COLUMBUS, Ohio – National Champions!! National Champions!! 
 
The McKendree University women's bowling team capped off the 2022 season by capturing the program's second-ever national championship here Saturday evening as the top-ranked and No. 1 seeded Bearcats downed eighth-ranked Stephen F. Austin, 4-0, in a best-of-seven Baker match play format at Wayne Webb's Columbus Bowl and in front of a national television audience on ESPNU.
 
"It's pretty amazing when you get to watch a group of young ladies you love as your own, make their dreams become a reality," McKendree head coach Shannon O'Keefe said following the match. "We are truly blessed to have a school that supports us the way they do and a team that loves each other first, we are proud to bring this title home to McKendree."

 
Saturday's national title was the first for the Bearcats in women's bowling since 2017 and just the 12th overall national title in the history of McKendree Athletics as the women's wrestling team has captured three consecutive NCWWC National titles and the McKendree women's indoor track & field program captured four straight NAIA national titles from 1999-02, while the men's indoor track and field team won the 2001 NAIA national title and the women's outdoor team won the 1999 NAIA national title. The 2011 women's bowling team claimed the NAIA National title. 

The Bearcats, who faced elimination after falling 2-1 in Friday's opening mega-match of the National Collegiate Bowling Championships Final Four to Stephen F. Austin, responded by winning three straight matches, including picking up a 2-1 win in an elimination mega-match on Saturday morning to No. 4 ranked Vanderbilt to secure a spot in the championship final.

Unlike Friday's opening round match to the Ladyjacks, where the Bearcats lost all nine of their Baker format games, the Bearcats did not lose a game in Saturday night's best-of-seven Baker games as the Bearcats swept the Ladyjacks.


 
The 4-0 sweep by McKendree in Saturday's national championship final match was just the second in the 18-year history of the national championships as the only other 4-0 sweep in the finals came by McKendree in 2017 as the Bearcats won the title that year with a 4-0 sweep of Nebraska.
 
In Saturday night's match, the Bearcats line-up consisted of fifth-year senior Isabella Correa Sarmiento (Cali, Colombia/Colegio Leonistico La Merced), fifth-year senior Britaney Myers (Mechanicsville, NY/Stillwater), junior Maranda Pattison (Redwood Valley, Calif./Ukiah Independent), junior Rebecca Hagerman (Loves Park, Ill./Harlem) and senior Hope Gramly (Prosper, Texas/Prosper).
 
The Bearcats got off to a strong start in Saturday's best-of-seven Baker game format match as they picked up a 201-188 win to take a 1-0 lead in the match. In that game, the Bearcats recorded seven strikes led by Sarmiento, Pattison and Gramly each rolling two strikes. 
 
In the second game, the Bearcats used three strikes in the 10th frame from Gramly to post a come-from-behind 2001-188 win to take a 2-0 lead.
 
The third game was the closest of the night as it came down to the 10th frame, but SFA's anchor bowler, Carlene Beyer, needed to record at least two strikes to give the Ladyjacks the win, but she only recorded one strike and that helped give the Bearcats a 186-182 win to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the match. In the game, Gramly recorded three strikes, but her had streak of six straight strikes snapped with a seven on her final roll in the 10th frame. 
 
Leading 3-0 in the match, the Bearcats made sure not to give SFA any momentum in the fourth game as they dominated from the opening frame en route to posting a 215-189 win to seal the Bearcats' national title. The 215 was the highest scoring game of the match for either team. In the final game, the Bearcats had five strikes, including Pattison rolling two strikes. 

For the match, Gramly led the way with nine strikes and one spare, while Sarmiento had five strikes and three spares and Pattison finished with four strikes and four spares.
 
Following the conclusion of the championship, Pattison and Gramly were the two Bearcats named to the National Collegiate Bowling Championships All-Tournament Team, while Gramly, who was named a repeat Division II National Player of the Year on Thursday, was named the Tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Gramly is the second McKendree player to earn Most Outstanding Player honors as Breanna Clemmer earned the honor in 2017.
 
Here are the complete results from the 2022 for the National Collegiate Bowling Championships Final Four: