Current helps next generation prepare for PWBA Tour
February 09, 2016
ARLINGTON, Texas - Many of the top performances during the relaunch of the Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour in 2015 belonged to players who first found national success at the collegiate level, and Elysia Current of Ephrata, Pennsylvania, helped kick-start the trend by winning the PWBA Storm Sacramento Open in Citrus Heights, California, last July.
Current, a collegiate standout at Fairleigh Dickinson and Wichita State, now is looking to help mold the next generation of PWBA champions as head coach of the Delaware State bowling program.
The 2007 Intercollegiate Singles Championships titlist has been at the helm of the Hornets squad since 2012. Following her own graduation, she knew she wanted to give back and be a part of the sport that had given her so much.
"I was really hoping to find a job within the bowling industry after graduating," said Current, who also helped Wichita State win the 2007 Intercollegiate Team Championships. "I was lucky enough to apply and receive the job as head bowling coach of my alma mater, Ephrata Senior High School."
Current still kept her game sharp while coaching at Ephrata, taking home a runner-up finish at the 2011 United States Bowling Congress Queens and a pair of titles at the 2012 USBC Women's Championships, before everything aligned to have her ascend back into the collegiate ranks.
"Ricki Ellison, a good friend of mine and my teammate at Wichita State, was the head coach at Delaware State," Current said. "She was making some changes and moving back to Wichita, and she messaged me asking if I was interested in coaching collegiately. I had already applied for other coaching jobs before she asked me, and it was something I definitely had been wanting to do. I went through the hiring process, got the job and headed straight to the campus to begin working with the ladies."
Current and the Hornets are looking to grow on their successes, including the school's first trip to the Intercollegiate Team Championships in 2015. The team currently ranks just outside of the top 10 in the National Tenpin Coaches Association poll as both the USBC Collegiate and NCAA postseasons are just around the corner, along with the 2016 PWBA Tour season.
Current credits her players for teaching her a thing or two as well, and several of those lessons could be seen as she averaged 247 during the stepladder finals on her way to capturing the first regular-season PWBA title in more than a dozen years. That event at Steve Cook's Fireside Lanes marked the formal return of the PWBA Tour, which had be dormant since 2003. The tour made its official return with the 2015 USBC Queens.
"There has been a lot that the players have taught me as a coach, especially in the past two years," Current said. "They've taught me to remember to live in the moment, not to stress or be worried, smile and live fearlessly. These young ladies are fantastic role models on and off the lanes, and I hope they understand how much they have changed me in a positive way. They inspire me on a daily basis."
When the PWBA Tour announced its relaunch in October 2014 with a three-year commitment from the USBC and Bowling Proprietors' Association of America, Current knew she finally would have the chance to live out one of her dreams.
Having the opportunity to help her student-athletes live their dreams, however, made the moment more special for Current.
"It was pretty disappointing at the time to think I may never experience what it would be like to tour as a professional bowler," Current said. "The feeling stayed the same until the tour officially relaunched with the 2015 USBC Queens, then I knew I could breathe again and fully live this experience we have been given.
"The ladies on this team are what keep me going to pursue my dreams. Their drive, determination, passion and love of the game reminds me why I do what I do. Knowing that I am playing a part in some of their long-term goals in competing on the PWBA Tour and that I can help them get there is why I am here."
Current, a collegiate standout at Fairleigh Dickinson and Wichita State, now is looking to help mold the next generation of PWBA champions as head coach of the Delaware State bowling program.
The 2007 Intercollegiate Singles Championships titlist has been at the helm of the Hornets squad since 2012. Following her own graduation, she knew she wanted to give back and be a part of the sport that had given her so much.
"I was really hoping to find a job within the bowling industry after graduating," said Current, who also helped Wichita State win the 2007 Intercollegiate Team Championships. "I was lucky enough to apply and receive the job as head bowling coach of my alma mater, Ephrata Senior High School."
Current still kept her game sharp while coaching at Ephrata, taking home a runner-up finish at the 2011 United States Bowling Congress Queens and a pair of titles at the 2012 USBC Women's Championships, before everything aligned to have her ascend back into the collegiate ranks.
"Ricki Ellison, a good friend of mine and my teammate at Wichita State, was the head coach at Delaware State," Current said. "She was making some changes and moving back to Wichita, and she messaged me asking if I was interested in coaching collegiately. I had already applied for other coaching jobs before she asked me, and it was something I definitely had been wanting to do. I went through the hiring process, got the job and headed straight to the campus to begin working with the ladies."
Current and the Hornets are looking to grow on their successes, including the school's first trip to the Intercollegiate Team Championships in 2015. The team currently ranks just outside of the top 10 in the National Tenpin Coaches Association poll as both the USBC Collegiate and NCAA postseasons are just around the corner, along with the 2016 PWBA Tour season.
Current credits her players for teaching her a thing or two as well, and several of those lessons could be seen as she averaged 247 during the stepladder finals on her way to capturing the first regular-season PWBA title in more than a dozen years. That event at Steve Cook's Fireside Lanes marked the formal return of the PWBA Tour, which had be dormant since 2003. The tour made its official return with the 2015 USBC Queens.
"There has been a lot that the players have taught me as a coach, especially in the past two years," Current said. "They've taught me to remember to live in the moment, not to stress or be worried, smile and live fearlessly. These young ladies are fantastic role models on and off the lanes, and I hope they understand how much they have changed me in a positive way. They inspire me on a daily basis."
When the PWBA Tour announced its relaunch in October 2014 with a three-year commitment from the USBC and Bowling Proprietors' Association of America, Current knew she finally would have the chance to live out one of her dreams.
Having the opportunity to help her student-athletes live their dreams, however, made the moment more special for Current.
"It was pretty disappointing at the time to think I may never experience what it would be like to tour as a professional bowler," Current said. "The feeling stayed the same until the tour officially relaunched with the 2015 USBC Queens, then I knew I could breathe again and fully live this experience we have been given.
"The ladies on this team are what keep me going to pursue my dreams. Their drive, determination, passion and love of the game reminds me why I do what I do. Knowing that I am playing a part in some of their long-term goals in competing on the PWBA Tour and that I can help them get there is why I am here."