The Fairleigh Dickinson women’s bowling team is about to go after their third national title.

Coming off its fifth Northeast Conference Championship, the team is heading to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.

“This group that we’ve groomed, that put through trials and tribulations for a few seasons, finally gets an opportunity to represent their institution and represent themselves and their families in the NCAA Tournament. It is really an exciting time,” says coach Mike Lopresti.

FDU’s bowling team is a winning program that has made 13 NCAA Tournament appearances in 17 tries. But this senior class has yet to experience nationals. The COVID-19 pandemic ended the women’s season last year, the week before conference championships.

“We got shutdown last year, so you know, the seven of us came back with, ‘Hey, we finished out on such a high note last year,’ and that we want to just continue into this year. And we did, so we want to see it all continue,” says senior Jenna Henderson.

“To go back there and finally get our chance, to get a chance at that NCAA Tournament, it’s incredible,” says senior Amanda Chrzanowski. “I’m so excited, this is what I signed up for.”

Players say to come back in 2021, post a 35-5 record, win a conference title and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament is beyond satisfying. The team says that they are confident that they have what it takes to win its third title.

“That's the beauty of our sport, it just comes down to that moment in that game and the frame we throw,” says senior Aimee Sherman. “If the pins fall our way, then I think we can make it all the way.”

FDU will begin NCAA Tournament competition next week in Kansas City.