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Bridgewater, NJ -- As another Northeast Conference (NEC) women’s bowling season reaches its final frame, a trio of athletes have etched their names in the record books and have the hardware to prove it.
Following in a long line of Duquesne greats,
Shannon Small (Pittsburgh, PA/Plum) became the fourth Duke in the last seven years to garner NEC Bowler of the Year honors.
It’s the second time in as many years a Duquesne bowler has taken home the league's most prestigious award as Small joins her former teammates Kiearra Saldi (2024), along with two-time winner Olivia Farwell (2019, 2022).
In just its second year as a program and a NEC associate member, Niagara made its mark with
Jocelyn Smith (Glens Falls, NY/Glens Falls) claiming the NEC Rookie of the Year award.
Winning its first outright regular season crown since 2021, FDU’s
K.J. Martinez earned his first NEC Coach of the Year accolade in just his second season at the helm of the proud Knights' program.
Small, a three-time All-NEC first team pick and rare four-time All-Conference honoree, was at the top of her game in her fifth year with the Dukes. Racking up four NEC Bowler of the Week awards, Small sits at the top of the NEC rankings in multiple statistical categories. The Pittsburgh, PA excelled in the two regular season NEC meets, posting league-leading numbers in overall fill percentage (.854), Baker fill percentage (.892), overall and traditional single pin spare percentage (1.000), 10th frame fill percentage (.867), overall spare conversion (.737), overall makeable spare conversion (.881) and Baker makeable spare conversion (.959). Small also tops the Player Composite Performance Index (PCPI) at 89.27 percent. She was instrumental in Duquesne's 15-9 conference record and their second-place regular season finish.
Additionally, Small is just the fourth athlete in league history to win both NEC Bowler of the Year and NEC Rookie of the Year (2021) along with being the second Duke to do it, joining Farwell.
Additionally, Small became just the fourth athlete in league history - and second Duke, joining Farwell - to win both NEC Bowler of the Year and NEC Rookie of the Year.
Smith soared in her debut season for the Purple Eagles as the Glens Falls, NY native was not just the best rookie, but the top overall bowler in multiple statistical categories. Across two conference meets, Smith owned the top traditional frame average (19.43), traditional strike percentage (.484), overall first ball average pinfall (9.017) and traditional first ball average pinfall (9.097). Additionally, Smith recorded a 76.09 percent PCPI, which ranks fifth among all NEC bowlers. Smith also made history as the first Niagara bowler to claim a major NEC award.
With the Knights climbing as high as No. 16 in the NTCA poll, Martinez led FDU to a 17-7 conference record, the NEC regular season title and the top seed in this weekend’s NEC Championship. Under his tutelage, Martinez has guided the Knights to a 29-16 mark in league play the last two years. The Knights will now set their sights on winning the program's sixth NEC title - and first under Martinez - which would match the conference record. Martinez, who honed his coaching skills as a graduate assistant under the legendary Mike LoPresti, now joins his former FDU mentor as a Coach of the Year winner, an honor bestowed upon LoPresti three times.
AWARD WINNER HIGHLIGHTS
Each of the seven NEC schools landed bowlers on the All-NEC and All-Rookie teams, with three different programs earning spots on the first team.
Duquesne and FDU each had three players named to All-Conference teams, with the Dukes taking three first-team spots and the Knights landing one. Monmouth also saw two players honored, as did Niagara and Wagner.
Joining Small on the first team were fellow Dukes
Ranelle Ulanday (Union, KY/Randall K. Cooper) and
Emma Siekierski (Davison, MI/Davison). Both bowlers ranked in the top-five in the league PCPI rankings with Ulanday coming in at third (83.02 percent) and Siekierski at fourth (81.82 percent). Ulanday, a senior who was an All-NEC second team selection in 2022-23, was named NEC Bowler of the Week on October 23, 2024. Additionally, the duo ranked third and fourth in overall frame average, with Sierkierski boasting a 19.16 and Ulanday rolling a 19.12, respectively.
FDU’s
Shayna Jimenez (Teaneck, NJ/Teaneck (Seton Hall)) was tabbed to the first squad to claim her first-ever All-NEC accolade. The junior posted the fifth-best PCPI (73.66 percent) in the league, while ranking second in overall split leave percentage with a 6.4 mark. Jimenez also ranked fifth in both overall (19.11) and traditional (19.07) frame averages.
In its first season back as a NEC women’s bowling associate member, Monmouth’s
Morgan Davis (North Richland Hills, TX/Birdville) landed a spot on the first team. The sophomore owns the best overall frame average (19.57), ninth frame strike percentage (.772), Baker individual spare percentage (.791) and Baker individual split leave percentage (5.0). Davis also ranks second in PCPI at 87.09 percent. Her 20.22 Baker frame average was also second in the league rankings. Davis goes down as the first Hawk to earn first team All-NEC laurels. Monmouth was previously a member of the NEC from 2010 to 2013.
Prior to joining the NEC, Davis was named the MEAC Rookie of the Year and an All-MEAC second team pick in 2023-24.
Smith, the NEC Rookie of the Year, was the lone All-Conference pick for the Purple Eagles as the freshman claimed a spot on the second team.
Sophomore
Amy Chrzanowski (Colonie, NY/Colonie Central) and freshman
Jadeyn Mabry (Queen Creek, AZ/Queen Creek) represented the regular-season champion Knights on the All-NEC second team.
Upgrading from an All-Rookie selection a year ago, Chrzanowski led the NEC in Baker single pin spare percentage (1.000) and traditional makeable spare percentage (.840). Chrzanowski also added the eigth-best traditonal fram average with an 18.60. Mabry was a two-time NEC Bowler of the Week and conference-best five-time NEC Rookie of the Week, while coming in at seventh in the league PCPI rankings (69.34 percent). Mabry's 19.33 Baker frame average was the sixth-best in the conference.
Graduate student
Marissa Cosentini (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Valley (Nebraska)) became the Hawks’ first-ever All-NEC second team honoree. The Nebraska transfer led the conference in traditional fill percentage with an .825 mark. The graduate righty also rolled the second-best traditional frame average (19.34) along with the ninth-best overall frame average (18.76).
Wagner made team history this season with junior
Angelia Lubrano (Brooklyn, NY/Saint Saviour High School (St. Francis Brooklyn)) earning a spot on the All-Conference second team. In doing so, she became first Seahawk to earn the distinction since the program's inception in 2020. The St. Francis Brooklyn transfer owns the best Baker split conversion percentage (.714) in the league. Lubrano ranked fifth and eighth, respectively, with a 19.52 Baker frame average and a 18.80 overall frame average.
Adding to their All-Conference second team nods, Mabry and Smith also headlined the All-Rookie team.
Rounding out the rest of the five-bowler All-Rookie squad were Monmouth’s
Kailyn Bloch (East Islip, NY/East Islip), Mercyhurst’s
Tia Germanich (Cheswick, PA/Deer Lakes High) and LIU’s
Isabella Quaranta (Farmingville, NY/Sachem High School East). Bloch won two NEC Bowler of the Week awards and four NEC Rookie of the Week awards. Germanich was named NEC Rookie of the Week twice.
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 44th season, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of nine institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Chicago (#3), Boston (#8). Hartford/New Haven (#32) and Syracuse (#87). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 25 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 16 different NCAA Championships. NEC full member institutions include Central Connecticut, Chicago State, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Mercyhurst, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (
www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (
www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECsports.
2024-25 Northeast Conference Women's Bowling Award Winners