FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS, Ill. – The top-ranked McKendree University women's bowling team opens its 2022-23 season here this weekend by hosting its annual season opening Bearcat Roto Grip Open at St. Clair Bowl. The tournament, which began in 2017, was formally known as the Bearcat Hammer Open until this season.

A total of 11 teams will make the trip to St. Clair Bowl to compete in this weekend's event hosted by the defending NCAA National Champion Bearcats. Six of the 11 teams competing this weekend are ranked in the Preseason National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) poll.

In addition to preseason No. 1 ranked McKendree, the tournament field includes third-ranked Nebraska, 15th-ranked Maryville, 21st-ranked Central Missouri, 24th-ranked Lincoln Memorial and 25th-ranked Newman University. Additionally, the other teams competing are Kentucky Wesleyan, Mercyhurst, Quincy, Tusculum and Upper Iowa.

This weekend's event get underway on Friday, Oct. 21 at 9:40 a.m. with five sets of five-game Baker matches, followed by five traditional games on Saturday, Oct. 22. On Sunday, Oct. 23, the teams will play a sixth traditional game to solidify their place for Sunday's bracket-play championship play. In the bracket play championship round, each team will compete in a best four-of-seven Baker-style match beginning at 8:30 a.m.

Nebraska is the defending champion of the event as the Huskers defeated the Bearcats, 4-3, in last season's championship match of the Bearcat Hammer Open. Since the event began in 2017, McKendree has finished as the runner-up two times (2017 and 2020) and third the other three times (2018, 2019 and 2020).

The Bearcats come into the 2022-23 season returning seven of its top 10 players from last season's national title team, including three-time NTCA All-American graduate student Hope Gramly (Prosper, Texas/Prosper). Gramly has also been named the Division II/Division III Player of the Year the past two seasons. In addition to Gramly, two other All-Americans return to the Bearcats' line-up – seniors Rebecca Hagerman (Loves Park, Ill./Harlem) and Maranda Pattison (Redwood Valley, Calif./Ukiah Independent).

Along with those three returning All-Americans, McKendree head coach Shannon O'Keefe also welcomes back junior Isabel Allen (Tarnworth, England/Polesworth High), who was the Great Lakes Valley Conference Freshman of the Year in 2021 and has added Vanderbilt graduate student transfer Angelique Dalesandro (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Vanderbilt).

Bearcat Roto Grip Open Teams Competing:  
No. 1 McKendree 
No. 3 Nebraska 
No. 15 Maryville 
No. 21 Central Missouri  
No. 24 Lincoln Memorial 
No. 25 Newman 
Kentucky Wesleyan 
Mercyhurst 
Quincy 
Tusculum 
Upper Iowa