The obstacles standing between women’s bowling becoming an
NCAA Championship sport have been knocked down over the years like
a set of pins.
One of the last ones will fall in early April, when the first
NCAA Women’s Bowling Championship occurs in Houston.
Not aware of that event? Those in the bowling world are.
Eight teams will compete out of the existing 43 varsity programs
founded over the last decade.
Top schools of the last five years include Nebraska, Lincoln,
Central Missouri State, Bethune Cookman and Sacred Heart.
Husker coach Bill Straub hopes his team will be among the eight
teams selected on March 24. Since becoming a varsity sport in 1997,
the Huskers have won the Intercollegiate Bowling Championship
twice, once in 1999 and again in 2001.
Straub was named head coach in 1992, when the organization was
still only a club team. Since, he has aided in its establishment at
the varsity level in Nebraska.
The nature of bowling, combined with a little media coverage,
has helped in its adoption and success at Nebraska and other
schools.
“Bowling is one of the most common sports in towns, and
there are not a lot of recruiting problems,” Straub said.
“It’s not a difficult sport to pick up.”
College Bowl USA has also been instrumental in fostering the
formation of the 41 teams necessary for recognition as an NCAA
sport.
Jeanne Klescewski, CBUSA’s varsity manager, has worked
closely with schools to help establish bowling teams.
“It’s not a cost-prohibitive program, which had a
lot of pull with programs,” Klescewski said.
Among other duties, Klescewski helps schools see the potential
benefits of bowling through educational material. CBUSA provides
varsity guides, sample budgets and a general feel for coaching and
training requirements.
During Klescewski’s nearly three-year tenure as varsity
manager, the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association joined in
establishment efforts. This support, combined with an endorsement
from the Southwestern Athletic Conference and the Mid-Eastern
Athletic Conference, brought the bulk of the minimum requirement of
41 schools on board with NCAA bowling.
The Title IX benefits from women’s bowling also struck
home for many schools. Title IX is a national mandate requiring
schools to offer equal athletic opportunities to both men and
women.
Straub believes many athletic directors saw women’s
bowling as a sport likely to offer schools both new avenues of
gender equity and athletic success.
Both Klescewski and Straub are convinced that the need for Title
IX compliance initially interested many schools. Yet there is
little doubt the establishment of a true NCAA Championship
tournament will bring more schools into the fold in the near
future.
“There will likely be continual growth,” Klescewski
said. “Some schools might be apprehensive until everything is
ironed out, but there have been a large number of calls from
interested schools now that it has been established.”