By Jewel Marie
McPherson welcomes their first-ever bowling team on campus. With a big focus on male sports like football and baseball, the all-women team of bowlers who are new to McPherson themselves will become an important part of the college’s history.
The team is led by Mitchell Whitehead, a brand new head coach hired in January of this year. Ever since taking the job, Whitehead has been working to recruit freshmen and prepare for the upcoming season which includes training, travel and team bonding events.
The first part of recruitment took place starting in January and went on until May. This part of the process was mainly about nailing down the team’s first roster.
“It has been challenging and busy but been rewarding, I think that’s the coolest part,” Whitehead said.
Whitehead continued, “I don’t think you get a lot of opportunities in life where you get to create something your own with a group of people and do it all together.”
Whitehead previously served as an assistant coach at both West Texas A&M and Oklahoma Christian University. On top of bowling being a brand new sport for McPherson, this will be Whitehead’s first time serving as a head coach.
McPherson will be holding their scrimmage in town on October 3 against Barton Community College. This will allow the team to get used to bowling in a competitive college environment and allow students to go support their games.
Most bowling tournaments will be in local states like Kansas, Nebraska and Missouri. In December, the varsity team will go out to Las Vegas for the Glenn Carlson Las Vegas Invitational, followed by a Collegiate Shoot-Out and will compete against an estimated 45 schools across the country. Following this will be a weekend trip to Chicago in January, where the team will attend the Kegel-ISBPA Midwest Collegiate Classic.
The women have also taken part in many team-bonding events. Aside from practicing five days a week, the team has made efforts to get together and go to places like the Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita.
“We don’t just talk about bowling, we talk about other things that we have in common”, one person said.
“Everybody’s super genuine, super nice and wants to know about everything that’s going on and genuinely cares about everything else that’s going on around campus,” Whitehead said.
The team’s first tournament will take place against Barton at the Starlite Lanes on October 3.
