[00:00:14] Speaker A: Hello, welcome to the Roundhouse Podcast with Paul Sullentrop of Wichita State University Strategic Communications. Thank you very much for listening. We always appreciate your time. Wichita State bowling is back in the NCAA Final Four after winning the Arlington Regional on Saturday.
Junior Ashton woods and junior Sera Duque Jimenez join us to talk about the regional and the national semifinals which come up on Friday in Parma Heights, Ohio. Which is. Correct me if I'm wrong, that's like a suburb of Cleveland.
[00:00:41] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:00:42] Speaker A: Okay, Cleveland, we got that right. Okay. Shockers opened the Final Four versus top seed at Jacksonville State. That's 8am on Friday. The first day is a double elimination format. Saturday's championship is a best of seven Baker match. So the Shockers had to climb out of the losers bracket by winning on Friday and then winning three times on Saturday to advance. It was a long day for them. They defeated top seeded Louisiana Tech 40 and a best of seven Baker match to win the regional.
Sara, let's start with you. Describe the emotions when you finish that off on Saturday.
[00:01:16] Speaker B: I was really excited because first of all the winning and because the day was over. I was so tired, my body was hurting, I had a headache, I was hungry. I had all of these things like physically going on, but it's just great with the team, with the girls. We practiced the whole year for that moment and it felt just amazing. I felt like a relief out of my body.
[00:01:40] Speaker A: Relief seems like a good word. Yeah, we'll talk about it. Because you were there basically for 12 hours on Saturday.
[00:01:46] Speaker C: Yeah, pretty much.
[00:01:47] Speaker A: Okay, Ashton set the scene for us. What was your view when you clinched on Saturday to go back to the Final Four?
[00:01:53] Speaker C: I mean, it was, it was pretty awesome. I mean, I, I kind of knew after, I mean, we put Bo Anderson in the, and the, in the starting lineup and she started out the off the match for us. And I mean, I told her this on Saturday. I said, hey, after you threw that first shot on Saturday, I knew, I knew we were going to go and win that sweep four zero. I mean, coach Holly said something to us, you know, before we started that match, like, hey, get this done. Like let's, let's get the, let's get this over with. And we kind of took that as like, okay, you know, we're here, we're here right now. Like, let's get it done. And we kind of all took that as a sign of let's step up and let's go for what we've been working towards all year.
[00:02:36] Speaker A: Okay. You mentioned Bo Anderson. She had a very interesting and very pivotal role on Saturday. Tell the people about that. Describe what she did on Saturday.
[00:02:43] Speaker C: What she did on Saturday was so special and so out of the ordinary. I mean, she hasn't been in the lineup a whole lot this season. And the fact that Holly and Coachella, I mean, just believed in her and was like, okay, it's your turn now. You have been thinking about this. You've been working about this all season. Now it's your turn to step up and take that role. And I mean, all of us girls, I mean, we've watched her in practice and we've watched her all year work so hard. And, you know, she was meant for that moment, and she is meant for this moment every single time. And the fact that she stepped up to the plate and was ready to take on that role is phenomenal and again, out of the ordinary. Not a lot of people can say that they've done that.
[00:03:26] Speaker A: Sana, what did they see in her? Why was Beau the right person to put in that role at that time?
[00:03:32] Speaker B: Well, she had a great look in practice session, and it was fresh.
And she can really be, like, forward, and she can play, like, straight angles. Really good. Really, really, really good. And she has improved a lot through this, through the year. And she was just the correct person for the moment. She was throwing it great. She's been practicing so hard, and it was perfect for her.
[00:03:55] Speaker A: Okay, so for people who might not be familiar with bowling, you said she had the correct look.
[00:04:00] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:04:00] Speaker A: Tell people about that. What does that mean?
[00:04:03] Speaker B: It means that her ball and the way we needed to throw the ball, it was like, it matches with how she plays kind of. And she was using the right ball, which, like, we get to travel with six balls, but we get to choose the balls and, like, prior the tournament. And we don't know what is going to look good when we go to the bowling center. Because every bowling alley is different.
[00:04:27] Speaker A: And you're talking about the oil patterns
[00:04:29] Speaker C: on the lane, topography, everything. Just how the bowling center is like, yeah, yeah.
[00:04:34] Speaker B: And she had the perfect look. Yeah, she was doing it great.
[00:04:38] Speaker A: So it's kind of like a baseball may go to relief pitcher who just is a great matchup for that particular hitter. Left handed, right hander, those. Those kind of things. Kind of a similar situation.
Was she calm?
How did she kind of handle this whole big moment?
[00:04:54] Speaker C: That was the most determined, I think I've ever seen her bowl. She was.
She.
[00:05:00] Speaker B: She was my dean. Yeah, she.
[00:05:02] Speaker C: She heard her name and she looked at me, and I think she looked at Sara and she was just like, okay, this is what I've been waiting for. I've been asking for this for a while. And, you know, she got that moment, and she took that opportunity. And we've been talking about taking opportunities all season long, and I think she's the full definition and the full poster child of taking that opportunity. Like, she. She went for it. And I was. That made me so happy to see. So.
[00:05:28] Speaker A: So while we've got people thinking about it, let's go with a little more of the bowling strategy. Describe the process of finding the right lane patterns and how things change over the. Over the course of a day.
[00:05:39] Speaker C: So, I mean, the bowling, the lane patterns, we don't get those.
Typically in a regular season tournament, we get those about, like, a week before we start. But when it comes to regionals and Final Four, we get that the day of practice session.
[00:05:51] Speaker A: And when you say get them, you mean they.
[00:05:53] Speaker C: We receive them. So we get the. We get the paper. But we go to the bowling center, and they've laid it out already, and they just kind of show us, and they're like, this is what it is.
We kind of get some information from there. But depending on the bowling center, depending on where we're at, depending on how the bowling center was built, depending on the weather, depending on the weather, it could also very much determine how the lanes play out.
[00:06:14] Speaker A: How does the weather affect it?
[00:06:16] Speaker C: Let's say it's. You're having a really humid day. The approaches are really sticky, and let's say we were on an end pair, like, let's say 49 and 50.
The wall, the humidity off of the wall can affect how the oil kind of like, spreads out. If it's colder in there and it's sitting for about, like, 30 to 45 minutes before a match starts, that can really determine it because it's just been sitting there, hasn't been touched within the last five minutes there. There's 40 to 50 different options that can go with that.
But basically, we bring. We can only have six balls. We can only check in six balls for a tournament. I'm five reactive balls, plus our spare ball.
So it can really go.
It can go a lot of ways, but for regionals and Final Four, we like to take some extras. But really we have that sixth set before we even go anywhere. And that makes it tough. That makes it really tough for competition, especially in the NCAA world, where we have some of the most talented girls in the country from multiple different teams. And I like to say women break down the lanes A lot better than the men do. So these talented athletes, these talented ladies, we all break it down very different ways and it can be very tough. Dep on where we're at.
[00:07:30] Speaker A: And how does the oil determine the action on your ball? Describe that for.
[00:07:35] Speaker C: So let's say it's 45ft. That's a longer pattern. A lane is 60ft and the oil goes about to 45ft down the lane.
Let's say the volume has about like 30 mils.
That can really depend on the heaviness of what surface you're putting on your bowling balls. When I mean surface, we mean abalon pads, which means just kind of like scraping our bowling balls, dusting off our bowling balls. Typically a 45 foot pattern. We use bigger, duller balls. So just more matte means it's gonna be heavier and it's gonna be a little bit slower down lane. If it's a shinier bowling ball, it's gonna go longer and it's gonna be quicker.
That's the best way I can describe it, really, for people who don't know bowling.
[00:08:17] Speaker B: But we also have to use different speeds and different releases of our hand.
So we have to be super versatile,
[00:08:25] Speaker C: super versatile in our game. I mean, I think we're probably the most versatile team in the country, along with the other four that we're going with or along with the other three that we're going with. And this is a really good time to showcase the opportunities and showcase our skills that we've been working for for a long time. I mean, not even just our college careers, but even our youth careers. I mean, Sara has a lot of international experience, so she's seen that. And I've had a lot of youth experience and a lot of national tournament experience. So I think we really bring that into play and some of the other girls bring that into play as well. I mean, we're a very versatile team and we showcase that pretty well.
[00:09:02] Speaker A: So the regional in Arlington starts out with a loss to Newman.
Sera, take us through rebounding from that. How did this team regroup? And then you defeated Bryant later in the day to get started in coming back out of that hole.
[00:09:16] Speaker B: So we were playing good Delanes, we had a really good strategy. But Newman, they had the perfect look. Perfect, I mean, perfect look through the whole season, we've. How many times we played Newman?
[00:09:29] Speaker C: We've only played Newman, I think three times.
[00:09:31] Speaker B: But we won the three times.
[00:09:32] Speaker C: We won the three times.
[00:09:33] Speaker B: Yeah. So we didn't expect to lose. Like, I don't know if I'm allowed
[00:09:37] Speaker C: to say this, but I think you're
[00:09:38] Speaker A: allowed to say that.
[00:09:39] Speaker C: Yes. Okay.
[00:09:39] Speaker B: We didn't expect that because like our history is like we always defeat them. But. But they were throwing it so good. And the ball reaction they had, the balls they were using, everything just matched with their game. So I was a little surprised about the outcome because we all were doing the things good, but we didn't have enough luckiness, I think.
[00:10:00] Speaker C: I mean, they didn't have a game lower than 2:30.
[00:10:04] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:10:05] Speaker C: Throughout the entire match. And we kind of showcased it a little bit like 225, 228, but we didn't quite get there. But.
[00:10:15] Speaker A: So that was a situation where the jets were just red hot at that moment and you had to rally. Ashton, was anything said or is this just part of the bowling life and you knew how to respond?
[00:10:26] Speaker C: I mean, this is just part of what we've been seeing all season long. I mean we see it in regular season tournaments. Depending on it's a regular season tournament with a lot of really good teams. Like a lot of top ranked teams or not a lot of top ranked teams. And Newman, Newman can play, Newman can bowl. And I mean I know a lot of the girls personally and those girls are really determined to see what's coming at them next. But I think the way we responded was the way we've been responding all year to losses like that. And we have been. We've been faced with that situation before and you know, we were ready for that situation again.
[00:11:05] Speaker A: Yes. Full credit to Newman, no doubt. Their coach, Billy Murphy is a former Wichita State bowler and they had a fabulous season.
So you get to Saturday, you're there for a long time, about 12 hours. How do you maintain the focus, the concentration on a long day? Saturday you talked about the physical toll.
[00:11:25] Speaker B: Well, yeah, I think we all were super tired, but at the end we just practice a lot for that moment too. Like we waiting for that moment for so long that we just had to focus on the shots and being present in the moment and forget about what we were feeling physically. Because it's the moment that everybody wants. Everybody wants to be in that position. Like winning a regional. And we just did our job. Yeah. And forget about everything.
[00:11:55] Speaker A: Ashton, do you eat specific foods to help with energy? Do you have to go out and walk around in the parking lot just to see, see daylight? What's it, what's it like being in there for that long?
[00:12:04] Speaker C: I mean, I, I'm a, I'm a four time junior Team USA member that Is our bowling center, where we have Junior Team USA camp. Every year. I've been in there for 12 hours for four or five, six consecutive days. So I'm. I'm used to that, and I've seen that before. I mean, we were just practicing and, you know, just bowling and getting ready for what's coming next. But to have this actually be competition, I mean, that's. That's something special to me. I mean, doing that in that bowling center, that's really special to me. But, I mean, I think it's pretty nice because the bowling center, the itrc had an outside area with, like, tables and stuff. So it was nice to go out there and get some sunshine and actually get some fresh air and come back into the bowling center. But I think what makes that bowling center really tough is that it's hot and humid in Texas, but when you're inside of the ITRC, it is 50 degrees. So it is freezing in there. So made it really tough. But, I mean, I think all of us girls knew how to keep ourselves energized, and we knew. We knew how long that day was going to be, and we were ready for how long that day was going to be. So, I mean, good snacks, good water, good food, but we were just ready for the moment.
[00:13:12] Speaker A: What's the preferred snack of Wichita state? Bowling?
[00:13:15] Speaker B: Oh, gosh.
[00:13:16] Speaker C: Cheez, Its or builders bars. Builders bars?
[00:13:20] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:13:21] Speaker C: We found builder's bars in our nutrition station downstairs at the gym, and coke, and we love those. So we have those in our locker room now, so they're really, really good. So, yeah.
[00:13:32] Speaker A: Favorite moment of the weekend. What's the memory, the snapshot that you'll take forward from that?
[00:13:39] Speaker B: I'll say the. Actually, like, the rooms. The escape room.
[00:13:44] Speaker C: Oh, you want to say that?
[00:13:45] Speaker B: Yeah. The escape room was so fun.
[00:13:47] Speaker C: We did an escape room before competition on Friday.
[00:13:50] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:13:51] Speaker C: And I thought that was such a fun team bonding moment. And we beat the coaches within two minutes. Within, like, no, within, like, actually, like, nine minutes. We beat them with, like. We beat them with 19 minutes to go, and they had, like, 10 minutes to go. So that was fun.
But I would say my moment was you making that spare in the 10th for us to win it and for us to get the clean sweep with latex and for us to move on. I mean, that's pretty special because she left. Where'd you leave?
[00:14:17] Speaker B: I was right. I'd never leave. Dude. The 10, 5, 6, 10, 9.
[00:14:24] Speaker C: Was that 9?
[00:14:25] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:14:25] Speaker C: Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah. But she left a hard spare. That is not very Easy to make in that moment. And I mean, she's a pretty good spare shooter. She's the best spare shooter in the country. So she was ready for that. And that was just pretty special. I mean, to lock it up in that moment without hard spare, that's pretty cool.
[00:14:42] Speaker A: Okay, yeah. Take us through that big moment when you have. When you're faced with a difficult spare like that. What's going on in your mind? What are you thinking? Thinking, saying to yourself, how do you prepare?
[00:14:54] Speaker B: If I'm honest with you, I didn't know I had to make the spare. I thought with a really good shot it was done, it was over. But I didn't know I had to make the spare. And I also like to keep up on the scores. Like, I like to look up and see like, hey, we need a strike, we need a spare. And in that moment, I just don't did it. I didn't do it. I don't know why, but usually when that happens to me, I just go through my whole pre shot routine and I focus on my target and I tell myself I've practiced a lot and I've put a lot of work on this. So this is the moment to prove that all the work I've put in the past or in practice is worth it. And just relax, take a deep breath and go for it.
[00:15:39] Speaker A: You both have mentioned experience outside of college in big youth tournaments or international or national. How do all those experiences help you prepare for this kind of a moment?
[00:15:51] Speaker C: You want to go first? Sure.
[00:15:53] Speaker B: A lot. I think competing is. Was it competing?
It's a special key for athletes to be in the elite level because I feel like there's a bunch of talented people that they don't get the chance to play tournaments that often.
And that's why make like, makes people like mentally tough. And I think we really need to be really, really, really like a good mindset in bowling especially.
And for me, I've been competing international events since I was 13 years old.
So it's been like always like pressure on me, like, hey, you need to do this good. You need to do this good. And I feel that just, that makes me like, where am I right now?
Yeah, competing so much.
[00:16:44] Speaker A: Ashton, is there such a thing as big game experience that is important in bowling?
[00:16:48] Speaker C: Oh, yeah.
Really, really big game experience to have in bowling. People don't realize the mental, physical toll that bowling takes on you. I mean, people ask us, oh, bowling's a sport? Heck yeah, bowling's a sport. I mean, we're faced with such Difficult moments and bowling that, you know, we have to have the competition, we have to have that mindset just like any other elite athlete to be at the top of our game.
We, I mean, I've been faced with moments like Junior Gold, which Junior Gold is one of the biggest youth tournaments in the country. We have some international people that come and bowl Junior Gold as well.
But Junior Gold's a really long week, especially for a 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 year old. And you're faced with some of the most elite bowlers in the country on some of the hardest patterns for the year. And I've made match play at Junior Gold many times.
I've never gotten to that big moment in match play at Junior Gold. And I think those moments, those disappointing, frustrating moments have really made me mentally tough for the person that I am today and for the bowler that I am today. And I think I can bring that confidence and that elite level mindset to that team really well. And Seta can do the same. I mean, we have brought in so much experience with the team and I think our team really appreciates that because we have set the high standards and they have also set the high standards with us and we get to make those standards and make those expectations together and become the elite level athletes that we were made to be.
[00:18:29] Speaker A: So Ashton is from Santa Rosa, California. Sera is from Columbia. So when she references the international play or national team, that's who she's referring to. Just so the listeners get that clear, who's the person on the team who stays calm and really helps you stay in a good place when things get tough, like maybe they did on Friday?
[00:18:51] Speaker C: Paige, probably.
[00:18:52] Speaker B: Yeah, maybe Paige.
[00:18:53] Speaker C: Paige is.
Paige has one of the calmest emotions I've probably ever seen coming back from a shot. She just kind of gives a smile or a smirk and comes back.
She. She stays in the very neutral, neutral mindset and I love that about her because we need that neutral mindset on the team.
I bring a lot of fire and intensity on the team and so does like, so does Morgan. And you have people like Paige and Seta who are very neutral and very calm and just kind of stay with the flow and we kind of need that balance and I think that makes us a pretty great team.
[00:19:30] Speaker A: Paige Wagner, she's a senior from Great Bend, is the shocker you are referencing. Sara, describe the atmosphere at the Final Four.
[00:19:39] Speaker B: I think it's really intense. Everybody wants to win. Everybody is like prepared for that moment.
All the teams, they go to win and, well, everybody goes with the staff Members, which is like, unique because on the events that is, like on the season, we don't get to see photographers or physical therapists or doctors. But in the Final Four, like, everybody has such a big stuff, like a big members in the back, everybody cheering for them, and it's really cool. It's really special to be there.
[00:20:20] Speaker A: Ashton. A lot of times when I do stories about track and field athletes, they will say throughout the spring, throughout the kind of regular meets, it's pretty friendly. There's a lot of chatter, a lot of conversation. But then they will always say, things change when you get to NCAA Championship competition. Is bowling similar in that way?
[00:20:39] Speaker C: It's exactly the same way. I mean, we're there to get a job done. We're not there to, we're not there to make friends in a way. I mean, we have our friends and we have our, we have our groups and I mean, bowling's a great community to meet the people that you want to meet and, you know, meet your loved ones, meet your friendships, meet things like that. But when, when we're there, postseason play, I mean, we're there to get a job done. We're, We've been working for this moment all season long. We've been working for this moment from previous seasons, and we're there to make sure we get that job done and to make sure that, you know, we're the ones standing on top of that stage.
[00:21:13] Speaker A: Ashton. So The Shockers are 2 and 3 in head to head matchups versus Jacksonville State this season. Do prior meetings factor into Friday?
[00:21:22] Speaker C: Sure. I mean, we, I mean, a big example is the Big Red Invitational that we bowled in Nebraska.
We bowled a really good last two games. We bowled like 260, 260, 240, the last two to beat them. And I mean, that's pretty cool to say that because we beat their win streak. We beat like, their, what was it, 50, 50 something match win streak. And I mean, Wichita State's, excuse me, Jacksonville State is the most dominant team in the country, but they're also beatable. They're also, when you catch them in their moments, I mean, we take advantage of those moments pretty well. And I, I think we're very determined and we've talked about it a lot as a team, like, you know, we're here to win and Jacksonville State is just another team and they're just another, just another group that we get to see all the time. And thankfully we get to see them now. And, you know, it's our moment to go out on Top and show them like who Wichita State is. And I mean you say the 2 and 3 record. I mean that's not a lot of. That's not really like a record that most teams get to say that like they've beat Jacksonville State because I mean again, most dominant team in the country, but they're also pretty beatable.
[00:22:33] Speaker A: So this is Wichita State's second trip to the Final Four in its second season as an NCAA member. Sera, what did you learn last year that might be helpful this year?
[00:22:43] Speaker B: Well, we already know like how it's going to be like the environment and everything because like of our previous Final Four, we as a team we can make like faster decisions on how we play the lanes.
We can go faster through the strategies.
Of course we know the teams, but the more we play them, the more we know about them and the more like we get like clues or things to play the lanes better than them kind of. And so yeah, I think we have a really good advantage this year that we know how it's going to be
[00:23:18] Speaker A: like Ashton, maybe this is a good opportunity. Tell people a little bit about what's the difference between NCAA bowling and what the Shockers did previous before last year.
[00:23:28] Speaker C: Yeah, so I'll compare Final Four and ITC Nationals. ITC Nationals is different because we have qualifying rounds. I think it was, what was it? Four, four sets of like five Baker games and they would take those Baker games and they'd seed you in a bracket.
The difference is that that's single elimination and now we're going into a Final Four and this is double elimination. And double elimination means if we lose the first match, we'll go into a loser's bracket and we try and make our way through the losers bracket. Hence what we did in regionals.
The difference is, is that we have again most talented girls in the country that are bowling for a national title.
Not saying ITC's wasn't the same way, but we see very different teams in ITCs versus versus national championship collegiate play.
I mean we see, I don't know, we just kind of see a different format. I think NCAA is just a more intense format and I mean we have the mega matches. It's one traditional game and that's a point. And then you have a five set Baker match and then if it's tied one one, you're going to a best of seven. I mean that's, that's a lot of pressure and that's a lot to determine it all and determine a match.
And also the differences too. I mean we're going on live TV for national championship ITCs. It's going to be.
[00:24:51] Speaker B: It was.
[00:24:52] Speaker C: It was filmed and taped and then posted later. But, I mean, it's just a different kind of pressure. It's a different kind of opportunity and moment to really showcase our talent, to really showcase who we are. I mean, and also, NCAA is just a more prestigious level, and it's a more.
It's a next step up to an opportunity.
[00:25:12] Speaker A: So the bowling season started in October.
Take us through a highlight. Was there a tournament? Was there a moment that you look back on and say that's when things really went in a good direction for us? Sarah, I'll let you start first with that.
Or Ashton, if you've got one, jump in and we'll let her think again.
[00:25:31] Speaker C: I like to think.
I mean, Big Red Invitational was a really big one for us. We did not bowl very good Friday and Saturday.
And the way.
The way the Big Red Invitational was set up, I mean, nobody was really bowling that good that weekend. I mean, it was a hard tournament, and we were thankful to be the 4 seed going into that. And that was pretty interesting. I mean, and the way that it went, it wasn't like regular bracket play on Sunday. It was one seed versus or no. Two seed versus four seed and one seed versus three seed.
[00:26:06] Speaker B: And.
[00:26:07] Speaker C: And, you know, it was pretty cool because we had the choice to either say, hey, we're here now and we're gonna. We're gonna show everybody who we are and we're gonna really play good to what our level is, or, you know, we're gonna play like we've been playing Friday and Saturday and not take that opportunity and just kind of move on and say we were here and, you know, go home thinking like that. And we took that opportunity and we really took that into our hands and that's when we faced Jacksonville State. And I mean, that was pretty special.
[00:26:37] Speaker A: Serran, is there a light bulb moment for you from the. From the regular season?
[00:26:41] Speaker B: I will say the Nebraska, too. That was a really good tournament because, as Ashy said, we didn't play good on Friday or Saturday, but we find a way to play the lanes better, I guess, or to have, like, better scores on Sunday.
And as she said, to defeat, like, to beat Jack State, it's so cool, so special, and they are a great team, but we found a way to shoot 260.
[00:27:13] Speaker C: 260, 240.
[00:27:14] Speaker B: 240. Yeah. Which is great. And the energy level in that match was great. Our connection between us was really Cool. We stayed on our side of the ball return.
We did everything good and yeah, I think we have to do the same thing in Final four.
[00:27:33] Speaker A: Ashton, your high school in Santa Rosa invites you back to speak to the sophomore junior class about choosing a college. What's your advice for a high school athlete who might be going to pursue bowling?
[00:27:48] Speaker C: Find the school that's best going to suit your needs as an athlete.
Bowling. Bowling in college is very different than playing baseball or basketball or softball because they have the pro level and we have the pro level as well. But the pro level is very different.
So people either like to choose because they want to be an elite athlete or they like to choose because they want to try out college bowling and they want to try a social norm or just something to get them through college. I think if I were to go back, choose a school that's best going to suit your needs and is best going to make you happy. Because if you want to go and be an elite athlete, you have to work very hard for that moment. And if you are a sophomore or junior, that better start. Now. If you are just looking to find something to get you through college, find something to get you through college. But find someplace that's going to make you the happiest and it's going to really make it worth your four years because I mean finding a place to transfer and finding another school is not really fun and it's not a best option, especially in bowling and it's getting to know a whole different team, especially because we're a year round sport. I mean that's a really tough transition. So finding the place that's going to make you the happiest.
[00:29:00] Speaker A: Sarah, what would your advice be?
[00:29:04] Speaker B: First of all, like international, like boulders, we all look to go to come here to play bowling in college because we don't have that in our countries.
So first of all, it's a great opportunity and I'll tell them to look for a school that gives them like a good academic degree but also to be able to learn more than you already know.
We do have great coaches back home. We have a bunch of experienced and talented people.
But I feel like in college that knowledge comes to your physical game instead of just being in your mind. Because we can know a lot about bowling strategy or whatever, but if you don't apply that to your game, you're not gonna grow as an athlete. So I'll tell them that and also find somewhere that you can actually feel connected to, like be happy because these four years, they passed so fast.
They go super fast. And if you're not enjoying where you are right now, well, it's better just to, I don't know, look for another school. But as Ashy said, it's not fun to go through that and just, yeah, be happy, have a great degree and learn a lot of bowling.
[00:30:26] Speaker A: If you are an athlete, you are usually spending a lot of time traveling.
You're in a bus, you're on an airplane, you're in an airport. You got time to time to kill. Ashton, recommend a book or a podcast. A Netflix series.
What do you think people should check out? What do you do when you have a few minutes to spare and want to relax?
[00:30:45] Speaker C: I have watched the show friends about maybe 15 times. Exactly. So if you have a fun binge show that is your favorite and you are looking to just kind of make you feel comfortable, if you're having a stressful day, find that show that just makes you happy and feels like it just kind of makes your nerves go down. I like that.
[00:31:07] Speaker A: So if I were to say pivot, you would immediately.
[00:31:09] Speaker C: Oh, I would immediately know what that means.
[00:31:11] Speaker A: How many times have you acted that out for your team?
[00:31:14] Speaker C: Ross, getting the couch up the stairs. I mean, that's a very big scene.
[00:31:19] Speaker A: Who is your favorite friend's character?
[00:31:21] Speaker C: Phoebe. She is so funny and just so hilarious. And she's not all there, but it's really funny.
[00:31:28] Speaker B: So.
[00:31:28] Speaker A: Yeah, and she's got a little bit of an edge to her, too.
[00:31:30] Speaker C: Oh, very much so.
[00:31:31] Speaker A: History, definitely. Sarah, how about you? What are you reading or listening to or watching?
[00:31:35] Speaker B: I really like to watch documentaries, but the sports documentaries. So right now I'm watching the Formula One documentary. It's on Netflix. And I also like to watch Full Swing or the tennis one.
I just like to feel connected before a tournament with the sport, with the mindset of, like elite athletes, how they think when they are on tour or when they are facing like a tough moment on their careers. So I think, yeah, I like to
[00:32:06] Speaker A: watch that shocker bowling. They play Jacksonville State at 8am Friday in Parma Heights, Ohio, in the national semifinals. Vanderbilt and Arkansas State face off in the other semifinal. That's a double elimination mega match format. They advance Saturday. You can watch all of this on ncaa.com Sera and Ashton, thank you very much for your time.
[00:32:27] Speaker C: Thank you.
[00:32:43] Speaker A: Thank you for listening to the Roundhouse podcast courtesy of Wichita State University Strategic Communications.
We encourage you to rate, review and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can find more roundhouse
[email protected] she's
[00:32:58] Speaker D: just one of those players who could be a game changer. Though with one swing of the bat, she can send it over the fence. We've seen her do it time and time again. Is she do the.585 slugging percentage? Nine home runs on the season.
We'll see what they decide.
[00:33:12] Speaker E: Swinging away in a drive to center. Are you kidding me? Another walk off. It is ball game. Witchita State wins.
Two walk off home runs today.
Bailey Lang in the first game and Lori Derico here.
And Wichita State has knocked off Central Florida five to four.
