GREENVILLE, S.C. ---- Tusculum University has accepted an invitation to join Conference Carolinas as an associate member in the sports of men's and women's bowling.
Tusculum's associate membership in Conference Carolinas will begin for the upcoming 2021-2022 academic year. TU had been an associate member in the East Coast Conference for women's bowling in the program's first two seasons. Men's bowling, which played its inaugural campaign this past spring, competed as a collegiate independent.
"We are very excited about our associate membership and partnership with Conference Carolinas," said Doug Jones, Tusculum Vice President of Athletics & University Initiatives. "This will allow our bowling programs to compete regionally with other quality institutions that are very similar in regards to mission. We look forward to a long-standing relationship with Conference Carolinas and we are appreciative of them providing us with this opportunity."
"We are really excited to officially welcome Tusculum as an Associate Member in men's and women's bowling," Conference Carolinas Commissioner Chris Colvin said. "The addition of Tusculum allows us to have another first-class institution working with Conference Carolinas to go along with our unique Championships partnership with the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. We are thrilled that Tusculum accepted our invitation and we know that they will be a tremendous addition during our historic first year of men's and women's bowling in the 2021-22 academic year."
Tusculum Director of Bowling Shawn Flanary knows the collaboration with Conference Carolinas will provide his student-athletes a truly special experience.
"Any time a university and an athletic program can be included at the beginning of a new conference sport, it is nothing short of exciting," Flanary said. "Helping grow the sport of bowling into new areas of the country shows the strength of the sport itself. Giving our student-athletes a new venue for success at the conference level on both the women's and men's side will help our programs grow into more recognizable avenues for our local high schools to see what the sport can offer them. I believe we will be able to make an immediate impact on the conference in this first season with both of our teams."
Conference Carolinas men's and women's bowling is unique in that Conference Carolinas will partner with the Great Midwest Athletic Conference for its bowling championships. The inaugural Conference Carolinas / Great Midwest Athletic Conference Men's and Women's Bowling Championships are scheduled for the spring of 2022. More information will be made available in the future.
Conference Carolinas and the Great Midwest Athletic Conference will work in concert for the bowling championships, but during the regular season both conferences will operate separately in governance and with awards (except during the championships).
Conference Carolinas' bowling membership will include Belmont Abbey College, Chowan, Emmanuel College and associate members Lincoln Memorial University and Tusculum.
Tusculum University sponsors 24 intercollegiate sports with 20 those holding full-time membership in the South Atlantic Conference, which TU has been a member since 1998. Tusculum's sports offerings include: baseball, men's & women's basketball, men's & women's bowling, beach volleyball, men's & women's cross country, football, men's & women's golf, men's & women's lacrosse, men's & women's soccer, softball, men's & women's tennis, men's & women's indoor track and field, men's & women's outdoor track and field, and men's & women's volleyball.
