Nebraska Cornhuskers bowling

The Nebraska Cornhuskers bowling team represents the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, competing as an independent in NCAA Division I. The program began as a club team, becoming a varsity sport in 1996 and an official NCAA sport in 2003. The Cornhuskers have since established themselves as the NCAA's premier bowling program. Nebraska has won eleven national championships, finished runner-up four times, and is the only program to qualify for every NCAA Bowling Championship.^[2]

Nebraska Cornhuskers
Founded	1990; 34 years ago (1990)
University	University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Athletic director	Troy Dannen
Head coach	Paul Klempa (6th season)
Conference	Independent
Location	Lincoln, Nebraska
Home arena	Sun Valley Lanes
Nickname	Cornhuskers
Colors	Scarlet and cream[1]
National championships
WIBC: 1991, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001 NCAA: 2004, 2005, 2009, 2013, 2015, 2021
NCAA Tournament appearances
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024

History

Nebraska's bowling program began in 1990 as a club sport, coached by Bill Straub, who led the team to WIBC national titles in 1991 and 1995. Bowling became an official varsity sport at NU in 1996, and Straub was hired as the full-time head coach, winning additional national titles in 1997, 1999, and 2001. In 2003, the NCAA sanctioned its first women's bowling tournament, which Nebraska won. The Cornhuskers won the following year as well, and have since won three more titles and finished runner-up four times. The program has never been ranked lower than seventh.^[3] In 2019, Straub retired and longtime assistant Paul Klempa was named head coach.

Straub also led Nebraska's men's club bowling program through 1996, winning national titles in 1990 and 1996.

Coaches

Coaching history

No.	Coach	Tenure	Accomplishments
1	Bill Straub	1990–2019	WIBC champion (1991,1995,1997,1999,2001) NCAA champion (2004,2005,2009,2013,2015) NTCA National Coach of the Year (2005,2013,2017)
2	Paul Klempa	2019–	NCAA champion (2021)

Coaching staff

Name	Position	First year	Alma mater
Paul Klempa	Head coach	2019	Nebraska
Julia Bond	Assistant coach	2021	Nebraska

Awards

All-Americans

Nebraska has had thirty-seven players combine for eighty ATCA All-America honors.^[4]

Kim Berke – 1989–92 Jennifer Wilson – 1991 Carrie Machuga – 1993 Shelly Machuga – 1993 Andrea Rigby – 1993–96 Brenda Edwards – 1995,1997 Brenda Norman – 1996 Jennifer Daugherty – 1996–99 Jennifer Davis – 1998 Kimberly Claus – 1998 Diandra Hyman – 1999–2001 Shannon Pluhowsky – 2001,2002,2004,2005 Kari Schwager – 2002 Paola Gomez – 2003 Amanda Burgoyne – 2004–07 Lindsay Baker – 2005–08 Jamie Martin – 2005,2006 Adrienne Miller – 2005,2007 Cassandra Leuthold – 2007–10

Katie Ann Sopp – 2008 Valerie Calberry – 2009,2012 Danielle van der Meer – 2009,2011 Kayla Johnson – 2012 Kristina Mickelson – 2012 Elise Bolton – 2013 Lizabeth Kuhlkin – 2013–15 Julia Bond – 2015–18 Gazmine Mason – 2015–17 Briana Zabierek – 2016 Kelly Belzeski – 2017,2018 Meghan Straub – 2017–19 Raquel Orozco – 2018–20 Allison Morris – 2019 Cassidy Ray – 2020,2021 Crystal Elliot – 2021,2022 Kayla Verstraete – 2021,2022 Kendyl Hofmeister – 2022

National Bowler of the Year

• Kim Berke – 1992
• Diandra Hyman – 2000
• Shannon Pluhowsky – 2001, 2004, 2005
• Lindsay Baker – 2006
• Amanda Burgoyne – 2007
• Cassandra Leuthold – 2010
• Lizabeth Kuhlkin – 2015
• Raquel Orozco – 2020
• Crystal Elliot – 2021

Season-by-season results

National champion

Year[lower-alpha 1]	Coach	Postseason
Independent (1991–present)
1997–98	Bill Straub	WIBC 4th
1998–99		WIBC Champion
1999–00		WIBC 3rd
2000–01		WIBC Champion
2001–02		WIBC 9th
2002–03		WIBC 7th
2003–04		NCAA Champion
2004–05		NCAA Champion
2005–06		NCAA 3rd
2006–07		NCAA T–3rd
2007–08		NCAA T–7th
2008–09		NCAA Champion
2009–10		NCAA Runner-up
2010–11		NCAA T–3rd
2011–12		NCAA 3rd
2012–13		NCAA Champion
2013–14		NCAA Runner-up
2014–15		NCAA Champion
2015–16		NCAA Runner-up
2016–17		NCAA Runner-up
2017–18		NCAA 4th
2018–19		NCAA T–3rd
2019–20	Paul Klempa	Canceled[lower-alpha 2]
2020–21		NCAA Champion
2021–22		NCAA T–5th
2022–23		NCAA 3rd
2023–24		NCAA Regional

Notes

1. Year-by-year records unavailable prior to 1997
2. Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic

References

1. "The Power of Color" (PDF). Nebraska Athletics Brand Guide. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
2. "Huskers Qualify for NCAA National Championship". Huskers.com. Retrieved 2019-03-28.
3. "BILL STRAUB". Huskers.com. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
4. "Nebraska Bowling All-Americans". Huskers.com. Retrieved 2020-07-09.