WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J.- Monmouth
University Vice President and Director of Athletics Dr. Marilyn McNeil has
announced that women's bowling will be added as the school's 20th intercollegiate
sponsored sport starting in the 2010-11 season.
"We are excited about the addition of women's bowling to our
varsity sport offerings," said McNeil. "Bowling is a high participation
sport in the Shore Conference and we have a very active club on campus.
For those reasons, we believe we can be immediately successful in both the NEC
and the NCAA. "
Eight current teams compete in the Northeast Conference, including defending
champion Fairleigh Dickinson, Sacred Heart, St. Francis (N.Y.), Long Island
University and associate members Kutztown, New Jersey City, Adelphi and Saint
Peter's. The NEC is one of two organized conferences in
the country, with the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) being the other.
Women's bowling is a non-divisional sport, meaning schools from Division I, II
and III can compete against each other. There
are no automatic qualifying conferences so an eight-team at-large selected
field qualifies for the NCAA Tournament. A total of 62 collegiate teams (34 Division I
members) compete for the NCAA Championship, which is held in April. NEC member New Jersey City University will
act as host to this year's tournament at Brunswick Zone Carolier Lanes from April
8-10.
The NEC,
which named bowling its 23rd sport of sponsorship in 2008, will host two
regular season competitions prior to the 2010 NEC Bowling Championship. The NEC
will bring its two-day championship tournament, which is set for March 20 &
21, to Parkway Lanes in Elmwood Park, New Jersey for the second straight year.
A national search will commence to find Monmouth's inaugural coach.
