Big Red End Fall with Third Place Finish

Fairview Heights, Ill. - The fifth-ranked Nebraska Bowling team finished the Bearcat Classic in third place, going 10-3 over three days with a 13,872 pinfall and 207.0 average. The Huskers went 1-2 on day three.

The first opponent NU faced was defending national champion and first-ranked Jacksonville State in a five game Baker match to complete the round robin. The Gamecocks were in first place going into this game with the Big Red in second. The Huskers last set of starters for the fall were Desiree Buchert, Haley Swindle, Alejandra Sandoval, Kayla Starr and Karina Capron. Jax State was electric out of the gate, tossing 269 to Nebraska's 183 to win the first game with ease. They continued to show why they were ranked No. 1 with a 234-182 victory in game two. Taylor Kretz entered the third game for Sandoval and swapped positions in the lineup with Swindle. The Gamecocks put together a 247-187 trouncing in game three. The Big Red put up a fight in game four, winning 224-195 to cut into the Gamecocks' lead, but Jax State finished off the game with a 213-165 game five to hand the Huskers their second loss of the tournament, 1,158-941.

The Big Red remained in second, setting up a rematch against No. 3 Wichita State in the first bracket match. The winner would go on to play for the tournament championship. The Huskers adjusted their lineup, putting in Brenna Hartzler for Swindle at the three-hole. The Big Red were the first to strike, winning game one 227-153. The Shockers responded with a 210-184 victory in game two before the Huskers answered back 204-179 in game three. WSU won two straight, taking game four 224-187 and game five 193-167 to come within a game of taking the match. Nebraska rallied in game six to win 258-218 and force a game seven. The Shockers prevailed 222-195 as a split from NU in the ninth frame was the deciding factor. The 4-3 loss sent the Huskers to the third place match.

The final match of the weekend was a rematch against Jacksonville State. The Big Red opened the match with a gritty 183-176 win before the Gamecocks answered with force in a 246-160 game two. NU responded with a close 212-211 win in game three to take the series lead. They followed it up with another close win in game four, 228-223. The Big Red sealed it with a dominant 269-225 win in game five to take the series 4-1 and secure a third place finish for the weekend.

Buchert received all-tournament team and MVP honors for her first place individual performance. She recorded a pinfall of 1,105 with a 221.0 average over five games on Saturday.

The third top-three finish of the season for the Huskers wraps up the fall slate. They next play in 2027 when they travel to the First State for Sacred Heart's Northeast Classic from Jan. 15-17 in New Castle, Del.

Stay up to date with the action by following Nebraska Women's Bowling on X (@HuskerBowling), Instagram (@huskerbowling) and Facebook.