KENOSHA, Wisconsin – Jax State got off to a fast start in the MOTIV Ladyjack Classic on Friday, going a perfect 5-0 in Baker Matches and leading the field in pin total.
 
The seventh-ranked Gamecocks knocked down 5,323 total pins in Baker play on Friday in Stephen F. Austin's event at Sheridan Lanes while posting the only perfect record in the 16-team field. They opened the three-day event with wins over Newman, Carthage, McKendree, Nebraska and Marian and improved to 13-5 early in their inaugural season.
 
Jax State totaled over 1,000 pins in four of its five matches, including in a 1,108-873 rout of 13^th-ranked Newman in the opening match of the day. The Gamecocks' second match of the day saw more of the same with a 1,206-830 win over Carthage. They had the highest pin total of any team in the field in each of the first two matches.
 
The third match was a 1,013-902 win over 14^th-ranked McKendree, the first meeting between the Gamecocks and coaches Shannon and Bryan O'Keefe's previous school. 
 
In the fourth match of the day, Jax State rolled past No. 3 Nebraska by a pin total of 1,064-937, while the fifth and final match of the day was a 932-872 win over Marian University.
 
The Ladyjack Classic will continue on Saturday with five traditional matches for each team. The Gamecocks will start the day against top-ranked Vanderbilt, who they beat two weeks ago in a traditional match at Destination Orlando.
 
The day will also see Jax State square off against No. 6 Youngstown State in a rematch of the Destination Orlando title match. The Gamecocks will then face Valparaiso, Maryville and Wisconsin-Whitewater to close the day and set up Sunday's Baker bracket play.
 
Fans can watch the Gamecocks bowl on the program's facebook page at facebook.com/JaxStateBowl.