(LEBANON, Ill., Oct. 8)—The McKendree University men's bowling team kicked off its 2019-20 season in style over the weekend by winning the Midwest Collegiate Championships. The two-day tournament featured 40 teams and was held in Milwaukee, Wis.
 
The Bearcats won the team title with a grand total of 9,575 pins. McKendree held off a late charge from runner-up Savannah College of Art and Design to win by 108 pins. Notre Dame College from Ohio rounded out the top three at the event with 9,346 pins.
 
This is the second consecutive year that the Bearcats won the Midwest Collegiate Championship title. McKendree again outlasted a field of 40 teams to win the 2018 event by 147 pins over Saint Ambrose University. The Bearcats won a total of five team championships during the 2018-19 season on its way to a third-place showing at the season-ending Intercollegiate Team Championships.
 
In the final individual standings of the 2019 Midwest Collegiate Championships, McKendree had three bowlers who registered top-25 finishes for the weekend. Junior Jacob Nimtz (Loves Park, IL/Harlem) led the way in ninth place with 1,296 pins to average 216 for his six-game block. Senior Bryan Hahlen (Greenwood, SC/Greenwood) took 21^st place in the field with 1,253 pins for a 208.83 average, while fellow senior Charlie Reid (San Antonio, TX/Sandra Day O'Connor) was close behind in 23^rd with 1,247 pins for a 207.83 average.
 
McKendree will return to action this weekend with its first appearance at Andy B's Invitational in Springfield, Mo.