WAUKEGAN, Ill. – The Carroll University women's bowling team opened its 2026-27 season with a strong two-day performance at the Midwest D3 Roundup in Waukegan, Ill., combining traditional and Baker competition before closing the weekend with a victory over Augustana to secure a third-place finish.
Carroll opened the tournament Saturday with five rounds of traditional competition, going 2-2 in contested matches after receiving a bye in the opening round. The Pioneers earned victories over Rockford and Illinois Wesleyan, while dropping matches to Marian and Elmhurst.
The Pioneers picked up their first win of the season against Rockford, rolling to an 843-637 victory. Carroll followed with its highest traditional team score of the day against Marian, but came up just short in an 895-882 decision. The Pioneers bounced back with an 827-632 victory over Illinois Wesleyan before closing the opening day with an 860-969 loss to Elmhurst.
Ava Butt provided consistency throughout traditional play, recording scores of 174, 168, 173, 186 and 182. Samantha Sciortino posted a 180 in the second game and finished her day with a 185, while Allyson Will recorded Carroll's highest individual game of the day with a 205 against Illinois Wesleyan.
The tournament shifted to Baker competition Sunday, and the Pioneers quickly found their rhythm with victories in each of their first three matches. Carroll opened with a 911-749 win over Carthage, firing games of 143, 199, 192, 173 and 204.
Carroll followed with its highest Baker series of the weekend in a 947-817 victory over Aurora. The Pioneers rolled games of 159, 215, 189, 223 and 161, with the 223 standing as their best Baker game of the tournament.
The strong start continued against Edgewood, as Carroll earned its third consecutive victory, 880-701. The Pioneers posted games of 172, 172, 209, 171 and 156 before Augustana snapped the winning streak with an 822-798 victory in the final match before bracket play.
That loss set the stage for an immediate rematch against Augustana with third place on the line.
Competing in a Baker match-play format, Carroll tied Augustana in the opening game before taking control of the match. The Pioneers won each of the next three games, including a 206 in Game 3, to earn a 3.5-0.5 victory and secure third place at the Midwest D3 Roundup.
Natalie Hirsch, Samantha Sciortino, Allyson Will, Ava Butt and Miley Brooks comprised Carroll's lineup for the third-place match. The victory capped a 4-1 Sunday for the Pioneers and put the finishing touches on a successful opening weekend of the 2026-27 campaign.
Carroll will return to action next weekend at the Warhawk Classic in Rockford, Ill. The three-day tournament gets underway Friday.
