Aleesha Oden recently completed what she said was a top-3 moment in her young bowling career.
The Wichita State sophomore — and soon-to-be junior — ran through the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) U22 Queens tournament from May 23 to 26, winning six straight matches to claim the tournament’s second-ever crown since its inauguration in 2024.
WSU head coach Holly Harris said that for her, it was a “proud mom feeling” to see one of her athletes win an individual tournament of this size.
“I love being able to celebrate with them and remind them how good they are,” Harris said. “And that because you work hard, these good things happen to you. I was excited for it. I was (so) proud I smiled.”
Along with the right to call herself the second-ever U22 Queens champion, an automatic roster spot on Junior Team USA was at stake for winning. But, because Oden was born two weeks before the age limit (players must turn 21 after Jan. 1, 2026), she couldn’t qualify.
She didn’t know this until she arrived at the tournament. At first, she had a hard time grasping what it meant and said it felt like “something so close, yet so far away.” Instead of letting it get her down, Oden turned it into a new motivation.
“I obviously can’t qualify for Junior Team USA anymore,” Oden said. “But Adult Team USA, there’s no age limit to that. It’s like a confidence boost, showing that I can reach that.”
Like in all high-level competition, there were uphill battles and challenges for Oden to overcome while attaining her perfect 6-0 tournament run.
In a match against her third opponent, it came down to the 10th and final frame. Oden ended the frame with a spare pickup and a strike to force her opponent to strike out to win. Her opponent failed to do so and she walked away from that match with a slim 11-pin victory.
Oden said she had to remind herself that she can only control how and where she releases the ball and her mindset of not feeling like she needs to throw strikes during every frame.
“It was pretty key for me to just stick to my processes and let whatever happened, happen,” Oden said. “And fortunately, it went my way. But it’s not always going to.”
Oden said the biggest thing she did for herself in those tense moments was to simply breath and maintain positive self-talk. She’s always believed that self-talk will be her best friend and greatest enemy.
“Bowling is a huge mental game in that aspect,” Oden said. “If you’re telling yourself good things, you’re more likely to do good things. If you’re telling yourself bad things, you’ve already counted yourself out.”
Harris said that while watching Oden live, she could tell she was going through those mental processes. Each time Oden does her breathing routine, her shoulders visibly perk up when she inhales and returns to a resting state when she exhales.
“I watched her multiple times just take the breath, and I knew that was her going through her preshot routine,” Harris said.
After escaping from the third match and winning her fourth, Oden knew she was on to something special. She’d visualized hoisting the trophy at the end of the tournament, but she never expected to win it.
“The goal was to make the bracket (after qualifying rounds) and see what happens,” Oden said. “For me to get there, I wasn’t like, ‘Oh my gosh. Never have I ever thought about this.’ But, I didn’t really realize that I was there.”
Even though Oden didn’t think she had a chance to win it all, Harris knew she did. Harris credited Oden’s approach to what she teaches and emphasizes with the WSU team: to stick with what’s in front of them.
“When she got there, what was right in front of her was qualifying,” Harris said. “And then once you get through qualifying, what’s right in front of you is the next match, and then the next match.”
Oden said the experience alone of being at the tournament and receiving support from her team and family was invaluable. Harris said that because of it, she’s ready to see what Oden is capable of doing next.
“I’m excited to see what that kind of snowballs into in the next few months,” Harris said.
