It was another successful weekend for SAU bowling, but ultimately, both men's and women's teams fell in the semifinals at the 22nd annual Leatherneck Classic.

The men were consistently in the hunt for the top seed during Saturday's six-game competition, finding themselves 48 pins behind Wichita State heading into Sunday's baker competition. On Sunday, the Bees surged into the lead by averaging 226 for their 16 games, which gave them the top seed by 300 pins over No. 2 Wichita State.

That set up a rematch from the opening round of last season's Leatherneck Classic with Midland University. A year ago, Midland was seeded eighth and knocked out the top-seeded Bees 2-0. This year, a seesaw battle ensued before St. Ambrose escaped No. 8 Midland with a 2-1 victory. Then, St. Ambrose squared off against Indiana Tech, and was eliminated 2-0. Indiana Tech went on to defeat Wichita State in the championship match to take home the title.

The top three teams after 46 games of qualifying were St. Ambrose (10,077), Wichita State (9777) and Wisconsin Whitewater. A total of 45 varsity men's teams competed, including seven of the top-10 ranked teams in the nation.

Jordan Monnens and Cameron Crowe were the top two players for the Bees, as both southpaws made the All-Tournament Team. For his six games, Monnens tallied 1411 (a 235 average), while Crowe hit 1390 (a 231 average). Other varsity team members were William Jones (1069-5 games), Zack Denton (1013-5 games), Zach Greim (1004-5 games), Ryan Speer (318-2 games) and Justin Aboud (243-1 game).

SAU also had a pair of men's JV squads compete over the weekend. The JV1 team rallied on Sunday to qualify for the four-team JV bracket, but fell to eventual champion Wichita State 2-0 in the semifinal match. St. Ambrose team members were Corey Roth (1209-6 games), Anthony Mastroianni (1186-6 games), Alex Nolan (738-4 games), Caleb Gillmore (684-4 games), Alton Barber (683-4 games), Mitchel Guzzle (610-3 games), Justin Kennedy (365-2 games) and Brendan DeWerth (200-1 game).

JV2 also competed in the event, finishing in 10th place out of the 17-team field. Team members included Adam Kowalik (1169-6 games), William Young (1162-6 games), Chance Swan (1036-6 games), Zack Olkiewicz (906-5 games), Josh Prowse (670-4 games), Chase Jamison (670-4 games) and Thomas Cutsforth.

The St. Ambrose women charged into the match play finals on Sunday, qualifying in sixth place in the 35-team field with a total pinfall of 8549. The top three seeds were Wichita State (9387), Mount Mercy (8898) and Baker University (8839). After defeating No. 3-seed Baker 2-0, the Bee women were eliminated by Mount Mercy 2-0. Mount Mercy topped Wichita State 2-0 to claim the championship.

Women's team members were Noelle Phillips (1138-6 games), Erin Williams (950-5 games), Tricia Alvarado (945-5 games), Marissa Bills (783-4 games), Amanda Bohn (758-4 games), Samantha Upham (455-3 games), Bailey Tripilas (336-2 games) and Kayla Devine (1 game).

The women's JV team finished in ninth place out of 11 teams. Team members were Sarah Fox (1059-6 games), Maddie Ksobiech (1035-6 games), Sam Rodenbostel (917-6 games), Kayla Lampe (463-3 games), Makenna Verdon (425-3 games), Lindsey Voss (406-3 games), and Hailee Hospodar (383-3 games).

A total of 108 men's and women's teams competed in the Leatherneck Classic, which has earned a reputation as the top Tier 2 event in America. Both men's and women's varsity teams compete next weekend in Fairview Heights, Ill., at the National Match Games.