Husker Bowlers Begin Season in Louisiana

Huskers Look to Begin Title Quest with Success in Louisiana
The preseason No. 1 Nebraska bowling team returns to the lanes this weekend to begin its quest for a sixth NCAA title at the Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Bowling Invitational.  The tournament, hosted by Tulane, will take place at AMF All Star Lanes in Kenner, La. 

Fifteen teams will compete at the tournament, including four of the top five teams in the National Tenpin Coaches Association preseason rankings.  In total, nine of the nation’s top-25 teams will be competing in the suburb of New Orleans.

Head Coach Bill Straub’s Huskers will be led by a trio of All-Americans returning for the 2015-16 season.  Senior Melanie Crawford, a 2014 third-team NTCA All-American, contributed a 203.2 average a season ago, including a 212.1 average in the NCAA Tournament, helping the Huskers to the title.  Junior Gazmine Mason, a third-team NTCA All-American in 2015, compiled a 207.8 average last year.  Sophomore Julia Bond was named the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Bowler as well as a third-team NTCA All-American.  She led the Huskers with a sizzling 225.6 average in the NCAA Tournament. 

The Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Bowling Invitational is set up for a three-day competition, with five Baker game matches Friday beginning at 9 a.m., six team games Saturday beginning at 9 a.m culminating in Sunday’s three best-of-seven Baker matches, starting at 8:30 a.m.

Top teams competing include preseason No. 2 Arkansas State, No. 3 Stephen F. Austin, No. 5 Vanderbilt, as well as preseason top-25 teams Sam Houston State, North Carolina A&T, Tulane, Prairie View A&M and Alabama State.

Husker Bowlers Picked First in Preseason Poll
The defending national champion Nebraska bowling team has been picked first in the National Tenpin Coaches Association 2015-16 preseason poll, released Oct. 2. 

The Cornhuskers tallied 17 out of a possible 25 first-place votes from the coaches.  Arkansas State was picked second, garnering five first-place votes.  Last year’s national runner-up Stephen F. Austin came in third with two first-place votes, while Fairleigh Dickinson and Vanderbilt rounded out the top five.

The Huskers return seven bowlers from last year’s squad, including a pair of All-Americans, from last year’s NCAA title team.  The Huskers must replace 2015 NTCA Bowler of the Year Liz Kuhlkin and four-year contributor Andrea Ruiz.

Coach Bill Straub returns for his 19th season as the head coach of the Nebraska program.  During his tenure, the Huskers have won 10 national championships, dating back to their days as a club sport.  Straub understands the honor that comes with the ranking, but knows the work the team has ahead.

“With our so very young team this year and the loss of two stars from last year’s team, we are most appreciative that the voters deemed it appropriate that we start the preseason ranked No. 1,” Straub said. “We will continue working on trying to justify the worthiness of that position.”

Returning for the Huskers in 2015-16 are third-team All-Americans Gazmine Mason and Julia Bond.  Mason, a junior from Cranston, R.I., averaged a 207.8 pinfall a season ago, to rank second on the team.  Bond, a sophomore from Aurora, Ill., was named Most Outstanding Bowler at the 2015 NCAA Tournament, when she averaged a staggering 225.6 pinfall per game.

Also returning for the Big Red are seniors Melanie Crawford and Bethany Hedley.  Crawford, from Plano, Texas, compiled a 212.1 average in the NCAA Tournament.  Hedley, from Watford, England, averaged a shade under a 200 pinfall average in 2015.  Juniors Briana Zabierek, Alexandra Mosquera and sophomore Kelly Belzeski are also back for NU.

Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Bowling Invitational - Teams Competing

1. Nebraska

2. Tulane

3. Alabama State

4. Arkansas State

5. Bethune-Cookman

6. Florida A&M

7. Jackson State

8. Louisiana Tech

9. North Carolina A&T

10. Prairie View A&M

11. Sam Houston State

12. Southern

13. Stephen F. Austin

14. Texas Southern

15. Vanderbilt

Lincoln: Title Town
In 19 years as a varsity sport, Nebraska bowling has been one of the top programs in the nation.  Coach Bill Straub has guided the Huskers to unprecedented success, winning national titles in 1991, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2013 and 2015.  Once bowling became an NCAA-recognized sport in 2003-04, the Huskers won back-to-back titles in 2004 and 2005, followed by titles in 2009, 2013 and most recently another in 2015.

A History of Success
A total of 90 tournament titles in 177 competitions entering the 2015-16 campaign creates an impressive list of accomplishments for Nebraska, while Straub’s bowlers have not been ranked lower than seventh in the team rankings since becoming a varsity sport in 1997.

The constant success under Straub has made the Huskers a fixture in the national polls, ranking in the top five nationally all the way back to 1990, when the sport was flourishing at the club level. Over the years, Straub has been a constant in Nebraska’s bowling success.

National Honors and Awards
While the Husker team accomplishments have been paramount, many bowlers have enjoyed individual success. NU has had at least one All-American in 25 of the last 26 years, dating back to its club program days. Since 1989, 27 Huskers have combined for a total of 58 first-, second- and third-team All-America awards, while Kim Berke (1992), Diandra Hyman (2000), Shannon Pluhowsky (2001, 2004, 2005), Lindsay Baker (2006), Amanda Burgoyne (2007), Cassandra Leuthold (2010) and Lizabeth Kuhlkin (2015) were each chosen as the National Collegiate Bowler of the Year.

NCAA Tournament MVP
Julia Bond was named Most Outstanding Bowler at the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Tropicana Lanes in St. Louis, Mo. Bond unleashed a 225.6 average in the tournament, leading the Huskers to their fifth NCAA title. For the year, Bond had a 206.5 average, third on the team.

Big Shoes to Fill
Lizabeth Kuhlkin, a senior in 2014-15, departed the Nebraska program as one of the best bowlers in Husker history. The 2015 NTCA Bowler of the Year and three-time NTCA All-American is second in Nebraska history with a 210.9 career average.

Hall of Famer
Shannon Pluhowsky, a Husker bowler from 2001-05, was inducted into the University of Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame earlier this year. The three-time NTCA Bowler of the year helped the Huskers to back-to-back NCAA titles in 2004-05.

Looking Ahead
The Huskers’ next tournament will take place Nov. 6-8 at the Crusader Classic in Valparaiso, Ind.  The Huskers won the tournament a year ago and have finished in the top three in each of the last five years.