By: Story from Belmont Abbey Athletic Communications

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Belmont Abbey advanced out of the play-in round of the NCAA Bowling Regionals for the second straight year on Thursday, sweeping its matchup against Prairie View A&M to earn a spot in tomorrow's main draw. The Crusaders won the traditional team match by a score of 963-832 to take a 1-0 lead, then earned the sweep with a 903-878 win in the five Baker total pinfall match for the 2-0 victory.

The Abbey will now face No. 1 overall seed and defending national champion Jacksonville State Friday morning at 10:00 a.m. (ET), looking to advance to the winners bracket. A second match would follow at 3:30 p.m. (ET).

Junior Canan Bademci posted the top score of the individual round at 269. After a spare in the first frame, she registered seven straight strikes before a spare in the ninth. The game ended with a perfect 10th of three strikes in a row. Asha Glover totaled 191 pins, while Jolie Boudreau added 177 pins. As a team, the Crusaders had 28 strikes and 15 spares over the 50 frames.

In the five Baker total pinfall format, Belmont Abbey trailed by four pins after the first round, but posted back-to-back +29-pin margins in next two games to take the lead. Prairie View rallied for its best game in the fourth with a 200, cutting the margin to just 14 pins heading into the final round. There, the Crusaders rolled six strikes and two spares enroute to a 204  to clinch the victory.

MEGA-MATCH (Belmont Abbey wins 2-0)

TEAM GAME (Belmont Abbey wins 963-832 and leads 1-0)

• Canan Bademci -- 269
• Jolie Boudreaux -- 177
• Asah Glover -- 191
• Aubrey Lloyd -- 157
• Tara Kuster -- 169

FIVE-GAME BAKER TOTAL PINFALL (Belmont Abbey wins 903-878)
 

Team	1	2	3	4	5	TOTAL
Prairie View A&M	173	165	147	200	193	878
Belmont Abbey	169	194	176	160	204	903