Two scoring systems. One consistent finish.
The Grand Canyon University Bowling team participated in the 12th Annual Devil's Duel and 7th Annual Antelope Shootout over the weekend - both at Glenfair Lanes in Glendale – with the varsity squad placing 2nd in both tournaments.
Devil's Duel
The GCU varsity team started quickly, placing 1st after the qualifying matches and earning a first-round bye for the bracket play that followed. After beating California Polytechnic University in the semifinals, GCU advanced to the final against Fresno State University, falling in a best-of-five series, 3-1.
"We got out to a really good start - thanks to some solid individual performances," said GCU Head Coach Ben Canfield. "Even though we didn't come out on top against Fresno State in the finals, the team continues to learn valuable lessons that will be important down the line."
Three Lopes' bowlers finished in the top five for the Devil's Duel: Nick Barrieault (2nd), Tom Ellis (4th), and Josh Molloy (5th).
The JV2 squad also not only experienced their first USBC Collegiate tournament action of the season but won the JV bracket.
"It was really cool to see them out there competing," said Canfield. "It rounded out a solid showing for the whole program."
Antelope Shootout
The 7th Annual Antelope Shootout followed a total-pinfall scoring system, allowing squads to play four team games and 16 Baker games to rack up as many pins as possible.
"We started a little slow and never found our rhythm," said Canfield. "Arizona State (University) bowled well all day. We never had much of an opportunity to climb back into it."
The slow start put the Lopes in a spot where they were unable to catch the red-hot Sun Devils, who secured first place by 154 pins.
Molloy snagged his second top-5 finish of the weekend, placing 4th while earning all-tournament honors in the process. Lopes' JV bowler Justin Kocher finished right behind Molloy in 5th, his best finish ever.
With a month to go in the 2022-23 regular season, the Lopes jumped into the top 25 for the USBC Collegiate rankings for the first time. The Lopes head back out on road next weekend for the Sin City Open and Rebel Classic tournaments in Las Vegas, Nevada.
