Trinity Bowling

By James Hill ’76

Robin McCarthy '82 returns to campus to present a women's bowling trophy won in 1980 to Bob King, director of athletics.

The first-floor lanes, which later became the state-of-the-art Stumberg Fitness Center, were a popular recreation area for the entire Trinity community.

But, from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s, the lanes were also a practice site and competition venue for the Tiger men’s and women’s bowling teams.

Both teams represented the University successfully, but none as prominent as the 1980 women’s squad which advanced to the national tournament. The Tigers, led by head coach Bill Bilikas, along with sponsor Dick Yerly, captured the National Bowling Council’s Sectional event in Fort Worth, Texas. Trinity’s women went on to the national tournament in Milwaukee, Wis.

 In April 2009, a member of the team, Robin McCarthy ’82, of El Paso, Texas, decided the Sectional trophy should be on display in the Bell Athletic Center. McCarthy had obtained the trophy from Bill Bilikas Jr., the son of the late coach, who died in 2005. She brought the championship prize to campus, where it was received by Director of Athletics Bob King in a special ceremony in the Bell Center’s Herndon Room.

“When I came back to Trinity to present the trophy,” McCarthy says, “it was, without question, the best day of my life. The fact that our team’s accomplishments are now a permanent part of Trinity’s athletic history is very special.”

Let’s examine those accomplishments.

The Tigers competed against many schools, which were then members of the Southwest Conference. The University of Texas, Baylor and Texas A&M were on Trinity’s schedule, as was Southwest Texas State, now known as Texas State University.

The Sams Center once housed a popular bowling alley.

In 1980, those Tigers first won the Texas Intercollegiate Bowling Conference title, and advanced to Fort Worth’s sectional event.

That’s where the Tiger women shined. Trinity outscored the mighty Texas Longhorns by 27 pins, in a 12-game scratch tournament. The victory qualified the Tigers for the national championship in Milwaukee.

Trinity finished 12^th in the national field. McCarthy and her teammates were the only Tiger team, male or female, to earn a slot in the national tournament. The Tigers later took first place in the 1982 state collegiate meet.

McCarthy was adamant in ensuring her Sectional champion teammates would get proper credit for the accomplishments. Team members included Mary Jo Carlson ’81, Susan Farrell ’82, Trisha Pillsbury ’80, and Julie Roba ’80.

“We all wanted to win,” McCarthy adds, “not only for ourselves, but for coach Bilikas. We wanted him to know all of his hard work had finally paid off.”

King placed the 4-foot trophy in a display case in the Bell Center lobby, which also houses Trinity’s treasure trove of national and conference triumphs.

“Robin brought a unique perspective,” King says. “We were interested to learn the history of bowling at Trinity. I think it’s good for our female coaches to know how far we’ve come in women’s athletics. Robin and her teammates are definitely part of Trinity’s rich athletic history.”

© 2009 Trinity University