The #13 Sacred Heart University women's bowling team won all three of its matches on Sunday to finish NEC Meet #3 with a 5-1 mark and capture the 2020 Northeast Conference regular season title. SHU finished the NEC regular season at 13-5, 52-33 overall, a game in front of 10th ranked Duquesne.
The Pioneers clinched the crown in the final game of the final match. Tied 3-3 with St. Francis Brooklyn, the Pioneers won the deciding game by one pin, 166-165.
The Pioneers are the top-seed in the NEC Championship, March 20-22. Duquesne will be the two-seed, Long Island University will be the three-seed, with Fairleigh Dickinson fourth and Mount St. Mary's fifth.
SHU returns to action March 6-8 at the Columbia 200 Music City Classic in Smyrna, Tenn.
Match 4 (SHU 4, Duquesne 3)
- Duquesne opened the match with three consecutive wins, winning by 23, 14 and 10, to take a 3-0 lead
- SHU bowled back-to-back over 200, with a 203-174 win in the fourth and 204-190 in the fifth
- The Pioneers drew even, 3-3, with a 171-141 win and saved their best score for the decisive game seven, winning 211-171 to capture the match
Match 5 (SHU 4, SFU 2)
- SHU won the first game, by a pin, 150-149, before the Red Flash tallied back-to-back wins (197-168 and 236-224) to take a 2-1 lead
- The Pioneers bowled 202 and 226 in games four and five, winning by 59 pins and 63 pins to jump in front 3-2
- SHU won the sixth-game 181-138 to earn its 12th NEC victory of the season
Match 6 (SHU 4, SFBK 3)
- The Terriers won the first two games, 189-181 and 192-176
- The Pioneers answered with two straight wins, 169-131 and a convincing 212-159 to even the match
- SFBK eclipsed 200 in the fifth, taking a 3-2 lead with a 201-159 victory
- SHU bowled its top score of the match in the sixth, evening the score at 220-165
- The final game was a nail biter, with SHU earning a one-point victory, 166-165, to secure the title
