Cheesman, Coutta, MacQuisten and Rickert claim All-SSAC honors

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (March 2, 2023) – The Milligan University women's bowling team won all three major Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) awards and had four all-conference picks, the league office announced on Thursday.

Freshman Emily Cheesman was named the SSAC Co-Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and to the All-SSAC First Team. Freshman Elizabeth Coutta joined Cheesman as an All-SSAC First Team selection. Freshman Laci MacQuisten and graduate student Brianna Rickert were named to the All-SSAC Second Team.

"To have four of our women collect all-conference honors is a testament to their drive and determination to work hard and play for each other," said head coach Brian Rickert. "They are truly the closest group of women I've ever coached."

Cheesman enjoyed a standout debut season as one of the nation's top freshmen in all of college bowling. She ranked fifth nationally among rookies and 51st overall with a 192.397 average. Cheesman collected four all-tournament honors and took home individual titles at the Tier 1 Bowlero Southern Classic and the Mid-South Brandon Burns Memorial. Cheesman ranked No. 17 in the nation with a 197.654 Tier 1 average with two Tier event averages over 216 pins.

"Emily has put together a phenomenal freshman season and I'm sure this is the first of many awards for her over the course of her college career," said Rickert.

Coutta joined Cheesman as one of the top freshmen in the country as she ranked 16th nationally among freshmen with a 186.345 average. Coutta logged seven top-25 finishes in 10 appearances with a pair of top-10 finishes. In Tier 1 events, Coutta ranked No. 27 nationally with an average of 194.296 pins. She posted a season-best 212.17 at the Hoosier Classic to finish 12th in a field of over 400 bowlers.

MacQuisten was the No. 20 freshmen nationally with a 180.679 average. She earned all-tournament honors at the Mid-South Conference Brandon Burns Memorial and had four top-10 showings and six top-25 finishes.

Rickert set a career high with a 181.281 average across 57 games in her fourth season of collegiate bowling. She finished in the top half of the field in all seven events in which she bowled each individual game and logged three top-25 finishes with a top-10 showing at the SCAD Shootout. Rickert was also named to the SSAC Champions of Character Team and SSAC All-Academic Team.

Head coach Brian Rickert was honored as the SSAC Women's Bowling Coach of the Year.

"I'm humbled and thankful to receive this honor by my peers," said Rickert. "There are some great coaches in our conference who have accomplished so much more than I have and I hope to have a portion of the success they have had in my future years at Milligan. Honestly, I couldn't do anything without the awesome, talented student-athletes I have been blessed to coach."

In the first season of Milligan women's bowling the Buffs won the SSAC Championship and earned an automatic bid to the NAIA National Championships later this month. The Buffs are headed to the United States Bowling Congress sectionals in Smyrna, Tenn. on March 11-12.