Baker Bowling Plays Host to 2026 NAIA West Open

LAWRENCE/TOPEKA, Kan. - Hosting the second of its two regular-season tournaments, the Baker bowling teams competed in the NAIA West Open this past weekend, with the competitions being held at Royal Crest Lanes in Lawrence, Kan., and Gage Bowl in Topeka, Kan.

With the varsity competition being held in Lawrence and the junior varsity in Topeka, the two-day tournament featured 16 men's and 17 women's teams.

On Saturday, the Baker men finished the day in ninth after five games, but reached the top seven on Sunday through three games before regressing in the final two rounds to settle for a 10th-place finish.

The men's varsity were led by Omar Aguirre-Moreno and Pedro Diaz-Gonzalez, who finished back-to-back in 17th and 18th, respectively. Aguirre-Moreno marked a 202.6 average while Diaz-Gonzalez unleashed a 279 in his first game of the tournament.

Bowling for the JV team, Logan Glinka took sixth place individually, averaging 212.2 pins in his five Baker games.

On the women's side, the Wildcats reeled off back-to-back scores of 886 and 889 to start the tournament before slotting into 11th through the first five games. After falling back a spot on Sunday, BU rallied by averaging 845 in its final three games to place 11th.

Kaleigh Buckalew earned a top-10 finish, individually, after turning in a 193 average on Saturday, rolling a 227 in her very first game of the day. Skyler Holmes was the next highest bowler for BU after coming in 29th on a total pinfall of 894.

Both teams will be back in action on Feb. 14-15 when they travel to Indianapolis for the Hoosier Classic in the final regular-season competition for the Wildcats.

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