Wright State University recently announced the addition of three NCAA sports offerings – women’s bowling, men’s indoor track & field and men’s outdoor track & field – set to begin competition in the 2022-23 academic year.
“We looked at about a dozen different sports and women’s bowling really, at the end of the day, jumped off the page because it made so much sense on many levels,” said Bob Grant Wright State University director of athletics. “Not the least of which is the success of the club bowling program here and the fact that there are now so many very good high school bowling programs in Raider country. We looked at it as an emerging sport, we are very excited.”
Fleck served as head coach of the Wright State club bowling teams since helping establish the teams in 2005. During his tenure, the women’s club team advanced to the 16-team United States Bowling Congress national tournament seven times from 2009-2017, finishing a program-best third place in the 2013 tournament. The women also won the National Collegiate Club Championship in 2015 and 2019 with runners-up finishes in 2014 and 2016.
Joining the NCAA ranks will mean a few significant changes for the program. “The women’s program will benefit from the increased respect given to NCAA teams, the broader reach of our recruiting range and the ability to provide bowling scholarships,” Fleck said. “We will also now have travel benefits and a larger budget. In addition, we will have more stringent rules and guidelines to follow.”
The team size will remain essentially the same with 10 to 14 bowlers. And Wright State will continue to have a club men’s team in addition to the NCAA women’s team.
For Fleck – a six-time recipient of the Club Team Bowling Coaches Association Larry Wilson Women’s Club Coach of the Year award and National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association Kerm Helmer Women’s Coach of the Year (2015-16) – seeing the Raiders join the NCAA ranks is personally and professionally gratifying.
“As one of the co-founders of the program, it is extremely rewarding to gain this distinction,” he said. “I am truly honored and grateful for the opportunity to take this to the next level.”
About the Author