WICKLIFFE, Ohio. (4/12/12) – The Arkansas state bowling team earned the No. 6 seed after the first day of competition at the NCAA Bowling Tournament at the Freeway Lanes of Wickliffe in Wickliffe, Ohio.

The Red Wolves finished the qualifying round 3-4 and will play No. 3 Fairleigh Dickinson in the first round of baker play at 9:50 a.m. Friday morning.

Arkansas State rebounded in the night session after a rough start in the morning session. The Red Wolves went 3-0 in the afternoon session defeating Sacred Heart, Central Missouri and Nebraska after starting the day 0-4.

“We just came out a little tight and it took a little while to get the lineup right,” ASU coach Justin Kostick said. “My team is pretty dynamic and we’ve got three left handed players so we can kind of change things around a lot and we finally got the lineup right. I played all three lefties in this night block and got almost a 100-over, which in bowling terms we are plus-100.”

In the last match of the night ASU defeated Nebraska 1008-902 behind a strong game from Ashley Rucker. The sophomore left-hander shot a team-high 257 in the match, including five strikes in the first five frames. She also added three strikes in the tenth frame, and struck out in the tenth frame in the three out of the four matches she played in.

ASU picked up its first victory with a 1043-970 win over Sacred Heart in the first match of the afternoon session. Senior left-hander Emily Troutman shot a 244 in the match and hit six strikes in a row, including three in the tenth frame. Ashley Rucker shot a 201 and also struck out in the tenth frame, while Rachael Gittings added a 225.

“It looks like my left-handed players have a really good look,” Kostick said. “We might make some changes in the lineup there. We might move the lefties down to the bottom and we one left-hander who has anchored before so that is a possibility.”

In the afternoon session’s second match, A-State defeated Central Missouri 1039-927. The Red Wolves led throughout much of the match and put the match away with an impressive eighth frame that included a spare and four strikes. Amanda Labossiere bowled a 255 and hit six strikes in a row and just missed her seventh in a row in her last shot in the tenth frame.

A-State started the day with a 1061-1015 loss to Fairleigh Dickinson. The Red Wolves struggled in the early part of the match, but found a groove in the final frames. Sarah Lokker led the team with a 232 game, including two strikes in the tenth frame, while Labossiere finished with a 218 and Troutman bowled a 205.

Against Vanderbilt, the Red Wolves bowled five strikes in the ninth frame and trailed by just seven pins at the start of the tenth frame. Vanderbilt surged, however, while the Red Wolves struggled on the left lane and lost 959-926. Senior Lela Dudley led the Red Wolves with a high-game of 214. Labossiere finished with four straight strikes, including three in the tenth frame to finish with a game of 198.

In the third match against Maryland Eastern Shore, the Red Wolves trailed by just one pin after the seventh frame, but struggled over the final three frames and fell 1003-962. Melissa Lachanski and Kalynn Carl were inserted into the lineup and both gave ASU a boost. Lachanski finished with a 163, while Carl had a 199 including three strikes in the tenth frame. Gittings led the team with a 211 and Labossiere finished with a 205.

In the morning’s final match against Valparaiso the Red Wolves led in the middle part of the match, but struggled down the stretch and lost 897-880. A-State held a 17 pin lead after the eighth frame, but Valparaiso battled back in the ninth frame and took a 15 pin lead. 

Labossiere led the team with a 206.1 average, which was sixth overall on the day. Gittings finished second on the team with a 188.1 average, followed by Troutman (198.4) and Lokker (191.6).