Beginning its national title defense with a pair of top-three performances, the Barton Community College women's bowling team opened the 2026-27 season over the weekend at SWIBC I and SWIBC II held at Lucky Strike Garland in Garland, Texas.
Competing as the lone two-year program in a field featuring NCAA Division I, Division II and NAIA competition, the Cougars posted matching third-place finishes over the two-day season-opening stop.
Barton returns to the lanes Wednesday for the first of two upcoming exhibitions, traveling to McPherson College before heading to Ottawa University Oct. 14. The Cougars return to tournament competition Oct. 17-18, making their closest tournament stop of the season at the Tier I Mid-States Championships in Wichita.
SWIBC I Recap
Saturday's season-opening SWIBC I featured four individual games followed by 10 Baker games, with the Cougars compiling 4,768 total pins to finish third in the 12-team field. Barton totaled 3,183 pins through the individual portion before adding 1,585 across Baker competition.
Anne Timmermeyer paced the Cougars through the individual portion, producing a four-game total of 718 to finish seventh overall with a 179.5 average. A. Timmermeyer's best round came in the third game with a 199 after opening with rounds of 173 and 177 before closing with a 169.
Fellow sophomore Tailynn Level followed one spot back in eighth, totaling 681 pins behind Barton's lone 200-plus round of the individual portion with a 206 in the second game. Rose Timmermeyer gave the Cougars a third top-15 finisher, placing 14th with a 597 series highlighted by a 191 in the second round.
Four Cougars made their Barton debuts during the individual portion, led by Billie Jo Chaffin totaling 487 pins across three games, including a debut-best 171. Dani Slates and Zoey Mayberry each rolled a pair of games, with Slates totaling 324 pins and Mayberry finishing with 276, while Stella Gordon recorded a 100 in her lone game of competition.
Louisiana Tech University claimed the SWIBC I team title with 5,615 pins, finishing 298 pins ahead of runner-up Tulane's 5,317. Tulane's Sofia Victoria Salas captured the individual title, totaling 848 pins across four games for a 212 average to lead the 69-bowler field.
SWIBC II Recap
Returning just 24-hours later for Sunday's six games of individual competition, Barton produced its second third-place finish of the weekend, tallying 4,844 pins for a 161.5 team average.
The Cougars placed three bowlers inside the top eight of the 64-bowler field, led by Level's sixth-place performance. Level totaled 1,028 pins for a 171.3 average, closing her six-game set with a 201 to finish four pins shy of the top five.
A. Timmermeyer followed in seventh with a 994 total and 165.7 average, while twin sister R. Timmermeyer finished just three pins back in eighth at 991 and a 165.2 average. R. Timmermeyer's six-game stretch included a 201 in the third game.
Slates provided Barton's top single-game score of the weekend with a 210 in the sixth round, finishing with 617 pins across four games. Mayberry totaled 608 across four games, while Gordon added 606 in her four game appearance, highlighted by a 182 in the second round.
Louisiana Tech completed the weekend sweep of the team titles with a 5,282 total, finishing 130 pins ahead of runner-up Tulane's 5,152. Louisiana Tech's Arianna Araujo captured the individual crown with a six-game total of 1,112 and a 185.3 average out of 64 competitors.