BELLEVILLE, Ill. -- The Phoenix is in the mix for the knockout tournament after the first day of the McKendree Matchgames.

The Phoenix finished in 13th place out of 31 teams with a score of 4853 and is second among the three Mid-South teams, with Tennessee Wesleyan just ahead in 12th place with a score of 4886, and Midway just behind in 15th place with a score of 4809. Host team McKendree is leading the tournament with a score of 5367, with Purdue University in second with a score of 5252, and Wichita State University in third with a score of 5163 to round out the top three.

Individually, the Phoenix were led by Braxton Dedmon, who had a great first day finishing in eighth amongst all bowlers with a score of 1117, with an average score of 223.4. Malik Randolph finishes his day one with his best performance of the season, playing all five games and getting a score of 997 for an average of 199.4. Logan Beasley finished with a score of 936, for an average of 187.2. Ethan Gomez finished with a score of 919, for an average of 183.8. Finally, Kaden Yarborough finished with a score of 884, for an average of 176.8.

The Phoenix begin the baker games on day two, as they look to enter in the top eight to advance to the knockout stage after the 16 baker games are finished. Cumberland is currently 154 pins behind the no. 8 team, Quincy University.