TOURNAMENT BRACKET
NCAA DAY ONE VIDEO RECAP

(RICHMOND HEIGHTS, Mo., April 12)—McKendree University picked up two wins on day one competition at the 2018 NCAA National Collegiate Bowling Championship Thursday at Tropicana Lanes in Richmond Heights, Mo.
 
The Bearcats opened the day by sweeping Saint Francis University (Pa.) 2-0 before outlasting Arkansas State University 2-1 early Thursday evening to move along in the winner's bracket of the tournament. McKendree will bowl Friday at 3 p.m.against either the University of Nebraska or North Carolina A&T State University. A win by McKendree would put the Bearcats into the NCAA Championship title match Saturday evening at 5:30 p.m., which will be televised live by ESPNU. 
 
In a revised format for the 2018 NCAA National Collegiate Bowling Championship, matches in bracket play are best-of-three affairs. The first segment is one traditional team game, followed by five Baker games where the winner is determined by total pin fall. If teams are tied after the first two segments, then the schools square off in a best-of-seven Baker contest to decide the winner.
 
On Thursday, McKendree, the No. 2 seed in the eight-team field, opened its tournament run against seventh-seeded Saint Francis. The Bearcats grabbed the early lead in the match by winning the traditional portion of play 1087-971. In the five games of Baker play, McKendree edged out to a slight lead in the first two games before the teams tied at 224 in game three. Saint Francis rallied to win the fourth game by two pins and rolled out to an early advantage in the fifth and final game. However, McKendree reeled off five consecutive strikes from the fifth through ninth frames to take the lead for good. The Bearcats won the final game 227-190 and advanced past the Red Flash by winning the Baker contest 1074-1021.
 
The win over Saint Francis helped McKendree move on in winner's bracket play to face third-seeded Arkansas State University. The Bearcats and Red Wolves opened with a classic battle in the traditional match. Arkansas State led for a good portion of the contest before McKendree grabbed the lead in the ninth frame. The Bearcats then held off a late charge from the Red Wolves to win the opener by just four pins, 1009-1005.
 
In the five Baker game segment, the Bearcats won a high-scoring affair 278-259 in game one before the Red Wolves caught fire. Arkansas State took command over the final four games to win the pin count and knot the match at 1-1. That forced a best-of-seven Baker event to decide the winner.
 
After the teams traded wins over the first two games, McKendree rolled to a 243-221 win in game three to build a 2-1 advantage. The Bearcats then scraped by the Red Wolves 176-175 in game four, thanks to a 3-10 split conversion by senior Sarah Wille in the ninth frame followed by a spare and pin count by sophomore Breanna Clemmer in the 10^th frame to get the Bearcats to the brink of victory. Arkansas State rebounded to take game five to pull within 3-2, but McKendree closed out the match win with a 214-165 triumph in game six.