College Achievers: Down the lane together one more time
One more time, and in one of their last meetings as collegiate competitors, former South Elgin High School bowlers Karlea Ceasario, Monica Darrow and Kaylee Mann returned to the lanes.
They reunited Jan. 18-19 at the Kegel/Illinois State Bowling Proprietors Association (ISBPA) Midwest Collegiate Classic at Stardust Bowl in Addison.
Darrow is a senior bowler for St. Xavier University in Chicago, an elementary education major. Entering the season she was all over the Cougars record book, with three of the five highest single-game scores and program records for strike percentage, pins in a season and career, and scoring average, 187.1. She’s topped that this year, 45th in the nation at 193.4 according to the United States Bowling Congress.
Mann, a senior graphic design major, has bowled four years at Judson University. She’s having her best season in her last year of eligibility, according to Eagles coach Vince Biondo. Mann averages 178.6 pins a game and bowls a strike 38% of the time.
Ceasario graduated in December with a nursing degree from Aurora University, where she was a four-time College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin bowler of the week. She joined Judson one final semester for additional credits, and to bowl for the Eagles.
Biondo, a Hoffman Estates High School graduate and former Team USA bowler who lives in Carpentersville, recruited all three women.
Ceasario, Mann and Darrow bowled for South Elgin from 2018-21. They helped the Storm win Upstate Eight Conference titles four straight years with seventh- and 11th-place state finishes. Plus, third in the 2021 virtual state tournament.
(Several years ago Biondo had a fourth South Elgin teammate on his squad, Delaney Brown, but she moved out of state.)
On Jan. 18-19 in Addison, Ceasario had a particularly impressive tournament. In her second event of the season for Judson she placed fifth out of 310 bowlers with a total score of 1073, an average of 214.6.
Between the team games reflected above (bowling all 10 frames) and Baker games (five players each bowl two frames), Ceasario struck 50% of the time and hit the pocket 66% of the time. It helped Judson move up four places to 11th in United States Bowling Congress collegiate rankings. St. Xavier is No. 6.
“Adding Karlea has been pretty amazing,” Biondo said. “She’s a great player and a great person, same as Kaylee.”
Depending on where the top teams are sent for the college sectionals in March, and Stardust is a distinct possibility, Judson and St. Xavier both have the Feb. 15-16 Hoosier Classic in Indianapolis on their schedules — perhaps one final spin together for Mann, Darrow and Ceasario.
Auspicious start
Vince Davero (Downers Grove North), who pulled a hamstring muscle on his final preliminary long jump at the 2024 Class 3A boys track and field state finals and still earned fourth place in the event, got off to a great start as an Indiana University freshman. At Vanderbilt’s Commodore Challenge on Jan. 11, Davero won long jump with a best effort of 7.57 meters, or 24 feet, 10 inches. Already, that ranks 14th on the Hoosiers’ indoor leaderboard.
Moving on up
Bradley University’s 74-61 men’s basketball victory over Murray State on Jan. 18 gave Braves coach Brian Wardle (Hinsdale Central) his 92nd Missouri Valley Conference win, which ranks 13th in league history. He’s second in Bradley history behind Jim Molinari’s 110 MVC victories. The list includes legends Henry Iba and Phog Allen — and Porter Moser (Benet Academy), who finished at Loyola University in 2021 with 106 MVC wins.
Hello, readers
If you know of a local student-athlete doing good things in college, on or off the field, submit their name for consideration by email at doberhelman@dailyherald.com.