The national champions in the Beehive
Photo Courtesy of Gyorgy Domonkos
Story by: Gyorgy Domonkos, BuzzStaff Writer
“This remarkable achievement is a testament to the talent, discipline, and determination of our student athletes and the outstanding leadership of Coach Littig and his staff,” says SAU President Dr. Amy Novak on the SAU men’s bowling team’s first national championship title.
“BuzzStaff“ writer Gyorgy Domonkos asked the members of the national championship team how they felt on the big stage, what the hardest part of their season was, and what their expectations are going into the new season.
Green Bay, Wisconsin, hosted the annual Intercollegiate Bowling Championship, where the SAU men’s bowling team won the team and the singles championships. In the team championship final, SAU defeated sister school, NAIA champions Mount Mercy University. In the singles championship, sophomore bowler Tyler Close was crowned champion.
In the team’s championship, the Bees started strong as they defeated Marian University, then came Wichita State. In the third round, they faced Southern Nazarene University.
Junior bowler Devin Richards credits the success behind the victories on the heart his team showed during the championship.
Freshman bowler Elias O’Hollaren agrees. “There were some close matches there, but everyone in the team knew what they needed to do. There is plenty of confidence in these guys, and this helped us get through these matches.”
Evan White, a sophomore bowler, adds, “A lot of people would say that we had the tougher side of the bracket. We went up against a lot of good teams. Not saying that there weren’t good teams all around, but I think that was another huge confidence boost that we had to beat a lot of other reigning national champions.”
In the semifinals, the Bees faced Marian University again, as they qualified, beating everyone on the second-chance bracket.
Junior bowler Kendrick Siders said that they knew that the Marian team would be tired because they had to play to qualify for the semis. They knew that the key to this victory was to be patient and just to play their game, and they would be able to qualify for the finals.
“I feel like, over the course of the year, we’ve made it clear that this team can beat anyone in the country. So, in that environment, I just think we’re able to click together and ultimately just become a lot better than the other teams,” says Keaten Bieri, a junior bowler.
In the final, they faced Mount Mercy. The team was a little nervous because it was their first live televised match, but they came over this obstacle to win the national championship title.
“We knew going into that match, it was going to be hard. With all the lights and the cameras and everything, it was nerve-wracking. We just had to stay patient and make the proper moves, just make good shots, and we knew we could beat them,” says Siders.
Lucas Hersrud, a junior bowler, also says they knew the Mount Mercy guys well. They train and compete with them and have a lot of good friends over there. “We see them all the time in tournaments. As they came out for the final warm-up, they played well, and we became a little bit nervous. But we stuck to our game, and we managed the clutch situations better, and in the end, we won.”
Singles Champion Tyler Close says that he felt good while playing singles, and this helped him with his victory.
“I almost failed to qualify; I got in by one pin. This gave me the eighth seed and a bye to round one. In the second round, I got a guy from Wisconsin who had a good second part of his season. It wasn’t an easy match, and the score was 660 to 650, which was the highest-scoring game in the entire playoff. After this game, I found a good form, and I managed to keep the momentum going until the final, where I won.”
The bowling season is long, as they play from late August to April. They had some low points during their season. The only thing the team mentioned as their lowest point in the season was losing two seniors.
“The lowest point was January because we lost two seniors due to ineligibility. It threw a wrench into the system. But we had Elias and Evan step up from JV, and they filled the void. After that, it felt like nothing had changed,” said Hersrud.
The team says that being part of this is special. They say that they have a special connection between them, and that helps them be better. Bieri says, “We’re probably not the most talented team that has come through Ambrose. But it felt pretty good to work together and get the job done.”
As for what to expect from them next season, Hersrud predicts, “I don’t want to call it early, but you could probably expect a back-to-back.”
