Milligan Men’s Bowling Wins in First Round, Women Fall to Loser’s Bracket at NAIA Championships

Milligan men’s bowling earned the No. 5 seed and won their first round matchup in bracket play over Culver-Stockton to move to round two in the winner’s bracket on Friday
Milligan men’s bowling earned the No. 5 seed and won their first round matchup in bracket play over Culver-Stockton to move to round two in the winner’s bracket on Friday
March 21, 2025

STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. — The Milligan University men's and women's bowling teams began their NAIA National Championship pursuits on Thursday afternoon in Sterling Heights, Mich., as they both began their days by qualifying as the No. 5 seed in their respective tournaments. The men's team would then win their first round contest with ease, while the women fell just short in a 4-3 loss in their seven-game set.

To begin the day, the two squads played 24 baker games, which is equal to six baker sets. When all was set and done, the Buffaloes men scored 5,051 pins in qualifying, placing 58 pins out of the fourth-place spot. That solidified their matchup with the No. 12 qualifier, Culver-Stockton College. For the women, it was a 4,774-pin showing in the baker sets, which also placed them fifth. They would match up with Morningside in the first round of bracket play.

The men's first round battle in bracket play with Culver-Stockton began in inauspicious fashion, as they scored just 162 pins and dropped the first tilt. That would be thinly one that they would lose, however, as they took 206-204, 224-184, 300-139 and 223-212 wins to clinch the contest. Their perfect 300 in their third win of the series was the only perfect performance of the entire day.

Milligan's men will now play against the St. Francis Fighting Saints at 8 a.m. on Friday morning with the majority of the tournament being played over the course of the remainder of the day.

On the women's side, the Buffs had an up-and-down battle with the Mustangs of Morningside. They would fall 195-184 to start the bout, but would win their next two 208-169 and 223-169. A 183-172 loss would the preclude a 203-190 win to put the teams at a 3-3 tie with the deciding seventh game to be played. Milligan managed only 188 pins in the finale, while the Mustangs took the victory with 203.

The Buffs will have to fight back through the loser's bracket, as they will face off with the loser of the Saint Xavier and Concordia matchup tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. The Lady Buffaloes will have to win four matchups tomorrow to have an opportunity to continue their tournament into the final day on Saturday.