Morningside set to bring energy at home invitational

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Morningside senior Rachel Spier loves the surge of energy when the women's bowling team is firing on all cylinders.

It's safe to say the Mustangs' energy will be high on their home lanes Saturday and Sunday.

The Mustangs' lone home tournament will be held at Plaza Bowl in Sioux City this weekend. It'll be the final home event for seniors Maren Ewertz, Liberty Nordstrom, and Spier.

Spier described what the feelings are like for a bowler going into a tournament.

"You feel nervous about how things are going to go, but as the day goes on, you see other teams cheering and you want to do that," Spier said. "You step it up, you cheer louder. It's unmatched. You don't see it anywhere else."

The Mustangs have two consecutive third-place finishes as a team. On Nov. 3, they bowled 7,420 pins in the Bronco Open hosted by Hastings. Emaly Kruse earned the top individual spot with 1,073 pins. Spier was 10th in that same tournament, while Ewertz was 18th.

During the Jayhawk Collegiate Challenge in late October, Kruse finished fourth (974) while Alexa Munhofen was seventh (951). As a team, Morningside had a score of 7,216.

"The girls are really confident in what they're doing," head coach Steve Gonshorowski said. "They know the ropes. They're good at telling each other how to adjust."

There is some youth in the roster, and that's where Spier comes in. Spier is often called the 'team mom' of the group, and in the early part of the schedule, she's had to guide them into being more confident.

"It's impactful to see the girls come in and handle their nerves," Spier said. "You see them shoot in the 180s, 190s, and to see the smiles on their faces, that's something I look forward to every meet and practice."

The goal going forward for the Mustangs is to get into the Top 20 rankings, and to be set up to succeed at the national tournament.