Laughing, root beer and a laid-back environment were the highlights of this semester's bowling tournament hosted by Recreation Services.

The individual bowling tournament took place on Nov. 27 at West Park Lanes. Toward the end of each semester, Recreation Services puts on at least one bowling tournament.

Intramural sports supervisor Maurice Burns oversaw the event for the second time. He said this year's tournament was more laid-back compared to last semester's.

"Last year, it was the team bowling," Burns said. "That was more interesting because there were more people. You had, like, frats that went to it."

The bowling tournament last semester was a team tournament divided into two divisions: men's and co-recreational. The teams each had four bowlers, and they bowled two games then added up a total score at the end. Whichever team had the largest overall score won the tournament.

Delta Chi fraternity won the men's tournament, scoring 1,070 in the two games. The High Rollers won the co-recreational tournament, with a score of 978 for their two-game total.

This semester, the bowling tournament was an individual tournament due to the number of people who signed up, Burns said, adding that this made the tournament less competitive. The winner of the tournament received a T-shirt.

"I'm pretty sure they're competing for the T-shirt," Burns said. "But it's a lot more laid back than it was last year."

Scoring was conducted the same way as the previous tournament. There were six total participants this semester. Each bowled two games, then Burns added up their total score.

Southeast student Jerrilynn Kraus won this semester's tournament with a total score of 418. That's an average of 209 per game. The highest a bowler can score is the coveted 300, a perfect score.

Kraus, 20, said she's been bowling since she was 6-years-old and that her grandpa and dad taught her how to bowl.

Southeast freshman Matthew Rowe also attended the tournament. He said that he plays for fun and will go whenever his friends decide to bowl.

"The intramural program was nice, just saying, '[spend] 10 bucks [and] come play this little tournament,'" Rowe said. "I knew some people that wanted to do it. I like bowling and thought it would be fun to do."

Burns said he doesn't bowl competitively and plays on occasion.

"For me, bowling is just recreation," Burns said. "This is like my first time bowling in two years. I wouldn't have been playing if I didn't bring my friend."

For more information on next semester's bowling tournament, contact Recreational Services at 651-2105 or visit semo.edu/recservices.