The Saint Francis bowling team posted a 2-1 record on Sunday to finish the second Northeast Conference tournament with a winning record at the Trindle Bowl in Mechanicsburg, Pa., over the weekend.

HOW WE GOT HERE 
Despite the early morning start, the Red Flash (26-27, 9-5 NEC) were able to get comfortable on Sunday, using a solid lineup to power their way to a pair of wins over No. 15 Fairleigh Dickinson and No. 24 Merrimack.

The first match saw the Frankies defeat Merrimack for the first time in program history, ending a four-match losing streak against the Warriors since their inception a season ago. While Merrimack had their way in game one, the Red Flash settled in to take the remaining four games on their way to a 50-point win over the Warriors, adding fuel to the fire that helped them in the second match of the day.

Saint Francis proceeded to outduel Fairleigh Dickinson in the second of three matches, using key performances from senior Samantha Timm and sophomore Ayanna Carroll to secure a winning record on the weekend. A pair of 200+ pin games helped the cause, including a 231 game that featured five consecutive strikes and at least nine pins knocked down in the first attempt of the first eight frames.

The Red Flash finished out the weekend over No. 11 Duquesne, and while the Frankies tried to get an edge on the Dukes, they owned the match and the weekend, topping the Frankies and capping off their perfect 7-0 record on the weekend while securing first place in the conference standings.

WEEKEND RECAP
The two-day conference tournament was the first of two baker-style tournaments in the conference's regular season tournament series, with the first coming in mid-November and the third scheduled for mid-February. This edition of the tournament became interesting as the lane conditions at the Trindle Bowl made it difficult for teams to bowl at their full potential, evident in the weekend's low scoring games and high foul rate compared to other NCAA bowling tournaments. 

Saturday saw the squad fight to a 2-2 record, having their way against Long Island and Niagara while falling to Sacred Heart and Wagner. The Flash used team efforts to achieve wins in the first and last matches of the day, while it was a challenge to get anything going in the mid-day matches.

Sunday's 2-1 record was a welcome sight after the up-and-down opening day. Two confidence-building wins not only gave the Red Flash a winning record on the weekend, but padded their third-place conference standing after the first two conference regular season tournaments.

In the end, Saint Francis pulled a 4-3 record against NEC competition over the two-day tournament, coming out of the first two conference tournaments with a 9-5 combined conference record that places the Red Flash in third place alongside Merrimack. 

LANDWEHR OUT
Senior bowler Kassidy Landwehr concluded her collegiate bowling career this past weekend, as the fourth-year bowler competed in her usual fourth and fifth positions in her final tournament for the Red Flash.

The Red Flash went 3-1 in matches where Landwehr started as the anchor bowler this weekend, and the hole she leaves behind will require an individual who is a leader both on and off the lanes come the new year.

The Summerville, S.C., native is the first of four seniors to graduate this season. She will conclude her Criminal Justice and Pre-Law studies at the end of this semester, allowing her to graduate in the 2023 winter class. Landwehr plans on attending the Red Flash Invitational on January 26-28, where she will be honored alongside fellow seniors Emma Meade, Marissa Metcalfe and Samantha Timm.

SUNDAY'S RESULTS
SFU 929, No. 24 Merrimack 879
SFU 962, No. 15 Fairleigh Dickinson 922
No. 11 Duquesne 983, SFU 817

POLL IMPLICATIONS
The National Tenpin Coaches Association polls will be released later this month, making this the last tournament before the midseason edition of the official rankings are released.

The most recent NTCA polls came in the preseason, where the Flash received votes in the polls but were omitted from the top 25 rankings. The NTCA rankings placed Saint Francis as the sixth-best team in the NEC. Since then, the Red Flash have knocked off three top-10 teams while facing a stacked Northeast Conference slate that features four teams ranked in the top 25.

UP NEXT
The Saint Francis bowling team will return to the lanes in 2024, where they will compete in the Northeast Classic on January 19-21 at the Bowlerama Lanes in New Castle, Del. The tournament, along with most others, will be live-streamed on Facebook Live, while the latest updates will be posted on the team's X page.

For more information on the Red Flash, visit sfuathletics.com and follow RedFlashBowling on Facebook, Instagram, and X.