NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (4/14/16) – The Arkansas State women's bowling team registered a 3-2 record Thursday afternoon in its first five matches of the seeding round at the 2016 NCAA Women's Bowling National Championship being held at Brunswick Zone Carolier Lanes in New Brunswick, N.J.

The Red Wolves (83-33) dropped their first match of the day to Central Missouri 1,047-971 with Jordan Richard registering the team's high score with a 234. However, the team bounced back with a 1,009-936 win over Vanderbilt with Richard leading the way again with a 235, while Jordan Kasza subbed in and played a pivotal role in helping the team top the Commodores.

A-State bowled an impressive 1,160 in match three to best North Carolina A&T's 922 with Stephanie Mims posting a 256 to lead the team, while Richard and Jadee Scott-Jones both tallied scores of 246. The squad fell to Sam Houston State in the fourth match of the day by a score of 1,104-1,034 with Mims leading the way again with a 257. Arkansas State responded strongly in its final match of the day to record its best score of 1,161 to defeat McKendree's 1,066. Scott-Jones tallied the best score of the day for the Red Wolves with a 258, while Mims (247) and Kasza (237) were both impressive.

“We had a pretty good day today, but didn't come out as strongly as I would have liked,” A-State head women's bowling coach Justin Kostick said. “We weren't as focused in our first match, but were able to turn it on after that. Even the Sam Houston match we lost we didn't bowl bad. We're not in a bad spot though and this round is more about getting a feel for the lanes. It's great to be a higher seed, but at the end of the day it's about gathering information and we definitely accomplished that.”

Richard is tied for second overall in the individual standings after five matches with a total pinfall of 1,134 (226.8 per game average), while Mims is fourth after registering a pinfall of 1,121 (224.2 per game average).

Sam Houston State is atop the field with a 4-1 record, while A-State, Nebraska, and Vanderbilt are all 3-2. McKendree, Central Missouri, and North Carolina A&T are 2-3, while Stephen F. Austin went 1-4. There will be two more seeding round matches Friday morning, beginning at approximately 9:50 a.m. (CT), before the bracket is set. Arkansas State plays Stephen F. Austin in its first match tomorrow before finishing the seeding round with Nebraska.

At the conclusion of the qualifying rounds, teams will then compete in best-of-seven Baker matches in the double elimination tournament beginning Friday, April 15 around 2:30 p.m. (CT). In the Baker format, each of the five team members, in order, bowls a complete frame until a complete (10-frame) game is bowled. A Baker match tied at 3½ a piece after seven games will be decided by a tiebreaker using the Modified Baker format.

The championship final will air on ESPNU Saturday, April 16 at 5:30 p.m. (CT), while a tape delay broadcast of the championship final will air on ESPN2 Sunday, April 17 at 5:30 p.m. (CT).

For the latest on the A-State women's bowling team, fans can follow the squad on Twitter (@stAtebowling) and by liking the Arkansas State Women's Bowling Facebook page.