GCU Bowling finishes 1st at West Coast Collegiate Championships
Story And Photo Courtesy Of GCU Club Sports.
Fresno, CA. - - - The Grand Canyon University Men's Bowling team secured their first United States Bowling Congress Collegiate tournament win of the season at the West Coast Collegiate Team Championships in Fresno, California, finishing in first place at the Day 2 event on Sunday.
The Lopes bowled well to start Day 1 of the event, earning a first-round bye in bracket play thanks to their overall total pinfall of 7230. In the ensuing round of eight, GCU beat San Jose State University JV, but then lost to Fresno State University in the semifinal round.
"We were definitely focused on correcting what happened in our previous tournaments," said GCU Bowler Anthony Scharton. "We put an emphasis on our communication and made sure to do a better job of helping each other make adjustments."
The second day featured a much more complete effort from GCU, but also a different format for competition. The Lopes bowled three team-game matches followed by eight two-game Baker matches and one final four-game Baker match position round to complete their championship run Sunday. Grand Canyon went 9-3 to secure their victory, beating Arizona State University in a crucial position-round match along the way.
"One of our key words from this weekend was capitalize," said Scharton. "Regardless of how the weekend started, there were going to be moments - either created by our team or our competition - for us to capitalize and get ahead."
One unique angle to the weekend was the absence of GCU Head Coach Ben Canfield. Assistant coaches Matt Adragna and Riley Dempsey stepped up to lead the squad over the weekend.
"We definitely missed Coach Canfield, but [his absence] also allowed us to really show our belief in the entire coaching staff," said Scharton. "We have remarkable depth in both the athletes and the coaching staff, and there's a great deal of trust that goes both ways."
For Scharton himself, much like the GCU Bowling team, the season to this point has been about building confidence and momentum. After rehabilitating a surgically repaired ligament on his right wrist, nothing is taken for granted. Two top-10 individual finishes this weekend and a team sweep of USBC ranking points (thanks to total pinfall on the weekend) is certainly a great way to start his senior campaign.
"It was definitely a grind to get back," said Scharton. "I was in a cast for three months and then began physical therapy as soon as I could after that. I owe a lot to my coaches and teammates for giving me confidence to get right back to it."
Now the Lopes' squad has a week until it departs for Las Vegas, Nevada, for the Glenn Carlson Las Vegas Invitational and Collegiate Shootout tournaments on December 18-19 and 20-21, respectively.