4/13/10 Saving a first for last

In honor of Fairleigh Dickinson becoming the first team to capture the NCAA women's bowling championship in its home state, the NJBB is unveiling a first of its own: picture time! Photo credit goes to Ben Solomon, with special thanks to Sara Naggar, FDU's Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications, for forwarding it along. The Messenger has several others to thanks, as well as a notebook to clear out, so let's get to it...

4/10/10 'F-D-who? F-D-U!'

Such was the chant that went up all night Saturday for the Fairleigh Dickinson University women's bowling team at the NCAA finals in North Brunswick. The Knights knocked off defending National Champ Nebraska, 4 games to 3, in what some openly referred to as the best title match in the 7-year history of the event. Only one other tournament final went the full seven (Vanderbilt over Maryland-Eastern Shore in 2007), and NJBB didn't exist back then, so The Messenger his ownself has no basis for comparison. But there were so many intriguing story lines in this one — well, for us Jersey folk, anyway — that the best way for TM to break it all down is in his tried-and-true stream of consciousness method (hey, that's what blogs are for).

I ♥ N.J.

If you love New Jersey and bowling half as much as The Messenger, then Carolier Lanes in North Brunswick is the place to be tonight at 8:30 for the No. 5 Fairleigh Dickinson Knights against the No. 1 Nebraska Cornhuskers in the NCAA women's bowling finals. If you can't watch it on ESPNU, fear not; the NJBB tweeting-bird will deliver.

I did get to see the FDU/New Jersey City semifinal last night. FDU rallied from a 2-1 deficit to win the best-of-7 Baker series, 4-2. Got a bunch of good stuff from the post-match press conference — will have more time to post those goodies tomorrow, but here are a couple of tidbits to tide you over, as well as a bit of clarification on some points I made yesterday...

4/8/10 Out of hibernation

Are spring and summer over already? Something woke up The Messenger from his offseason slumber -- a subtle sense that bowling season wasn't yet over. Well, guess what? It's not.

Sure, the high school stuff has all been tied up in a neat little package, sheets of notes and scores filed away in the Official Archives of the NJBB. But hark; the culmination of college bowling season has arrived, and this year, it's right here in our home state!