NORTH KANSAS CITY, Mo. (4/7/21) – Making its 13th consecutive NCAA Championship appearance, the Arkansas State bowling team went 2-0 in regional play Wednesday to secure a spot in the NCAA Collegiate Bowling Championship Region 3 final Thursday afternoon at AMF Pro Bowl Lanes in North Kansas City, Mo.

“The first match against Delaware State, I thought the lanes played to our liking,” said A-State head coach Justin Kostick. “In the North Carolina A&T match, we got off to a bad start because of how those lanes were playing and the contrasting styles the two teams have. Down 3-1 in the bracket, we caught a lucky break in the 10th frame of game six to roll the two pin and we used the momentum to win game seven. It takes breaks like that to win a National Championship and today presented a good start on our journey. I was very proud of the resolve of our team to come back and win despite the adversity we saw today.”
 
The Red Wolves opened with a sweep of Delaware State and rallied past No. 3 overall seed North Carolina A&T to finish the day 2-0. A-State defeated Delaware State 1,049-845 in traditional play and then topped the Hornets 991-911 in the 5-game Baker.
 

Red Wolves win the Baker round and defeat Deleware State 2-0.
A-State will face the winner of the North Carolina A&T—Prairie View A&M match at 4pm. #WolvesUp x ??: https://t.co/UeMnfb0jw1 pic.twitter.com/KXJTZrplYc

— Arkansas State Red Wolves Bowling (@AStateBowling) April 7, 2021

North Carolina A&T jumped ahead of A-State with a 1,061-874 total in traditional play to force the Red Wolves to comeback. A-State answered in the 5-game Baker winning by a total of 974-857 setting up a decisive Baker best-of-seven series.
 

What a comeback!

Down 3-1 in the Baker series, A-State completes the comeback to win!

Red Wolves finish 2-0 on the day and await winner of NC A&T and Delaware State tomorrow at 3 pm #WolvesUp pic.twitter.com/JQzmdiubjR

— Arkansas State Red Wolves Bowling (@AStateBowling) April 8, 2021

A-State took the first game 245-205, but the Aggies took the next three games (193-165, 204-179, 170-165) putting the Red Wolves on the brink of defeat. A-State took the fifth game 211-192 to stay alive and despite two opens in the frame edged the Aggies 210-182 forcing game seven. The Red Wolves rolled to an impressive 215-166 margin in game seven to clinch the spot in the Region 3 bracket championship match.
 
North Carolina A&T faces Delaware State at 9 a.m. (CT) Thursday with the winner meeting A-State in the regional championship match at 3 p.m. (CT). If needed, A-State would bowl again immediately after in a best-of-seven Baker series to decide which team will advance to the final four. All matches on Thursday will be streamed live on NCAA.com.
 

Original article source: https://astateredwolves.com/news/2021/4/7/womens-bowling-red-wolves-secure-spot-in-regional-final-at-ncaa-collegiate-bowling-championship.aspx | Article may or may not reflect the views of KLEK 102.5 FM or The Voice of Arkansas Minority Advocacy Council