2010 

The Fairleigh Dickinson University homepage and headquarters for the Knights' trip to the 2010 NCAA Women's Bowling Championship, hosted by NJCU at Carolier Brunswick Zone in New Brunswick, NJ.

RECAPS

NCAA Tournament Selection Release

NTCA All-America Release

Day One: Qualifying

Day Two: Double- Elimination Bracket

Day Three

All- Tournament Team (announced Saturday night)

STATISTICS

Traditional Games

Individual Standings

Updated Bracket

PHOTO ALBUMS

Tournament Banquet (D. Langford and S. Naggar)

To Buy Richard Formica photos, click here

QUOTES

Thursday (morning session)

Fairleigh Dickinson University head coach Mike LoPresti on his team starting with two wins before ending the morning session with two defeats: "It was night and day, only the reverse....day and night. We didn't transition well when the lanes changed and we were slow in moving. The only positive thing is that it was only the first round, and there are many rounds to go."  

LoPresti on his team producing a 1085 score in a match two win over Maryland-Eastern Shore: "That was a big match. Maryland-Eastern Shore is a high-scoring team. We usually don't play that high, but we were able to stay with them and beat them at the end. It took a lot out of us. I tried to rev up the team in the next game and I was worried about a letdown. We moved to the other side of the bowling center where the lanes were a little different, and again we were slow in adjusting."  

LoPresti on whether he expects scoring to change as the tournament progresses: "I think the early rounds will play about the same as teams have learned the pattern. I think at the end of the day, the scores will be through the roof."

Thursday (afternoon session)

Fairleigh Dickinson University head coach Mike LoPresti on his team finishing on a high note: "It really was a rollercoaster day for us. Hopefully the high note that we finished on can carry over into tomorrow."  

LoPresti on his team's mindset heading into play on Friday: "Today is a positive day. This is a very important day for seeding because the higher seeds have a huge privilege in terms of the selection of lanes, what lane to finish on, and tiebreaker lanes. But if you're going to have a rough day, the first day of this tournament is the day to have it. It ended up being a positive day for us, even with a losing record, because we have some momentum going into Friday."  

LoPresti on the play of freshman Danielle McEwan: "I thought she was outstanding today. She really only had one rough game where her spare game collapsed on her. She rebounded real well, and she's a key player in our attack. She finished with a 230, and she looked like she had her footing back. That's certainly going to help us tomorrow."

Friday

Fairleigh Dickinson University head coach Mike LoPresti on whether tomorrow could be a storybook ending to the season for his program: "It will be great no matter who we face, but it probably would have been an even better story if we would have faced NJCU in the final. What a great team NJCU is. All year long, boy do they battle. But so do we. We work extremely hard at being the best competitors that we can be every time we're on the lanes. We do a great job of that most of the time. We had some hills and valleys yesterday, but today we were at our best."

 LoPresti on whether people understand how difficult it is to field a program at NJCU which competes at this level without scholarships: "I think people know how difficult it is. We feel kind of the same way too, but being Division I, we have the privilege of offering athletic grants and NJCU doesn't have that privilege. We play into that when we recruit our players. Our campus is excited just for the reason that our program can compete with the biggest and best programs in the nation in this sport. Not too many of our programs at FDU can do that."

 Senior Erica Perez (Carteret, New Jersey/Carteret) on what it will be like to compete for a national championship tomorrow in front of her team's home fans: "I am going to be excited. I came in here Wednesday for practice and I was ready to go. This is the time. I don't have another year, and this year it is all or nothing. We need to go out and execute great shots, be team players, cheer each other on, and keep communicating. We've made it to the final two. This afternoon, we walked in and realized that we'd made it to the final four, but that wasn't good enough for us. We wanted more, and we've made it to the final two. I'm ready to go out tomorrow and do what I and my teammates love to do."

 LoPresti on comparing this year's team to his 2006 national championship team: "There are a lot of similarities, but this team is different. We have seniors and juniors in our lineup this year, but that 2006 team was our first team ever. They were the same ladies that started the team as freshmen. Those first three recruits were in that 2006 starting lineup, so that had so much more meaning to our school and program. This team is our second wave and it was built off of the success of that 2006 team. The level of competition over the last three or four years has elevated to the point that this team really can be labeled as our best team ever."

 LoPresti on whether there is any doubt that this FDU team would beat his 2006 title team: "I wouldn't say that there is no doubt. Let's put it this way, on our alumni days, it's a battle. It's great to see our alumni come back and compete because they have a lot on the line. They are the only national champions in the history of the school, and they like to show that off and prove it time and time again. But this team is the most athletic and the hardest working team that we've ever had. They've experienced more by far than any other team that we've had, and we're ready to win this championship."

Perez on what the general public doesn't understand about collegiate bowling: "They don't understand the mental focus that it requires to compete at this level. You have to be prepared for everything, not only the physical aspects of the game, but the mental preparation as well. Even on a rainy day like today, you have to come in and adjust to lane conditions that are totally different from what we experienced on a hot day like yesterday. You kind of have to play mind games with yourself and have confidence in yourself regardless of the conditions."

 Perez on being a Carteret native and having experience at Carolier Brunswick Zone lanes: "This is where I bowled four years in high school, so I get to finish my collegiate career where I closed out my high school career."

 Perez on her family's presence at the tournament: "My family goes everywhere with me, fortunately or unfortunately [joking]. People that I've grown up with have stopped by this week to cheer not only me on, but our team and all of the other teams as well. It's been a great homecoming. It feels a little bit different, because we're used to traveling for nationals. To know that we're just down the turnpike from where I live and go to school is a one of a kind experience."

 Perez on competing today against former Carteret teammates Jennifer and Kelly Daunno of NJCU: "I wished them all the luck in the world. I gave them a hug when we were finished and told them that they both bowled great. I wish it was FDU and NJCU in the final, but they did a great job all week, and I was very proud of them as both friends and former teammates of mine. Our high school coach [Charles Simon] was here today and he saw three of his best players competing, so he had to be happy."

 Perez on how hard it will be to get some sleep tonight in advance of the national final: "I'm going to sleep pretty well. This was a long day with a lot of ups and downs - more ups than downs. It's going to take me some time to fall asleep, but once I'm out, not much gets in the way of my sleep."

 LoPresti on whether he has a preference for which team FDU faces in the final: "I have no preference at all. All of the teams are high quality and it's going to be a tough match regardless of who we play. The new coach from Arkansas State [Justin Kostick] is a fantastic, enthusiastic, knowledgeable coach who has taken that program to a new level. And [Nebraska head coach] Bill Straub. Come on, you start the list with him when you identify the best coaches in the history of the game. [Nebraska] is the defending national champions. That says it all."

LoPresti on whether a FDU-Nebraska match-up could be compared to the Duke-Butler match-up that recently took place in the national men's basketball championship: "I was rooting for Butler because I always root for the underdog. Just being from New Jersey means you're the underdog. I'm also a big fan of Duke and their success and Mike Krzyzewski is a guy whose quotes I use to motivate my team. The difference is that we've already played Nebraska in this tournament and we beat them. I look at us as the team to beat."

 Perez on how much luck plays into this championship: "Luck is a factor, but our team believes that you make your breaks. If you're throwing good shots and you're lined up and making sure you're talking, that's when you get the breaks."

Saturday 

Freshman Danielle McEwan on throwing four consecutive strikes after not striking in the first two games: "In the beginning, I didn't have a very good line. It took me a couple of frames to get the nerves out. I made some adjustments and I figured it out."

Senior Erica Perez (Carteret, New Jersey/Carteret) on winning the national championship in the state of New Jersey: "It was the perfect ending to a dream come true. There's no other way to put it. It has been a dream of mine the last four years to make it to this match alone, let alone to win it. I couldn't have been with a better group of girls."

Sophomore Joely Carrillo on the pressure of the match heading into the seventh game: "Surprisingly, there wasn't too much pressure. In the huddle before the seventh game, we said that we believed in each other. We put in so many hours and so much work that we were ready coming into this tournament to get this done."

LoPresti on whether he knew the match was as even as it was heading into the deciding seventh game: "I had a conversation with my assistant Lisa Friscioni (/), and I asked her, 'Do you believe this match?' Nobody is throwing opens. Everyone is throwing doubles when they need doubles. The momentum swings were unbelievable. It was a fantastic match to coach. There was a real chess game going on between the coaches in terms of how you move your players, what equipment you use, and motivating players to make shots under pressure. Both teams were well-prepared today, that's for sure."

LoPresti on whether he was surprised Nebraska chose the left lane for the deciding seventh game: "No, because we had just shot a 230 in game six, and there was no way they were going to let us stay there. Nebraska's better games seemed to be on that left lane, and it was because there was a little better hold on the left lane. On the right lane, if you missed a little bit left of your target, the ball hooked earlier. That was the struggle with the right lane. Going to the left lane was the right move for Nebraska. If I was in Coach Straub's shoes, I would have done the same thing.

Perez on whether FDU got a few breaks in terms of mistakes by Nebraska: "I think we did, but we knew that the only way we could get the breaks was for us to throw good shots. If we took our time, talked and did what we had to do, we knew that this was the way that things were going to end. We came in today and spent a long time just hanging out and unwinding. We all had a special gut feeling that we were going to do it."

LoPresti on the importance of the crowd support for FDU: "I compare it to a home court or home field advantage. This basically was a home tournament for us."

LoPresti on Nebraska head coach Bill Straub's comment that the home crowd played no factor in the victory for FDU: "I would respectfully disagree. I've been involved in athletics for a long time and coached many sports. I've brought teams into hostile environments before, and no matter how much you prepare your team, when there are a lot of people yelling and screaming, it weighs on you a little bit. I told our team that if we fall behind, we have to get the match to game seven because based on attrition, we would have a big advantage in game seven."

Perez on missing a chance to win game three with a strike in the 10^th frame: "I had faith in our team that we would rebound. It was a letdown, but after it was over, we huddled and the girls picked me up. I gave it my best shot, and then we moved onto the next game."

Carrillo on the crowd support FDU received throughout the tournament: "Our parents support us all along, but this tournament obviously was closer to home. A lot of us had bowled in this house before, and that comfort zone with our family and friends really helped us all week."

McEwan on what the general public doesn't understand about collegiate bowling: "They don't understand how hard it is. Some people think this game is a joke, but it's really not that easy. There have been many times this season where I've thrown great shots that haven't carried and coach will say, 'Welcome to collegiate bowling.' The conditions we compete in are completely different than what the average bowler faces."

Carrillo on how much luck plays into success in bowling: "On this team, we say that you earn your breaks We try not to get ahead of ourselves and take things one frame at a time. Luck is a factor, but you have to throw the ball the right way to make your breaks."

Perez on facing the defending national champions in the title match: "It didn't really matter to me. We beat them yesterday, but they came in here on Thursday and went 7-0. They came in this morning and defeated a very good Arkansas State team to get a rematch with us. We were the only team to beat them. They are a great champion."

LoPresti on the impact of Perez on the FDU program: "She has brought stability. We've had our bouts and disagreements, but that's because we're very similar. We have common goals in terms of the team being the best that it can be and we want to win championships. Sometimes we were not on the same page, but as the years went by and we grew together, we both matured in our relationship I don't know how we are going to fill her spot."

LoPresti on whether there will come a day when the Bowl Championship Series conferences get involved in the sport of collegiate bowling: "I'm surprised they're not in it already. When FDU first sponsored the sport, we thought that it was going to grow to be about a 100 teams in six years. That hasn't happened. The sport is gradually growing, and I think the shoe needs to fall and one of the BCS conferences will have to jump in. Once that happens, competition will drive the other conferences to get involved as well."

LoPresti on whether the quality of this championship match could be something that sparks other schools to consider sponsoring the sport: "There's no question about it. It was a privilege for everyone who saw this match tonight. In my opinion, this was the best NCAA Tournament match ever played. I've seen a lot of them, been involved in a lot of them, and won many of them. This is a match that if my team would have lost, I would have been disappointed that we didn't win the national championship, but I never could have been angry about losing because this was such an epic match."

LoPresti on the significance of defeating national power Nebraska for his team's second national title: "I told the players that the best way to win a championship is to beat the defending champion. Not only did we get a chance to win the national championship, we got a chance to beat the best program in NCAA bowling. They are the standard and the program that everybody tries to replicate."

Perez on her future in the game of bowling: "I am going back to FDU next year to get my masters degree, but I want to say involved in bowling. I want to be a coach in the future. I'm not sure where or at what level, but I love bowling too much not to stay involved in some way."

LoPresti on Nebraska senior Cassandra Leuthold: "Without question, she is one of the best players in the history of the game. She comes from a different part of the country than our players and our cultures are a little bit different. In the beginning when she first came into NCAA bowling, we didn't really get a chance to know her. But one of the greatest things about this sport is that during the course of all of these seasons, we really learn a lot about the players and we all primarily become friends. What makes this sport so unique is the fact that three rival teams can get on one bus to drive to a tournament. We've done that many times. No other sport would consider doing that because it would be considered lunacy. In respect to Cassie, we've gotten to know her over the years and not only is she a quality player, she's really a quality person as well."

LoPresti on whether Nebraska's Leuthold could compete professionally: "Absolutely. The secret to winning this tournament is the performance of the anchor players. My fear has always been that if Cassie gets hot, the best Erica could do was match her. Bill [Straub] has a big hole to fill with the loss of Cassie."

Perez on Leuthold: "I've seen her battle through so many things. She's a great person and I wish her the best. She's done great things for this sport. I gave her a hug after we won and I told her she had an amazing four years."

LoPresti on the single pin miss by Leuthold in the fifth frame of the deciding seventh game: "That was the crack in the armor that we had been waiting for. That was the first time in the entire match that I felt we could win. This might have been the highest level and the best match that this program has ever competed in, and we still almost lost the match. After that open, our team was like wolves with a carcass. We saw that we had the opportunity to win it and we took advantage of it."

McEwan on her championship experience all week: "It was absolutely amazing. I just had a feeling that something special was going to happen this week, and it did."

PRESS COVERAGE

New Jersey college bowlers excited for chance to bowl in front of home crowds at NCAA Championships

Colin Stephenson, Star Ledger

FDU, New Jersey City ready to strike

John Rowe, The Record

NJCU, FDU to Meet Today

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2009 

The Fairleigh Dickinson University homepage and headquarters for the Knights' trip to the 2009 NCAA Women's Bowling Championship.

To see the live video from the NCAA Tournament, click here.

To see the qualifying standards and the eight teams that made the 2009 NCAA Tournament, click here.

 RECAPS

Day One: Qualifying

Women's Bowling Earns Fifth Seed for NCAA Tournament Bracket

Day Two

Women's Bowling Defeats Vanderbilt in First Round at NCAA Tournament

Women's Bowling Rolls Past Nebraska, 4-1

Women's Bowling Falls to Central Missouri, 4-2

Day Three

Women's Bowling Faces Central Missouri in NCAA Rematch

Women's Bowling NCAA Run Comes to An End

All-Tournament Team

STATISTICS

Day One

Team Standings

Traditional Games

Traditional Game Results by Team

Total Pin Fall After Four Rounds

Individual Standings

Day Two

Updated Bracket

Analysis of Baker Games

PHOTO ALBUMS

Women's Bowling in Michigan (D. Langford)

Women's Bowling Semifinals (D. Langford)

Awards Ceremony

QUOTES

Friday

"We had a great day today," said Head Coach Mike LoPresti. "It didn't end like we hoped that it would, but we put ourselves in a great position-- we have to win one match to make it to the National Championship match."

"We had two big wins in the morning and then we had a subpar match at night, but we will regroup and put on a better performance tomorrow," said LoPresti.

Saturday

"I'd be crazy to be disappointed with the performance and end result of our team," said LoPresti. "Considering that just 12 months ago we were all sitting home watching the webcasts and title match, this team accomplished an incredible amount of success while maturing to become one of the nation's top squads.  A third place finish in the nation would have been far beyond my wildest dreams back when the season started. "

"We greatly matured and improved exponentially since last season. Now we have gained valuable experience from this great finish, and that can only make us even better."

"We return all but one player from our roster for next season, so our expectations will certainly be high. Yet, with the level of competition getting tougher each season, we're still going to have our work cut out for us."

"I'd like to thank all of the families of the team for the exhuberant support they provided throughout the season. It always seemed like a home match wherever we went this season, especially here in Detroit, where we needed it the most."  

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 2007

 The Fairleigh Dickinson University homepage and headquarters for the Knights' trip to the 2007 NCAA Women's Bowling Championship.

RECAPS

Women's Bowling Begins Journey to Defend National Title

Fairleigh Dickinson Women's Bowling Earns No. 1 Seed at NCAA Tournament

Women's Bowling Falls in 2007 NCAA Tournament Semifinals

Kerr Earns Place on NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team

STATISTICS

Day One: Qualifying

Traditional Team Games

Baker Games

Overall Standings

Individual Standings

Day Two

Updated Standings/Results/Records

ARTICLES

The Record (April 12, 2007): FDU Looks to Repeat as Champs

The Record (April 13, 2007): FDU Earns Top Seed

Bowl.com (April 13, 2007): Updates

PHOTO ALBUMS

Women's Bowling Team Departs for NCAAs

Women's Bowling NCAA Banquet

On the Lanes

More Action on the Lanes

NCAA Awards

QUOTES

Day One

“It was an extremely emotional day that came out to be one of the most positive days of the season,” said Head Coach Mike LoPresti. “We were able to maintain our composure through the highs and lows and that was the difference in the end. However, just because we are the No. 1 seed—we have won a battle, but still have to win the war.”

“The real test is tomorrow, when the matches are elimination,” said LoPresti. “We need to maintain our level of competition and success tomorrow; otherwise we will be going home early. I'm extremely proud of our freshmen in their first National Championship. They stepped up and performed far better than expected. Nevertheless, it was a team effort and it'll have to be the same way tomorrow for us to win.”

Day Two

After the first two matches: "We aren't disappointed at all," said Head Coach Mike LoPresti. "We were down 3-1 and we brought the match all the way to the last frame. You can't ask for anything more than that. We have a young, enthusiastic and resilient team that just added another chapter to their experience. Now it's about using all of the experience of the season and from this tournament to win the next match-- we can't look past that."

After matches three and four: "Probably one of the hardest things to do is to repeat as a National Champion," said LoPresti. "We gave it our best shot, and unfortunately, we came up a little bit short. I'm ecstatic about how we fought right to the last shot. We never gave in, never got down and always believed that we could win the match, even beyond all odds. We had superlative performances today. For the seniors, they'll cherish those memories for the rest of their lives. For the freshmen, they'll be able to use it to make us better in the future. Tomorrow, we start preparing for next year."