Penn State has a long and storied athletic tradition filled with heroics on fields, courts, and wrestling mats. But did you know that for a time, the Nittany Lions dominated at the bowling alley? Back in the 1970s, organized bowling was taking off across the country, and Penn State led the pack at the collegiate level.

Setting the scene, collegiate bowling was still in its developmental stages. The Women’s International Bowling Congress had just merged with the American Bowling Congress in 1978, giving keglers across the country an opportunity to compete for a unified national championship.

That 1978 season saw the emergence of underclassmen stars Tina Clark, Heidi Derk, and Valerie Bright as forces on the national stage. While the Nittany Lions went 10-2 in competitions, they finished atop their region as a team, and Bright was crowned as the nation’s individual champion.

Penn State was coached by Don Ferrell, who had experience on the bench from his 1970 season as the assistant coach of the Penn State men’s basketball team. Ferrell stuck with Penn State Athletics after his time on the court, eventually becoming the head coach of the men’s and women’s bowling teams and Penn State’s first Black head coach.

Returning to the lanes for its 1979 campaign, Penn State dominated in regular-season play. Clark led the Nittany Lions in total points scored en route to another regional championship, and Penn State eventually traveled to the then-famous Red Carpet Lanes in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for the postseason. The Nittany Lions battled through a fierce national tournament bracket, earning a spot in the national championship where it faced Hillsborough Community College.

The Eagles were a strong side, having placed second in the prior national championship. They entered the finals after eliminating the three-time champion Wichita State with five straight strikes, three of which came from their anchor, Tampa native Cindy Walker, who the Nittany Lions had to out-bowl in the important fifth and 10th frames.

The final matchup looked bleak from the outset for Penn State as two straight spare opportunities went empty while Hillsborough racked up a strike and a spare to leap to an early lead. Becky Wilson and April Long righted the ship in the third and fourth frames, matching the Eagles’ spares to keep Penn State in the match at the halfway mark.

Bright tossed a much-needed strike in the fifth frame and gave the Nittany Lions the momentum they needed to get back in front. As the order turned over, Penn State mounted a comeback and turned an 11-point lead into the final frame with the Nittany Lions needing two strikes to put away Hillsborough.

Bright was up to the task, doubling up the 10th frame under pressure to make the lead an insurmountable 192-180 and secure the National Collegiate Bowling Championship title for the Nittany Lions. Bright was named the nation’s most valuable player following the match.

As the years have gone by, little has been mentioned of the once-great Penn State bowling squad. Eventually, bowling had lost momentum as a growing collegiate sport and eyes turned elsewhere as the 1980s and 1990s passed, keeping the squad off the list for further funding and burying this championship run deep in the archives of Penn State’s Special Collections Library.

Though bowling has shifted from a sport to a leisure activity in the decades since its heyday, the Nittany Lions once ruled the lanes. Next time you reminisce with friends about your favorite Penn State national championships, don’t forget about the 1979 bowling title.