2004 NCAA Champions

Houston, Texas -- The Nebraska bowling team capped a remarkable season by winning the NCAA Women's Bowling Championship at Emerald Bowl in Houston late Saturday.

The Huskers, who lost to Central Missouri State in Friday's winner's bracket final by one pin, stove off elimination three times on Saturday, defeating New Jersey City University, 4-3, before toppling top-seeded CMSU by identical scores of 4-2 to claim the first-ever women's NCAA title.

It is the third national title (one NCAA and two IBC) since the program was elevated to varsity status in the 1997-98 season, and the sixth overall for Coach Bill Straub, who guided the program since its days as a club sport at Nebraska. It is also the 21st national title won by a Husker athletic program in school history.

Nebraska survived a tough opening match on Saturday, escaping with a 4-3 win over New Jersey City University, the No. 6 seed in the tournament. The Huskers and Gothic Knights were tied 3-3 before the Huskers advanced with a 191-178 win in the seventh game, as Shannon Pluhowsky clinched the win with a strike on the 10th frame.

The win sent the Huskers on to the title match against Central Missouri State, as the Huskers needed to beat the Jennies, the only team to go undefeated in Friday's competition, twice on Saturday.

The Huskers won the rematch by a score of 4-2, setting up a winner-take-all match for the first-ever NCAA title. NU took control in the fourth game as the teams ended the game tied at 212, forcing a two frame roll-off. Adrienne Miller converted a strike in the first frame before Pluhowsky rolled three straight strikes, giving NU a 60-40 win as NU took a 3-1 lead.

In the second championship match, The Huskers opened up with a 170-131 victory before dropping the next two games (160-208; 185-190) to fall behind 2-1. Nebraska would rebound, winning the next two games in convincing fashion (239-150; 219-197) before wrapping up the program's first-ever NCAA crown with a 215-173 victory.

The Huskers will be in a great position to defend their NCAA title in 2005, as all seven bowlers who competed at the NCAA Championships are underclassmen, including Pluhowsky, a two-time All-American and three-time U.S. Amateur champion, and current Team USA member Amanda Burgoyne. Other returnees include sophomores Nicole Aleo, Karla Engh, Jamie Martin and Jennifer Schultz and Miller, a freshman.

Husker Bowling Championship Notes:
*- Nebraska has now won 21 national titles in school history (men's gymnastics-8; football-5; women's indoor track-3; bowing-3 and volleyball-2).

*- The Husker bowling program has now won six national titles (1991, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001 and 2004) under Head Coach Bill Straub dating back to the days when it was a club sport. The last three titles have been won since the club was elevated to varsity status for the 1997-98 academic year.

*- Nebraska's seven tournament titles in 2003-04 equals a school record set by the 2001-02 Husker squad.

2004 NCAA Women's Bowling Championship Results
Nebraska def. New Jersey City Univ., 4-3 (188-146, 245-140, 211-222, 171-183, 237-134, 184-200, 191-178)
Nebraska def. Central Missouri State, 4-2 (183-176, 168-200, 195-170, 212-212 (60-40), 168-203, 246-195)
Nebraska def. Central Missouri State, 4-2 (170-131, 160-208, 185-190, 239-150, 219-197 and 215-173)

Nebraska Coach Bill Straub
On winning the NCAA title
"It is a big relief more than anything. When the championship were announced last spring, we knew we had a job to do, and knew that second place wasn’t good enough. It was something that kept Coach Klempa and myself up at nights, knowing that our goal was to bring home the national title. We downplayed it in front of the team all year, but it was something that was always in the back of our minds."

The way we lost in the winner’s bracket on Friday was unfortunate, but we played well and didn’t get the breaks. Today, the girls came out and really performed admirably. I’m proud of our performance, having to win three matches today."

On the pressure of being on TV and winning
"You never know how someone is going to perform under pressure until you get to that situation, and we met the challenge head on. In the last game, when push came to shove, our girls showed their true colors."

On the 2003-04 team
"Many of the other coaches came up to me and said that they were impressed with not only our girls' bowling abilities, but also in the manner they represented themselves and the program. As a coach, that is one of the highest compliments you can receive because this is a great group to be around."

Nebraska Bowler Shannon Pluhowsky
On winning the NCAA title:
"It is unbelievable. It hasn’t sunk in yet because it happened so fast."

On battling back today:
"I talked with the girls last night (after the loss to CMSU), that if we hung together today, we would do well. We only got beat by one pin last night, and having to bowl the extra match was a benefit for us because we got used to the lane conditions and the TV lights. It played to our advantage. There was a difference in the lanes between yesterday and today, and bowling the extra game helped us take advantage of the conditions."

On rolling the clinching shot:
"It was great, and I knew I had it when I let it go. It had a chance to be a strike and with the ball ¾ down the lanes I was screaming and celebrating. It was a great feeling to win a national title for the program."

Nebraska Bowler Adrienne Miller
On Winning an NCAA Title:
"It is unbelievable. It is an amazing feeling because not many people get to do that (win an NCAA Championship) in their lifetimes.

On the team's focus:
"It was one game at a time for us, and we were on top of it all day. The long day was tough both physically and mentally, but our mental toughness carried us through the day."

On being in the roll-off against Central Missouri State:
Coach Straub asked me if I would be in the roll-off and I said I was ready. After the strike, I was not only relieved, but excited and pumped up."

Nebraska Bowler Jamie Martin
On winning the NCAA title:
"This is a big accomplishment for all of us, and I’m proud to be part of this team."

On the team title:
"All the girls had a lot of determination to win and that what it takes to be a good team, and that’s what we are."

Nebraska Bowler Jennifer Schultz
On Winning an NCAA Title:
"It is a good feeling."

On battling the conditions (which included a power outage:
"It was a long day for both the players and fans because it was so warm inside the lanes because of the TV lights and got hotter after the power went out."

-- Huskers --