Published: April 25, 2008 02:24 pm         

Area bowlers earn awards; Morehead State's Larry Wilson presented Service Award

WICHITA, Kan. - Pikeville senior Kayla Bandy and Saginaw Valley State junior Dan MacLelland were named Most Valuable Players for the 2007-08 collegiate bowling season by the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association.

Bandy and MacLelland were honored along with the rest of the All-Americans at the "Night of Champions" banquet held Wednesday in conjunction with the 2008 United States Bowling Congress Intercollegiate Team Championships, presented by Storm, which open Thursday at Northrock Lanes.

They also were named 2007-08 Bowling Writers Association of America Collegiate Players of the Year at Wednesday's event.

She joins Kelly Kulick (Morehead State), Karen Stroud (West Texas A&M) and Kari Murph (Morehead State) as the only players to win multiple NCBCA MVP awards. Kulick was honored three straight seasons (1996-97, 1997-98 and 1998-99).

Bandy, who was second in the nation with a 202.56 average this season, has been named a first-team All-American each of the last three seasons and earned Rookie of the Year honors and a second-team selection in her freshman season of 2004-05.

Rounding out the women's first team is Wichita State junior Emily Maier, Sparks. Nev.; McKendree junior Rebekah Diers, Kingston, N.Y.; Martin Methodist junior Hayley Beavis, Southampton, England; and Pikeville freshman Ashly Galante, Palm Harbor, Fla.

"This feels amazing, but it's not the only piece of hardware I want this weekend," said Bandy, a former two-time Junior Team USA member who also will be competing at the USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships for a third time this May. "This won't feel like I want it to feel until we raise the Helmer Cup on Saturday. We have a great grou Galante, a Team USA member in 2007, also was honored as Women's Rookie of the Year, marking the third time in the last four years the award was given to a Pikeville player. Jaime Foster won the honor last season.

Leading the nation with a 213.85 average, MacLelland helped lead the top-ranked Cardinals to consecutive national titles the past two seasons and the Chattanooga Sectional title in March. The Windsor, Ontario, native was named MVP of the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships a year ago.

"All of this goes out to my dad," said MacLelland, whose father is battling cancer. "He taught me everything I know. None of this would be possible without him. Now it's time to go get No. 3. We've had that on our mind since the beginning of the year."

MacLelland is joined on the men's first team by Wichita State junior George Lambert, Hamilton, Ontario; Indiana senior Nick Hoaggmbert, Hamilton, Ontario; Indiana senior Nick Hoag land, Canton, Ohio; William Paterson sophomore Matt O'Grady, South Amboy, N.J.; and Pikeville sophomore Kyle Barnes, Smryna, Tenn.

Chris Bardol of Robert Morris College (Ill.) was honored as Men's Rookie of the Year.

William Paterson's Dave Nagelhout and Purdue's Scott Savage were tabbed as Kerm Helmer Coaches of the Year in the men's and women's divisions, respectively.