VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., March 26, 2023 — North Carolina A&T State came from behind to win the 2023 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Bowling Championship on Sunday afternoon, defeating Monmouth University 4-3 at Pinboy’s on the Beach.
This marks the third straight title for the Aggies and their eighth overall.
North Carolina A&T State earns the MEAC’s automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Women’s Bowling National Championship; the Selection Show will air live on NCAA.com on Wednesday, April 29 at 4 p.m. ET.
No. 3 seed Monmouth, which advanced to the championship match earlier on Sunday with a 2-1 Mega Match win over UAB, used that momentum to take early control of the title match. The Hawks won the first game 233-213, on the strength of strikes in frames four through nine, before holding on in the second game for a 185-175 win.
But the top-seeded Aggies, ranked No. 7 in the March 2023 National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) Top 25 Coaches Poll, opened the third game with five consecutive strikes, including tallies from MEAC Bowler of the Year Melanie Katen and Outstanding Performer Lauren Tomaszewski, and did not leave a frame open en route to the 229-174 win.
Monmouth fought back to win game four, 182-178, to take a 3-1 lead in the match, before the Aggies took the fifth game 196-183 — thanks in part to Tomaszewski, who has been named the tournament’s Outstanding Performer each of the last two years, going strike-strike-nine in the final frame.
The Aggies again went without an open frame in the sixth game, recording strikes in frames four through eight and three more from Tomaszewski in the 10th to take that contest 243-190 and set up the decisive seventh game.
From there, the Aggies’ momentum continued. They opened the seventh game spare-strike-strike-spare-spare-strike and kept just enough distance that Monmouth couldn’t catch up — even with four spares and a strike in their last five frames.
North Carolina A&T State won the seventh game 194-163 to clinch the match and the championship.
Aggies coach Kim Terrell-Kearney, the MEAC Coach of the Year, was again named the tournament’s Outstanding Coach. Tomaszewski and Katen both made the All-Tournament Team, as did Monmouth’s Jamie Phelan and Skylar Smith, as well as Jamie Krasginor of UAB.
Outstanding Performer: Lauren Tomaszewski, North Carolina A&T State
Outstanding Coach: Kim-Terrell Kearney, North Carolina A&T State
All-Tournament Team
Jamie Phelan, Monmouth
Skylar Smith, Monmouth
Melanie Katen, North Carolina A&T State
Lauren Tomaszewski, North Carolina A&T State
Jamie Krasnigor, UAB