Bowling has soared into the upper echelon of sports, setting a steady pace by blending strong organization with modern centers in which to participate. Although the sport now appeals to people from all walks of life, entering a bowling center today would give few clues to its origin.

Bowling has been traced to articles found in the tomb of an Egyptian child buried in 5200 B.C. The primitive implements included nine pieces of stone at which a stone "ball" was rolled, the ball having first to roll through an archway made of three pieces of marble.

Another ancient discovery was the Polynesian game of ula maika, also utilizing pins and balls of stone. The stones were to be rolled at targets 60 feet away, a distance which today still is one of the basic regulations of tenpins.

Bowling at pins probably originated in ancient Germany, not as a sport but as a religious ceremony. Martin Luther is credited with settling on nine as the ideal number of pins.

The game moved throughout Europe, the Scandinavian countries, and finally to the United States, with the earliest known reference to bowling at pins in America made by author Washington Irving about 1818 in "Rip Van Winkle."

The game was being played throughout the world and rules were different almost everywhere. Even basic equipment was not the same. In fact, why and when the extra pin was added from the European game of ninepins to the American game of tenpins still is a mystery.

Regardless of how the game came into being, it became so popular by mid-19th century indoor lanes were being built throughout Manhattan and the Bronx and on westward, in Syracuse, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Chicago, Milwaukee and other cities with large German populations.

In 1875, delegates from nine bowling clubs in New York and Brooklyn met in Germania Hall in the Bowery and organized the National Bowling Association. This was the first attempt to bring order out of chaos.

Disagreement raged between East and West, principally the alignment of New York State bowlers against everyone else to the west. On Sept. 9,1895, the American Bowling Congress was organized in Beethoven Hall in New York City.

A group of 40 women, encouraged by proprietor Dennis J. Sweeney of St. Louis, met at Sweeney's establishment in 1916 and formed what was known as the Women's International Bowling Congress.

Governed by a 12-member board which included three athletes, USA Bowling was recognized as the sport's governing body in the United States by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Federation Internationale des Quilleurs.

USA Bowling coordinated all amateur international competition promoted by USOC or FIQ, and conducted the National Amateur Bowling Championships. In addition, it was the leader in providing instruction and coaching programs to help bowlers improve.

Prior to USTBF's founding, ABC and WIBC jointly held Group C status with the USOC as bowling's governing body since the sport's acceptance by the USOC in 1986. The USTBF was eventually established to comply with the USOC Constitution and the Amateur Sports Act adopted by Congress in 1978. The USOC granted Group A membership to the USTBF in 1989.

The Team USA bowling program was initiated by ABC and WIBC in 1986 with the first National Amateur Championships. Dan Nadeau of Las Vegas and Cora Fiebig of Madison Heights, Mich., were the first men's and women's national amateur champions.

The United States has been represented in international competition since the 1930s when the late Dr. Joe Thum, a New York City proprietor later elected to the ABC Hall of Fame, organized teams to travel to Europe. Prior to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany, a large delegation of male bowlers participated in a special event.

The FIQ was formed in 1951 with nine countries but now boasts more than 100 member nations. It first applied for International Olympic Committee recognition in 1963, but was continually refused until being officially recognized in 1979. Bowling was an official exhibition sport in the 1988 Games.

The U.S. did not become a FIQ member until 1961, making its official international debut in the 1963 FIQ World Championships in Mexico, dominating the competition. Since that time other nations have improved tremendously, increasing the competition for the Americans.

Tales are told about women bowlers being screened off from view behind partitions or drapes or being allowed to bowl only when men were not using the alleys. Those were the days of high button shoes, skirts to the ankles, cumbersome apparel and tenpin accommodations that were hardly appealing.

Old photos document scenes of women bowling as early as the 1880s. The first recorded formalized bowling for women began in 1907 in St. Louis, when Dennis J. Sweeney, a bowling proprietor and sports writer, organized a women's league.

Inklings of national interest also were being shown. That same year (1907) many women accompanied their husbands to the American Bowling Congress Tournament in St. Louis, as they had been doing for several years. In St. Louis the women laid plans to hold their own tournament, the following year, on ABC Tournament lanes in Cincinnati after the annual men's event had concluded. A second women's tournament in 1909 followed the ABC event in Pittsburgh.

Records show little activity until 1915, when Ellen Kelly, an avid bowler, formed the St. Louis Women's Bowling Association. Buoyed by her success, she wrote to proprietors across the country asking for names of women who might be interested in a national organization of their own. She followed with letters to those women, urging the organization of local associations and offering advice on rules and establishing an organization.

By the Fall of 1916 in St. Louis, Sweeney was there to help Mrs. Kelly stage the first "national tournament." There were eight teams entered and champions were decided in team, doubles, singles and all events. The prize fund was $225.

Following the tournament those 40 women from 11 cities met at Sweeney's Washington Recreation Parlor and created the national organization that became after several name changes - the Women's International Bowling Congress. Fifty years later a charter member described the initial tournament as "frankly plain, there were eight alleys and four rows of benches for visitors a small counter square in back of the benches was used to sell soda pop, popcorn, peanuts, etc." She also recalled that the "meeting was more of a social gathering, and we gave little thought that it would develop into such a big organization."

The 40 pioneers elected their first national officers and adopted a constitution and bylaws that included the following purposes: To provide, adopt and enforce uniform rules and regulations governing the play of American tenpins; to provide and enforce uniform qualifications for tournaments and their participants; to hold a national tournament, and to encourage good feeling and create interest in the bowling game.

Those original precepts became the foundation of WIBC, which has developed into the largest sports organization in the world for women. The 40 pioneers set the pattern for today's 1.2 million WIBC members, who bowl in more than 60,000 sanctioned leagues in approximately 2,700 local associations in every state and several foreign countries.

That humble national tournament -- with its eight-team entry -- was the forerunner of what is now the largest women's sports event in the world. In tact, the 1997 WIBC Championship tournament held in Reno, Nev. attracted 14,872 five-woman teams, the largest entry for any team tournament in history. There were 88,279 individuals, a womens world record.

That first tentative gathering on the benches in Washington Recreation Parlor has evolved into a model of bowling democracy, the WIBC annual meeting. More than 3,000 delegates representing local and state associations attended the WIBC annual meeting to adopt rules and select national leaders. Similar annual meetings at local, state and provincial levels assure the self-government concept. Nationally, WIBC was governed by a board of directors elected by the delegates. Administrative policies and procedures were implemented by a staff at WIBC headquarters in suburban Milwaukee.

Along with growth and development came a multiplicity of services. Leagues received a wealth of rule books, record keeping materials and prepackaged kits to keep them functioning smoothly. Local, state and provincial associations benefited from a variety of materials to help them conduct their affairs more efficiently, ranging from handbooks, information sheets and forms to educational seminars, workshops and counseling from staff members and field representatives. A bonding and insurance program provided by WIBC covered association and league funds. A tournament sanctioning program was another important service.

A description of WIBC's awards for members would fill a chapter in itself. They recognized achievements within the realm of every bowler, from the beginner to the world champion.

From its humble beginnings, WIBC stood for tradition, friendship, fun, competition, leadership and success. It has meant this and more to the millions of women who proudly called WIBC my organization.

Cain started bowling at age 6 and had his first 300 game at age 12. He finished 10th in the first Junior Gold Championships in 1998, credentials that helped him earn the 1999 Chuck Hall Star of Tomorrow Award. He was a two-time first-team All-American at Arizona State University. In 2001, Cain was named Bowling Writers Association of America Amateur Bowler of the Year, an award he would win again in 2005, and was runner-up for BWAA Collegiate Bowler of the Year.

As a member of Team USA, he won three gold medals at the 2005 FIQ/WTBA American Zone Championships, a bronze medal in singles at the 2005 World Games, and he won five gold medals and one silver at the Tournament of the Americas. He also brought home a silver medal from the 2003 WTBA World Championships and was a semifinalist in the 2002 AMF World Cup.

Cain, a USBC Silver coach, was a member of the Team All-Events champion at the 2011 USBC Open Championships. He has rolled numerous 300 games and has an 868 high series.

A member of the American Bar Association and the Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants, he has spent most of the past two decades in similar positions for several companies. He previously served as a member of the board of directors of ABCO, a for-profit subsidiary of the American Bowling Congress.

Bluth, the son of USBC Hall of Famer Ray Bluth, earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Washington University in St. Louis in 1979. He added advanced degrees in law (J.D. and LL.M.) from the school in 1982 and 1987.

He started his work career in 1980 as a supervisor for Touche Ross & Co. in St. Louis. After five years, he became an assistant tax director for Southwestern Bell Corporation before moving to Florida in 1989. He worked in Maryland from 2000-03 before returning to Florida for his present position.

Bluth is married with four children.

Adams served as a director, fifth vice president and third vice president of the Women’s International Bowling Congress during her 10 years on the WIBC Board of Directors. She also was a member of the USA Bowling Board of Trustees.

Her past bowling positions include Team USA state coordinator; Charlotte Women’s Bowling Association director and president; North Carolina WBA director, first vice president and president; North Carolina Bowling Council secretary; and WIBC and North Carolina WBA delegate.

Adams served on numerous committees including the WIBC Joint Diversity and Legislative committees, where she was chair, and also on the Association Governance and Collegiate committees. She also was a member of the Structure Committee that formed USBC.

She was inducted into the Charlotte WBA Hall of Fame in 1995 for meritorious service and is a Charlotte WBA Life Member. She was included into the former North Carolina WBA Hall of Fame for meritorious service.

Adams is a former president of the Greater Charlotte USBC Association and the North Carolina State USBC Association. She is chair of the board of trustees of the Greater Charlotte Bowling Scholarship Fund.

Away from bowling, Adams enjoys listening to classical music, operas, theater, gaming and cheering for the Duke University Blue Devils. She and husband Jerry have two daughters.

At the national level, Baker has served on the USBC Board of Directors since the organization’s inception and has spent time as chair of the Strategic Planning Committee. She previously served as a director on the Young American Bowling Alliance, Women’s International Bowling Congress and USA Bowling boards of directors.

Baker, the Chief Financial Officer for the Piatt County Mental Health Center, has been on the Illinois USBC Women’s Bowling Association Board of Directors since 1993 and served as third vice president for nearly six years. She served as a director on the Clinton (Ill.) USBC for four years, and has served on the Champaign Area USBC as a director for five years with one year as third vice president.

She has been on the Illinois State USBC Youth Board since 1994, where she was second vice president for 10 years and now is the only vice president for that board. She was Illinois Bowling Council secretary-treasurer for eight years and spent 20 years on the Clinton WBA Board, including three years as president. She is a member of the Clinton WBA Hall of Fame and Illinois WBA Hall of Fame, both for meritorious service.

On the lanes, she won eight titles in the 1989 Clinton WBA championships. She also is a certified lane inspector.

Baker bowled a high series of 675 to finish fourth in Classified Singles at the 2006 USBC Open Championships.

She and her husband, Randy, have four children and five grandchildren. She enjoys spending time with her family, reading, crocheting, crafts, flower arranging and working with the University of Illinois Women’s Volleyball support group, the Networkers, serving on the board from 1998 to 2009, serving six years as president.

In 2008, he was inducted into the TNBA Southern Region Hall of Fame for meritorious service and in 2010 received the annual TNBA Joe Blue Award for Outstanding Service.

On the local level, Daniels served as American Bowling Congress director for the Greater St. Louis Bowling Association.

Perry retired after 30 years with IBM Corporation and owned his own service industry business for five years. He is Past President and Rules Interpreter of the Dallas Basketball Officials Association.

Daniels and his wife, Linda, have four children and nine grandchildren. He bowls in a USBC league and is an avid golfer.

Dimond served as a director for the Women’s International Bowling Congress from 2002-05 and as executive director of the Greater Columbus Bowling Association from 2001-05. She was association secretary for the Columbus WBA from 1988-2005.

She served on the USBC Restructuring Task Force in 2008-09, has been on the Nominating Committees for WIBC and USBC, and was an original member of the Membership Development team for Bowling Headquarters in the early 1990s.

Gann serves as the commissioner of high school bowling in Oklahoma and was chairman of the ABC/WIBC Collegiate Committee. He was awarded the Gordon Teigen Meritorious Service Award in 2010 by the Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association.

He was selected as the 2004 Jim Thorpe Man of the Year for bowling for the state of Oklahoma. The award recognizes an individual who has made a significant impact or has attained an exceptional degree of accomplishment in a sport as a major contributor, administrator, leader, path maker or competitor in the state of Oklahoma.

Away from bowling, Gann is a retired teacher, coach and assistant principal at Sand Springs Schools and currently is employed as a loan officer at Great Plains Mortgage in Tulsa, Okla. He is a member of the National Education Association and the Oklahoma Education Association, in addition to being a member of the Oklahoma Coaches Association.

He and wife Leah have two children. He enjoys family time, travel and coaching youth bowlers.

She was on the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America Youth Committee for 10 years and helped resurrect the In-School Bowling Program. She has volunteered at the USBC Junior Gold and Pepsi Championships for many years.

A Bronze level coach, she was secretary-treasurer on the board of directors of the former Young American Bowling Alliance in its final season in 2004-05. She also has served as president of the Northern Michigan Bowling Proprietors Association.

Before involvement with the bowling center, she was a secretary for a high school for six years and a bank teller for four years.

In 2006, she was one of 17 people to earn the distinguished Proprietor of the Year award from BPAA.

Italia holds a bachelor’s degree in business management and administration from the University of Phoenix, and holds many certificates in fire and rescue services. He serves as a fire marshal and career firefighter, and has used bowling as a fundraiser for local non-profit groups.

A third-generation bowler and a member of USBC and the former American Bowling Congress and Young American Bowling Alliance for more than two decades, he has a 299 high game and 756 high series. He has won two junior league tournaments and several adult tournaments. He also enjoys coaching youth bowlers and helping form new leagues and getting new members.

In 2006 he joined the Professional Bowlers Association as a full member and bowls in regional events in his spare time. He lives with his wife, Tami, his daughter, Johanna, and his son, Luciano.

Kielich is president of the El Paso USBC and has been on the El Paso USBC/El Paso Bowling Association board for more than 14 years. He was actively involved in the local promotion of the 2010 USBC Women’s Championships in El Paso and also is the tournament director for the El Paso Scratch Classic.

A finance manager for AT&T since 2005, Kielich previously worked as an assistant manager at a bowling center. As program coordinator for the new facility, he created successful leagues and tournaments for the new center in addition to serving as manager of the pro shop.

On the lanes, Kielich has one professional title in the PBA Southwest region and more than 20 city titles in the El Paso USBC/El Paso BA along with several 300 and 800 series. He was inducted into the El Paso USBC Hall of Fame in 2008.

A seven-time Team USA and two-time Junior Team USA member, Kulick graduated in 2000 from Morehead State University, where she was a two-time Collegiate Bowler of the Year. She won Rookie of the Year honors for the 2001 Professional Women’s Bowling Association season and in 2006 became the first female to earn a Professional Bowlers Association Tour exemption.

In 2010, Kulick became the first woman to win a PBA Tour title when she won the 2010 PBA Tournament of Champions. Her 2010 season also included her second Queens title and her second U.S. Women’s Open title.

The proprietor at Sun Valley Lanes in Lincoln, Losito was honored in 2012 with the President’s Medal for his leadership and many contributions and years of service to BPAA, especially in the area of tournaments as BPAA’s Tournament Committee chairman. He was selected the 2006 Nebraska Bowling Proprietor of the Year.

Losito was an at-large BPAA board member in 2007 and 2008. A member of the BPAA High School Committee, he also has served as state commissioner of the Nebraska High School Bowling Federation since its inception in 2000. He has been on the board of the Nebraska State Bowling Proprietors since 1998.

He is a two-time collegiate national bowling team champion (Erie Community College in 1988, Nebraska in 1990) and a three-time academic All-American.

He is a graduate of the University of Nebraska where he also was a member of the bowling club and served as president from 1992-94. He was Collegiate Bowler of the Year runner-up and was selected Most Valuable Player at the Intercollegiate Bowling Championships in 1994.

Manna, who is a Senior Administrator at West Corporation in Omaha, is a member of the Nebraska State and Omaha Bowling Halls of Fame.

A bowler for more than 40 years, Martin has been an active volunteer at the local, state and national level for most of his life. He was on the ABC Board of Directors from 2002-2004 and served on the Greater Detroit Bowling Association Board for 20 years. Martin has recent experience at the national level, serving on the USBC Strategic Planning Committee from 2004-2007.

Before taking over as association manager for Metro Detroit four years ago, Martin spent 10 years as Executive Director of the Greater Detroit Bowling Association and three years as the Secretary-Treasurer of the Detroit Women’s Bowling Association.

Nephew previously worked for AMF Bowling, where he was named Manager of the Year in 2004. He also spent several years with Marcel Bowling Enterprises, managing one of the largest facilities in the U.S., the former 80-lane center Olympic Bowl in Rochester, N.Y. Among his duties was serving as special events coordinator for the Lilac City Tournament and helping orchestrate the Professional Bowlers Association event in Rochester.

Nephew began his bowling career at age 3, becoming the youngest bowler in his small hometown of Plattsburgh, N.Y., to be certified at that time. Since then, Nephew has amassed a variety of bowling accomplishments, including the High Roller A-Game, World Team Challenge titles and the Rochester New York Masters.

Nephew has competed in several PBA events and has traveled internationally to South Africa, where he captured the Menlyn Open title.

A three-time member of Team USA (1997-1999), Peterson was the 1996 U.S. Amateur champion. He helped Team USA to the team silver medal at the 1999 World Tenpin Bowling Association World Championships in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

At the 1997 Pan American Bowling Confederation Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, he helped Team USA to gold medals in the trios and team events

A USBC Silver level coach, Peterson has been in the pro shop business for more than 17 years. He has more than 40 career 300 games and more than 20 career 800 series.

A bowler since age 7, Rose won the New York State Women’s Queens Division II in 2003. In 2008, she won the local team association championships. In addition, she placed first five out of six years in the mixed team event at the Wild Irish Rose tournament. In 1998 she held a mixed doubles two-game total city record of 567.

She has held secretary/treasurer for local leagues and has served as a league president.

He is chair of the USBC Youth Committee and a youth committee representative on the USBC Board of Directors. After serving a one-year term as president of the Empire State USBC BA, he was elected vice president of the newly merged New York State USBC, effective Aug. 1, 2011.

He has served on the New York State USBC Youth Association Board of Directors since 2004 and is an active volunteer of the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America, serving on the Youth, Young Guns, Constitution and Bylaws, Marketing, and International Bowl Expo committees.

He began volunteering with the Young American Bowling Alliance Youth Leaders Chapter at age 11, serving on various project committees, and was elected president of the chapter at 14. He was elected president of the USBC New York State Youth Leaders chapter when he was 18 and, two years later, was elected Staten Island USBC Association president.

He has received many honors for his work with youth bowling, including New York State YABA Youth Leader of the Year and Youth Leader Alumni Bridging the Gap Award in 2004, the 2004-05 YABA National Male Youth Leader of the Year, and the Local Youth Sports Administrator of the Year by The National Council of Youth Sports in 2008.

He is a part-time student at DeVry University, pursuing a degree in Sales & Marketing and Project Management.

A bowler for more than 35 years, Williams had a record qualifying round at the 2007 USBC Senior Queens. She was part of a team that won several Brunswick World Team Challenge women’s events in the 1990s. She was named 2006-07 Great Plains USBC Senior Bowler of the Year.

Williams worked for Learjet, Inc. for 34 years, including 20 as a corporate tax analyst.

In 1991, he initiated the creation of the first magazine for all ABC members, leading to the creation of Bowling Headquarters’ first membership database. Vint helped design the Registered Volunteer Program and was liaison to the ABC, WIBC and USBC Hall of Fame committees. In 10 prior years, he was the Ladies Pro Bowlers Tour Marketing Director.

A former Bowling Writers Association of America President and Executive Director, he is a member of the BWAA Hall of Fame. Vint and wife Lisa founded Windy City Bowling News which has served greater Chicagoland for 20 years.

Jeff Boje, Chair
Amanda Hollenbaugh
Karl Kielich
Joe Spain
Frank Wilkinson

Susan Merrill, Staff Liaison

Tony Manna, Chair
Andrew Cain
Kelly Kulick
Mark Martin
Vernon Peterson
Gary Schenk
Scott Sterbenz

Neil Stremmel, Staff Liaison

Bill Spigner, Chair
Mike Aulby
Lynda Barnes
Pam Buckner
Fran Deken
Anne Marie Duggan
Paul Egbers
Nick Hoagland
Bob Johnson
Chuck Pezzano
Jeff Richgels
Jan Schmidt
Bill Vint
Lyle Zikes

Pete Tredwell, Staff Liaison

Tamoria Adams, Chair
Tom Bluth
Andrew Cain
Jo Dimond
Suzanne Huebel
Mike Italia
Mark Martin

Mike Spridco, Staff Liaison

Mike Italia, Chair
Darlene Baker
Andrew Cain
Cathy DeSocio
Tony Manna
Frank Wilkinson
Marci Williams

Stu Upson, Staff Liaison

Libbi Fletcher, Chair
Darlene Baker
Cathy DeSocio
Bob Klatt
Wendy Macpherson
Jay Nephew
Frank Wilkinson

Stu Upson, Staff Liaison

Frank Wilkinson, Chair (Frank.Wilkinson@bowl.com)
Cera Dailey (Cera.Dailey@bowl.com)
Erik Galganski (Erik.Galganski@bowl.com)
Tommy Gann (Tommy.Gann@bowl.com)
Elbert Gibson (Elbert.Gibson@bowl.com)
Brenda Green (Brenda.Green@bowl.com)
Debra Haggerty (Debra.Haggerty@bowl.com)
Amanda Hollenbaugh (Amanda.Hollenbaugh@bowl.com)
Suzanne Huebel (Suzanne.Huebel@bowl.com)
Kyle Mauerman (Kyle.Mauerman@bowl.com)
Alan Nordman (Alan.Nordman@bowl.com)
Rick Pittser (Rick.Pittser@bowl.com)

Chad Murphy, Staff Liaison

Before Skip Barber, Upson was Senior Vice President for Venue3D, a joint venture between the William Morris Agency and Mills Corporation to provide marketing consulting services for retail developers and properties. Upson also spent four years as Senior Vice President of Sports and Entertainment Marketing for First USA Bank (now Chase) where he established the bank's sports affinity credit card program.

Earlier in his career, Upson served as Vice President of Business Development for Major League Baseball Properties and worked in the advertising industry in New York City.

Upson is a graduate of Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California.

He originally joined the organization as the associate tournament director at the Open Championships and spent a year learning the event from retiring tournament director Hal Kaminski before taking the top spot on Aug. 1, 2001.

In 2008, Lewis’ role expanded to include the USBC Women’s Championships, and while his main focus is still on the two major events, he now has a major strategic role in the operation of all USBC championship events.

Lewis is a veteran of more than 30 USBC Open Championships. In 1978, at the age of 17, he took his first plane flight while traveling to his first ABC Tournament. It was the last year of the tournament’s old-style manual scoring.

A degreed engineer, Lewis has 16 years of experience in the manufacturing field. From 1990-2000, he had managerial assignments at various locations in Texas, Pennsylvania and Tennessee.

Originally from Pittsburgh, Lewis comes from a bowling family. His grandfather is a member of the 50-year tournament attendance club. All together, the Lewis family has well over 100 tournament appearances. Lewis carries a 185 lifetime average with a 693 high series in the 1999 singles in Syracuse.

Lewis and his wife, Leslie, are the proud parents of identical twin boys.

Merrill is a certified public accountant, holds a law degree and brings more than 20 years of accounting and finance experience.

While at AmeriCold Logistics, Merrill oversaw a department responsible for accounting and financial management of about $900 million in annual revenue. She also served as a member on key executive committees including pension, quarterly disclosure and insurance.

Prior to her position at AmeriCold Logistics, Merrill worked as controller for nearly eight years at KHOU-TV in Houston. While serving as the television station's senior financial executive, Merrill led operational initiatives to improve profit levels by aggressively focusing on the identification of inefficiencies. Her work helped the station consistently perform at a profit level above the industry average.

Merrill also has worked as an expert consultant providing testimony in litigation proceedings related to sports and entertainment, oil and gas, patent infringement, breach of contract and fraud/forensic accounting.

Merrill holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Nebraska and a law degree from South Texas College of Law. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas and a certified public accountant in the state of Georgia.

The Stillman Valley, Ill., native previously served as USBC Technical Director and Bowling Inc. Director of Research for eight years. He led the USBC Equipment Specifications and Certifications team which tests all bowling equipment to verify compliance with specifications set by USBC.

A mechanical engineer (BSME from Bradley University in Peoria, Ill.), Stremmel is an International Bowling Pro Shop and Instructors Association certified technician and a Bronze certified coach. Neil is a member of the IBPSIA Board and also serves as co-chair of the World Tenpin Bowling Association Technical and Coaching Committee. He sits on multiple other industry panels including the IBPSIA Advisory Board.

Stremmel previously worked in various engineering positions in the nuclear power and aerospace industries. He has served as a local American Bowling Congress director and is a lifetime bowler with multiple 300 games who began working in a center at age 13.

He and wife Kari have one son and one daughter.

Before joining USBC, Terry was president of the Winston-Salem Dash, an affiliate of Major League Baseball's Chicago White Sox and operated by Mandalay Baseball Properties. Prior to his work with the Dash, Terry held sales or marketing positions at the vice president level with the New Orleans Hornets and Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association, as well as MLB's Tampa Bay Rays.

As president of the Winston-Salem Dash, Terry oversaw business operations related to the new $48 million BB&T Ballpark located in downtown Winston-Salem. Under his leadership the organization sold more than $2.5 million in new sponsorship partnerships and the second-largest stadium-naming-rights deal in minor league baseball history.

In his work with the Hornets, Terry directed ticket sales, services and operations overseeing the transition of departments through relocation from Oklahoma City back to New Orleans. With the Hornets, Rays and Warriors, Terry's leadership helped achieve significant increases in ticket sales, customer service and revenue.

Terry attended the University of Kansas and holds a marketing degree from Emporia State University in Emporia, Kan. He started his education at Highland (Kan.) Community College, where he was awarded scholarships in both baseball and music.

Terry and his wife, Bethany, are the parents of one daughter, Brianna, who is a student at the University of Nebraska. Their two "children" still living at home are dogs Nestle and Barkley.

He was with ESPN for more than 10 years after one year with CBS Sports in New York City, a year in media relations for the University of Florida athletic department in Gainesville, Fla., and a year in a similar position at the University of California-Berkeley. He graduated from Indiana University in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science degree in sports marketing and management. He also received a certificate from the Indiana School of Business.

He started for three years and part of a fourth on Indiana University's bowling team from 1991-95 including the 1994-95 season when the Hoosiers spent most of the season as the No. 1-ranked team in the nation by the Bowling Writers Association of America. He has a 300 high game and 794 high series. He also owns six Junior Bowlers Tour titles after joining his first league at age 9.

Tredwell and his wife Kathy have two children.