Barton women's bowling captures first NJCAA National Championship, brining title No. 61 to Great Bend #GoBarton

The Barton Community College women's bowling team broke through on the national stage Saturday afternoon, capturing the program's first NJCAA Women's Bowling National Championship at Royal Scott Lanes in Lansing, Michigan.

After finishing runner-up in the championship's inaugural 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons, the Cougars finally pushed through the door in year seven, securing the title with a 12,025 pin total to deliver Barton Athletics' 61st National Championship to Great Bend. The milestone was short-lived, however, as Barton's men's indoor track and field team added the program's 62nd national title just hours later.

The three-day championship opened Thursday with the singles and doubles competition, followed by team games Friday and concluding Saturday with additional team play and Baker games.

The Cougars set the tone immediately in singles action behind Tailynn Level's individual national championship, rolling games of 202, 278, and 183 for a 663 series, becoming Barton's third individual national champion in program history, joining Taylor Cessna's 2020-21 and Alexandria Newell's 2019-20 crowns.

Joining Level inside the top five in singles were Ellie Weeks, placing third with a 617 series (208, 204, 205), and Anne Timmermeyer, finishing fifth behind a 583 series (182, 177, 224) as the trio became the first in program history to place three bowlers inside the top five. Weeks capped her career weekend performance by rolling scores of 200 or better in five of her 12 games tossed during the championship.

Barton also delivered a strong showing in the three-game doubles competition as the twins of Rose Timmermeyer and A. Timmermeyer combined for a seventh-place finish, rolling games of 368, 334, and 357 for a 1,059 series. Alexis Wareman and Level delivered the Cougars' next highest result, finishing 20th with a 970 series behind games of 300, 333, and 337.

Barton's strong start in the individual events carried into the team standings as the Cougars closed Thursday's opening day atop the leaderboard with 5,411 pins, narrowly ahead of Iowa Central Community College (5,359) and Mid Michigan College (5,285).

Friday's opening three team games saw Barton extend its advantage, pushing its total to 7,980 pins, keeping Iowa Central in second at 7,847 while Mid Michigan remained third with 7,763.

The Cougars carried a 133-pin lead into Saturday's competition as teams returned to the lanes for another three team games before the championship concluded with nine Baker rounds. Iowa Central trimmed the margin to 54 pins, setting up a tight and decisive final stretch.

Over the final trio of Baker rounds, Iowa Central trimmed Barton's advantage to just 12 pins, but the Cougars remained poised down the stretch, never surrendering the top spot while converting in the clutch to secure the program's first NJCAA National Championship with a 12,025 pin total and 54-pin margin of victory. As a team during Baker play, Barton converted 74 percent of its opportunities into strikes or spares, helping secure the wire-to-wire lead throughout the championship tournament.

The Cougars' standout trio was also recognized in the All-Events standings, earning All-America honors for finishing inside the top eight. A. Timmermeyer led Barton with a sixth-place finish behind a 2,185 total, followed by Weeks in seventh with 2,179, capping her career weekend performance after rolling scores of 200 or better in five of her 12 games tossed during the three-day event. Level rounded out the honors in eighth with 2,164, marking the first time in program history Barton placed three bowlers inside the All-America standings.

While the Cougars were paced by their All-America trio throughout the individual portion of the championship, Barton also received important contributions across the lineup. Team captain Wareman was instrumental in converting key spare opportunities during the Baker rounds while helping keep the Cougars composed throughout the championship run. R. Timmermeyer played a pivotal role in the lineup's fourth spot, consistently setting up frames for her twin sister A. Timmermeyer in the fifth and 10th frames.

Barton also received a key contribution from Victoria Martinez, who came in cold off the bench after not throwing a ball since morning warmups, stepping in during the Baker rounds to convert 8-of-10 attempts in pivotal moments, helping secure the wire-to-wire lead throughout the championship.

Guiding the Cougars to the historic victory was head coach Mike Perry, who was named the Walter Kauck Women's Coach of the Tournament, alongside the contributions of volunteer assistant coach Todd Pfeifer.