ERIE, Pa. - - Senior Rachel Hirst and sophomore CC Riojas led the Wilmington University bowling team to a second-place finish in traditional matches on day one of the Mercyhurst Invitational on Saturday afternoon at the Rolling Meadow Lanes, hosted by Mercyhurst University.
The Wildcats went 4-1 in head-to-head matches and finished second with a total pinfall of 4,610 pins, going for a 184.4 match average. CC Riojas and Rachel Hirst were named to the All-Tournament Team after finishing in a tie for fifth place with 1,001 total pins on Saturday.
Wilmington's lone loss on the day came on the first match of the day, falling to Duquesne, 839-812. Duquesne leads the tournament after the traditional matches, going 4-1 with a total pinfall of 4,931 (197.2 average).
The Wildcats came back to defeat PSU-Behrend, 903-704, host Mercyhurst, 896-860, Roberts Wesleyan, 975-835, and had their best showing in match five, defeating D'Youville, 1,024-824. The 1,024 pins are sixth most in program history for a single traditional match.
Individually, CC Riojas and Rachel Hirst each had the 10th and 11th five-match total over 1,000 pins in Wilmington program history. They finished tied for fifth and earned All-Tournament for their efforts.
CC Riojas' best match came against Roberts Wesleyan, going for 256 pins. That is tied for third most in a single match in program history, setting a new personal record and tying former teammate Bailey Peter and Sinoda Cook. She also had 207 against Mercyhurst and 204 against PSU-Behrend.
Rachel Hirst got to her 1,001 total with a day's best 235 against D'Youville in the last match. She also had a 225 against PSU-Behrend, and a 208 against Duquesne.
KC Miller had the best match of the day for the Wildcats, proving to be the second-best match in Wilmington program history. She bowled a 275 against D'Youville, the second most by a Wildcat. Only Sinoda Cook's perfect 300 game is a better score than Miller's 275. She finished in seventh overall with a 969, going for a 193.80 average. She also bowled a 212 against Roberts Wesleyan.
Sydney Jones finished in 19th overall with an 830 total pinfall, going for a 166 average. She had a day's best 202 against Mercyhurst.
Malia Stout finished in 30th with a four-game total of 659, going for a 164.75 average. She had a day's best 192 against Roberts Wesleyan.
Desiree Dent bowled against Mercyhurt, putting up a score of 150 for the Wildcats.
Daemen's Caitlyn Nowak earned medalist honors on Saturday by bowling a 1,135 for a 227 average. Duquesne's Olivia Fawell finished second with a total of 1,062 while teammate Kiearra Saldi finished third with a 1,044.
The Wildcats are back in action on Sunday, with three Baker matches followed by two Bracket Baker matches to determine a champion.
Mercyhurst Invitational Traditional Scores
T5th – CC Riojas – 163-204-207-256-171 – 1,001 (200.20 avg.)
T5th – Rachel Hirst – 208-225-147-186-235 – 1,001 (200.20 avg.)
7 – KC Miller – 133-159-190-212-275 – 969 (193.80 avg.)
19 – Sydney Jones – 136-191-202-129-172 – 830 (166.00 avg.)
30 – Malia Stout – 172-124-xxx-192-171 – 659 (164.75 avg.)
49 – Desiree Dent – xxx-xxx-150-xxx-xxx – 150 (150.00 avg.)