional, the Dukes posted a comeback for the ages. For the third consecutive occasion in the NCAA Championship, Duquesne dropped action in the traditional match as UMES earned a 962-904 victory. The Hawks were bolstered by Alejandra Amezcua, who rolled nine strikes in posting a 258. The Dukes were led by graduate student
Kiearra Saldi, who registered seven strikes and finished with a 228.
THE COMEBACK KIDS
The back-and-forth affair was established in the second match of the series, as neither team owned a lead of larger than five pins in baker play through four games. UMES grabbed game one, 191-186, before the Dukes jumped on top with a 213-203 win in game two. The Hawks responded with a 183-174 win in game three to grab a four-pin advantage before Duquesne grabbed the lead right back by five pins after a 173-164 triumph in game four. In the deciding game five, the Dukes got hot late, firing strikes in the seventh, eighth and ninth frames and opening the 10th frame with another en route to a 199-182 win and forcing a third match.
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"The bakers are a huge energy component, and I think we have a certain togetherness that is hard to come by with most teams," sophomore
Emma Siekierski said. "We always say 'light the flame.' We pass the torch from one person to the other. It's unfortunate to go down 0-1, but we have so much trust that we feel we can come back from anything."
THE BARN BURNER
UMES wasted no time in the deciding third match, grabbing a 3-0 lead in the best of seven with victories of 245-198, 236-178 and 201-192. Duquesne began its climb in game four with a 221-147 win that included another late surge, as strikes in each of the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth frames propelled the Dukes. A tie between the two programs, 199-199, in game five necessitated Duquesne win both games six and seven to force a modified roll-off. The Dukes did just that, winning by one pin in game six, 172-171, before earning a 189-158 triumph in game seven. In the roll-off, which featured frames six through 10, Duquesne opened with a strike, seized control with another in the ninth and completed its charge with a strike on its final roll in the 10th to close out an 86-71 win. Duquesne won the best of seven, 4.5-3.5, and secured the match, 2-1.
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"An amazing match," head coach
Jody Fetterhoff said. "That's a match where you hate to see anybody lose. It's the postseason, and that's what you want it to come down to. I couldn't be more proud of the fight in these guys. It was a tall task, but this team knows that we may be down but we're never out."
NO. 1 JACKSONVILLE STATE
At the conclusion of a match against the Hawks that fell eight minutes shy of five hours, Duquesne faced another rematch with the Gamecocks. The traditional opener was a nip-and-tuck tilt, with JSU pulling out a 980-962 win in the 10th frame. Siekierski and senior
Shannon Small helped steady the Dukes, with Siekierski posting a 233 to lead all bowlers in the opening match and one of five to register at least a 200. She opened with strikes in five of the first six frames and posted eight overall, with Small contributing five more en route to a 212.
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
Moving into baker action, Duquesne did what it did best all weekend by battling back. The Gamecocks grabbed an early 20-pin advantage after two games and stretched the cushion to 27 after four before the Dukes caught fire in game five. In each of the first six frames Duquesne registered a strike before settling for a nine-pin spare in the seventh. Two more strikes in the eighth and ninth frames helped ignite the Dukes to a 1,022-999 victory, a 23-pin advantage and force a third game.
THE DECIDING MATCH
Duquesne carried the momentum of its win in baker play in total pinfall to the first game in the best of seven, earning a 188-157 triumph. Jacksonville State followed by edging the Dukes, 240-234, in game two, before posting a 234-198 win in game three. It set the stage for the Gamecocks to win four consecutive games and claim the match, 4-1, the series, 2-1, and the title of the NCAA Championship Pittsburgh Regional.
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"You can't ask for more from your team," Fetterhoff said. "We battled. We pushed the No. 1 team in the country to the third match. We threw phenomenal shots and gave it everything we had. You can't ask for more. The thing about this team, each match this weekend we made the adjustments. It's that trust and belief in ourselves that we can have those big games and step up when we need them."
UP NEXT
Duquesne will return to postseason action with a trip to the ITC Championships that begin Thursday, April 18 and run through Saturday, April 20. The Dukes are competing in the event for the second straight year and fourth time overall, with Kingpin Lanes in Jeffersontown, Ky., serving as host.
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"It's just amazing to see where this program has gone to from my freshman year," senior
Brenna Gleim said. "It's amazing to have a team that is absolutely family. This is what women's sports is all about. We couldn't do it without each other. Every shot I threw today was for them, it wasn't for myself. I'm just proud of all the girls."
DID YOU KNOW?
The win over UMES in the first elimination match Saturday helped the Dukes, who were making their second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Championship and third in the last four years, reach the Elite Eight for the first time. In three trips to the Big Dance, the Dukes are 4-6 (.400) overall after going 1-2 in each of their previous two appearances.
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