The Anderson University Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) took fifth place in the 10th Annual Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Unified Bowling Championship, which was held on Sunday at Royal Pin Western in Indianapolis.
The HCAC continued its annual partnership with Special Olympics Indiana.
“The Special Olympics Unified Bowling event is always a great day to see how sports brings people together,” Anderson SAAC Advisor Jennifer Myhre said. “It’s fun to team up with Special Olympics to share in the love of the game and we appreciate the AU student-athletes giving their time to serve others.”
The event saw over 120 Special Olympic athletes from Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio as well student athletes from its ten member schools. The day filled with laughs and smiles also showcased some top-notch competitive bowling. Unified sports give athletes with intellectual disabilities and athletes without intellectual disabilities the opportunity to compete together on a team. Each school had a total of three teams, with each team comprised of a total of five, two athletes with intellectual disabilities and at least two athletes without. All teams received ribbons for their respective finishes.
Former HCAC Commissioner Christopher Ragsdale, who was the originator of the event said, “I cannot believe it has been 10 years! I am so very pleased and proud to see how this event has evolved since its inception. I remain so very grateful for the support of my staff (Ryan and Sara), the HCAC membership (SAAC, SAAC Advisors, AD’s and student-athletes) and Special Olympics of Indiana for their commitment to this shared vision Mike Furnish (retired CEO of Special Olympics) and I created. It was our hope at that time that this collaborative event could provide a meaningful and lasting experience for HCAC student-athletes and Special Olympians from area communities. We had hoped that Special Olympians would, for a brief moment, get to experience being a college student-athlete; learning about being a member of a team, commitment, practice and competing for an HCAC Championship. What happened in reality has been a far greater experience than ever anticipated for the HCAC student-athletes. They have learned from Special Olympians about the thrill of competing and the genuine sense of joy experienced from the effort given to achieve success rather than the outcome. I sincerely hope that this event continues to remain a priority for the conference in the years to come!”
The HCAC incorporated the baker scoring system, which consists of five-player teams recording team scores. Each player will throw two frames throughout the game. The tournament consists of five games with each school fielding three teams for five games each.
The Ravens took fifth with a total team score of 1,538.
Anderson Team 1 was represented by Jeffrey Asher, Jacob Short, Jeffrey Short, Gage Lane (Men’s Swimming & Diving) and Noah Singleton (Men’s Swimming & Diving) and recorded a score of 524. Anderson Team 2 consisted of Sean Ferree, Coty Gouker, Adam Hughes, Janet Roundtree and Lauren Brown (Women’s Lacrosse/Women’s Soccer) and posted a score of 525. Anderson Team 3 was fielded by Eli Dehaven, Kerry McCowen, Orion Perez, Marco Beverly (Men’s Basketball) and Tate Ivanyo (Men’s Basketball) and turned in a score of 489.
Bluffton University repeated as the event champion with an overall score of 1,733. Franklin College came in second with 1,661 points, finishing ahead of Mount St. Joseph University (1,545), Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (1,544), Anderson (1,538), Manchester University (1,530), Earlham College (1,492), Hanover College (1,477), Transylvania University (1,370) and Berea College (1,232).
