Evans finishes as 2025 Greater Pittsburgh Collegiate Classic Runner-Up; SSU women's bowling finishes fourth as a team at GPCC

GREENSBURG, Pa. -- Shawnee State freshman bowler Onesti Evans continued a freshman campaign that has been full of early bright spots, as the native of Washington Court House dropped 615 pins over the course of a three-game stretch to post the best outing of her collegiate career to date, earning 2025 Greater Pittsburgh Collegiate Classic Runner-Up honors and helping the Shawnee State women's bowling program collect a fourth-place finish in the nine-team Greater Pittsburgh Collegiate Classic, which was held at Hillview Bowling Lanes in Greensburg, Pa. Saturday afternoon.

Shawnee State, who dropped 4,353 pins as a team, finished fourth in the overall rundown -- as the Bears defeated in-state foes Wittenberg, Ursuline and Tiffin with their pin count.

Evans continues improvement

In her second-place showing Saturday afternoon, Evans not only notched her second consecutive top-10 finish, and her third of the 2024-25 season, but also nabbed her second career top-five showing.

The standout freshman, who bowled at least a 186 or better in three out of her first six events to begin the season, obliterated her career-best 200.25 pin average that was set back on Dec. 9 by nabbing a three-game average of 205 pins per rack.

In doing so, Evans was consistent through, dropping marks of 187, 233 and 195 in Games 1 through 3 to remain around the top of the individual leaderboards all afternoon. Evans' 233 in Game 2 was the second-highest pin count in an individual game by any women's bowler who competed Saturday afternoon, and the freshman was one of only three bowlers in the 66-bowler field to drop over 600 pins from an individual standpoint on Saturday.

Olyvia Bittner, who has remained a stronghold at the top of Shawnee State's leaderboard, chipped in a 22nd place effort individually by dropping 492 pins over three games. Emma Billenstein finished 35th after dropping 424 pins over a three-game stretch herself.

Jackie Aubry, Morgan Higgins and Maria Mara rounded out the individuals who competed for SSU individually as Aubry placed 44th, Higgins 48th and Mara 49th. Higgins bowled a 182 in Game 1 while Aubry bowled a 181 in Game 2 to lead the Bears.

Baker-wise, Aubry, Billenstein, Bittner, Evans, Higgins and Mara, along with Kylie Fowler, helped Shawnee State knock down 1,874 pins as a group.

Additional

Shawnee State returns to action Sunday afternoon as the Bears will compete in the Western Pennsylvania Baker Classic. Updates from that event can be found at www.ssubears.com.