ARLINGTON, Texas -  The Prairie View A&M bowling team will close out its 2018 season at the Southwestern Athletic Championship.  The Championship is set to begin on March Friday, March 23 and conclude on Sunday at the Bowling International Training and Research Center (ITRC).
 
"We have been preparing for this weekend and we are excited to have a chance to go to the national championship," said head PVAMU bowling coach Glenn White.  "After a weekend like we had this past weekend we faced some steep competition at the 300 Columbia Music City Classic.  We finished ahead of some of the teams we will compete against this weekend at the championships.  So I would say we are ready as ready can be for the tournament."

This will be the first year that a Southwestern Athletic Team conference championship winner will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA.  The NCAA Women's Bowling Committee will select a field of 10 teams, 6 automatic qualifying teams from qualified conferences, and 4 at-large teams. Teams will be ranked, based on available selection criteria, with the top 6 being placed in the championship bracket. The remaining four teams will play in opening round matches to determine the final two teams that will compete in the championship.

The Lady Panthers will be entering the weekend with a 17-7 during the East and West roundups earlier in the season.  PVAMU will look to win another SWAC title, as the team will depend on Bowler of the Year Lindsey Paredes to continue her stellar stretch of play. 
 
During the roundups Paredes knocked down a total of 5,277 pins after 27 games averaging 195.4444 per contest.  Teammates Veronica Prior who, was marked as with the second best average as a freshman totaled a 4,689 pin count after only 25 games and an average of 187.56.
 
Alexes Burton (7^th) also finished in the top 10 for the Lady Panthers after bowling 27 games and averaging 186.963 pins per game.
 
The championship will feature traditional play on Friday, March 23, as the will determine seeding for the double elimination bracket format that will take place on Saturday, March 24.  March 25 will feature the championship match.
 
To keep up with action this weekend, be sure to visit pvpanthers.com.