Rockford, Ill. – Senior Bobby Habetler (Park Ridge, Ill./Indiana Tech/St. Patrick) was the top individual bowler with 1,217 pins and senior Daniel Esguerra (Chicago, Ill./Lane Tech) was second overall with 1,140 for the Saint Xavier University men's bowling team at 7^th annual Hammer Golden Eagle Invite at Cherry Lanes in Rockford, Ill. to start the 2025-26 season Saturday in the individual portion of the tournament. Both Habetler and Esguerra earned All-Tournament honors. Overall, the Cougars finished in fifth place out of 28 teams with 8,370 pins after 16 Baker Games on Sunday to qualify for the tournament championship. SXU lost 2-0 to No. 4 seed Calumet College of St. Joseph (Ind.) in the quarterfinals (186-195, 193-257). No. 1 seed St. Ambrose University (Iowa) won the tournament after they defeated the host, and No. 3 seed, Rock Valley College (Ill.) in three games (267-184, 215-166, 244-165).

• On Sunday in the Baker Games, Saint Xavier had seven bowlers rotate in and out of the lineup, with Habetler and junior Tyler Pedersen (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) bowling in all 16 games. Senior Spencer Mosher (Ormond Beach, Fla./Concordia/Seabreeze), Esguerra, junior Jason Laba (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township), junior Andrew Rossini (Streamwood, Ill./South Elgin) and sophomore Joseph Blonski (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park-River Forest) all made appearances in the lineup.
• The Cougars averaged 186.3 pins in the 16 Baker Games with a high of 225 pins in game 14. They surpassed 200 or more pins in four games overall: 203 in game three, 202 in game four, 201 in game nine and 213 in game 15.
• On Saturday, Habetler rolled an average score of 243.4 in five games. He hit a high of 278 pins in game one, followed by 243 in game two, 225 in game three, 269 in game four and 202 in game five.
• Esguerra hit an average of 228.0 pins across five games. He bowled a high score of 278 in game five, while also hitting 201 pins in game one, 244 in game two and 245 in game three.
• Laba joined his teammates in the Top 10 as he was ninth overall with 1,093 pins. He averaged a score of 218.6 in five games, knocking over a high of 258 in game two. He followed that with 202 pins in game three, 203 in game four and 245 in game five.
• Pedersen posted a score of 988 pins in five games. He recorded an average of 197.6 pins with a high of 243 pins in game three. Pedersen also hit 211 pins in game five.
• Mosher competed in four games, collecting 736 pins for an average of 184.0. He hit a high of 198 pins in game one.
• Rossini bowled once, in game five, knocking down 214 pins.

Saint Xavier prepares for the two-day Midwest Collegiate Tournament that begins on Saturday, October 4, in Detroit, Mich.