Wichita State women’s bowling coach Holly Harris said the team’s move to NCAA competition this year didn’t feel real until the team’s media day.
“We’ve never had something like that,” Harris said. “And it was cool to watch the girls be so excited and just kind of sit back and watch them feel important and feel included in something.”
The anticipation from Harris and other team members is palpable as Wichita State bowling prepares for its first NCAA tournament this weekend.
Roster continuity
The Shockers won the Intercollegiate Team Championship in May, the program’s 11th national title. In the final round, WSU defeated Jacksonville State, the reigning NCAA champions.
Eight of the nine bowlers on that national championship squad are returning, including individual national champions junior Paige Wagner and sophomore Sara Duque. Wagner won the Intercollegiate Singles Championship in 2023 and Duque won last year.
Harris said that level of continuity makes the jump to NCAA “a little bit easier.”
“They know what they had to do and how hard they had to work last year to get to the national championships,” she said. “And so that’s not forgotten. And it’s not like we have to reinvent the wheel.”
Harris mentioned graduate student Mary Orf — who was named a First Team All-American last year by the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association — and senior Piper Reams as players who have improved greatly over the summer.
Though, Harris said it was difficult to pick just a few players who have met expectations.
“They’ve all done what they were supposed to do,” she said.
Freshmen Morgan Kline and Beau Anderson are joining the team this year. Harris praised both players but said with how many of last year’s bowlers remain on the team, they might not get much playing time.
“They’re both really hard workers, and they want to get better,” Harris said. “They’re like sponges, and they ask a bunch of questions, and are willing to learn.”
Excitement
Wagner said when she joined the team in 2022, becoming an NCAA athlete “was not even in the picture.”
“I didn’t expect anything of it, but I’m really excited for it, and it’s going to help the team out a lot,” she said.
With the jump to the NCAA, Duque said women’s bowling gained legitimacy on campus.
“We feel like a sport,” she said. “We didn’t feel like a sport before, at least my mindset was that. So I think it’s very nice to be with all of the Shocker athletes around.”
Harris described the process of becoming an NCAA sport as a “snowball effect” where every step in the process has fueled the team’s readiness to compete.
“It’s like every little piece has just been a little bit sweeter,” she said. “And I think we’re pretty anxious to get on the plane and jump right in.”
Expectations
Wichita State is joining Conference USA as an affiliate member for women’s bowling this season, as the American Athletic Conference does not host the sport. Harris said Conference USA is “the hardest conference in college bowling,” but Wichita State can stack up with the best programs.
“We’re certainly up there,” she said. “I don’t know that we can put a number on it, but we’re going to be competitive, for sure.”
When building the team’s schedule this year, Harris used some of her contacts with other NCAA coaches to create a slate with a mix of strong and weak pools of teams to compete against.
“I jumped on a bunch of phone calls with friends that … coach other places and it’s like, ‘Hey, what are things we should be looking at?’” Harris said.
With the move to the NCAA, bowlers on the team will receive wellness support and fitness training, which are given to all athletes under the Wichita State Athletics umbrella. Harris said those resources are especially important given the length of NCAA competition days, which can last up to eight hours.
“It’s important to have strong legs and some stamina,” Harris said. “It’s far more important than I think the average person realizes.”
The Shockers were ranked 17th nationally in the preseason National Tenpin Coaches Association coaches poll. Harris said while she expects Wichita State to compete for a national title, the team “can’t put a whole season on one tournament at the end of the year.”
“We’re in it to learn a bunch this year, and we’re also in it to be competitive,” she said. “So I think just sticking to our process and learning how to make it better is going to be the biggest decider on success for us.”
The women’s bowling season will begin with the Penguin Classic in Struthers, Ohio, from Friday, Oct. 11, to Sunday, Oct. 13. Wichita State will compete against five ranked teams, including hosts #3 Youngstown State University and the #5 ranked University of Nebraska-Lincoln.