Five to be enshrined as members of USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame Class of 2025
January 23, 2025
ARLINGTON, Texas – The 2025 class for the United States Bowling Congress Collegiate Hall of Fame has been determined, with five inductees set to be enshrined among collegiate bowling’s all-time greats in April.
Roger Dalkin of Greendale, Wisconsin; Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, Pennsylvania; and Vicki Vallie (née Parker) of Nashua, New Hampshire, have earned induction for their on-lane performances as Student-Athletes. Bill Straub of Lincoln, Nebraska, will join this year’s class in the Coach category. Gordon Teigen of Onalaska, Wisconsin, completes the Class of 2025 for his dedication to collegiate bowling as a Contributor.
The ceremony for the 2025 USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame will take place April 16 during the Intercollegiate Team Championships Night of Champions banquet in Las Vegas and be streamed live on BowlTV.
Dalkin, 74, was a standout at Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) from 1969-1972, during which time he won a combined 15 Association of College Unions International (ACUI) titles, five at the national level and 10 during regional competition.
He was crowned ACUI Region VI champion in team, singles and all-events in 1969, team in 1970, doubles and all-events in 1971 and team, doubles, singles and all-events in 1972.
That gave Dalkin an incredible 10 regional titles in 16 events against the best collegiate bowlers in Florida, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi over that stretch, during which he qualified for the national tournament three times.
Dalkin’s ACUI National Championship record is equally impressive as he won national titles in five different events over the course of his four years at Georgia Tech, winning the doubles championship with Joseph Hill of Oklahoma State in 1969, singles and all-events in 1971 and doubles (with Kenneth Knowles of Florida State) and all-events in 1972.
Those five titles tie Dalkin with Jack Connaughton of Wisconsin-La Crosse – who was inducted into the inaugural USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame class in 2024 – for the most national championship victories in collegiate bowling history.
Dalkin’s collegiate successes earned him the right to represent Team USA at the 1971 AMF World Cup in Hong Kong, where he emerged as champion. The following year, Dalkin finished fourth while attempting to successfully defend his title at the 1972 event in Hamburg, Germany.
Once his competitive bowling days were behind him, Dalkin went on to serve the sport of bowling by serving in multiple administrative positions, including USBC CEO. Those contributions led to Dalkin’s induction into the USBC Hall of Fame in the Meritorious Service category in 2008.
O’Neill, 43, was a collegiate star at Saginaw Valley State University from 2001-2004.
The talented right-hander wasted no time making a name for himself upon joining the Cardinals’ program as he earned National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association (NCBCA) All-American honors as a freshman during the 2000-2001 season.
O’Neill would repeat the feat during each of his final three seasons at SVSU, adding his name to the short but impressive list of collegiate bowlers to reach four-time First-Team All-American status.
That wasn’t the only honor bestowed upon O’Neill, however, as he was named NCBCA Men’s Player of the Year for both the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 seasons.
O’Neill’s efforts helped the Cardinals to a runner-up finish at the 2004 Intercollegiate Team Championships.
After leaving Saginaw Valley State, O’Neill went on to enjoy success as a seven-time member of Team USA, where he was a four-time world championships gold medalist, and as a standout performer on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour, where he is a 14-time titlist and three-time major champion.
Vallie, 60, was a dominant force while competing for Indiana State University from 1983-1986.
Big things were expected of Vallie from her very first days competing on the lanes for the Sycamores. That’s because she came to Indiana State after having won the Alberta E. Crowe Award – given to one of the nation’s top female high school bowlers – in 1982.
Vallie didn’t buckle under the weight of the expectations though; instead, she thrived.
She earned NCBCA First-Team All-American honors and was the women’s Rookie of the Year during her freshman season in 1983, helping the Indiana State team to a runner-up finish at the national tournament in the process.
The Sycamores got over the hump and secured the women’s national title in 1984 with Vallie contributing heavily during another First-Team All-American season.
During her final two seasons at Indiana State, Vallie brought home a singles national championship (1985), recorded another runner-up team performance at the national tournament (1985) and earned two more First-Team All-American awards.
At the time, that made Vallie the first four-time First-Team All-American in collegiate bowling history.
She would go on to record a sixth-place finish while competing for Team USA at the 1986 World Cup.
All of those accomplishments led to Vallie’s induction into the Indiana State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.
Straub, 73, was at the helm of the University of Nebraska men’s bowling program from 1984-2003 and the women’s squad from 1988-2019, helping the Cornhuskers claim 12 national titles between both teams over that stretch.
During Straub’s tenure, the Nebraska women’s program qualified for the national tournament for 32 consecutive years between 1988 and 2019, bringing home 10 national titles (1991, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2013 and 2015).
The men’s squad was equally impressive under Straub’s direction, reaching the national finals in 15 out of 16 seasons between 1988 and 2003 and emerging as national champions twice (1990 and 1996).
Straub-led teams were a permanent fixture in the top five in the end-of-year rankings throughout his coaching career with the Nebraska men’s team finishing no worse than ranked fifth every year from 1988-2003 – when Straub stopped coaching the men’s team – and the Cornhuskers’ women’s team landing in the top five in the final poll each season from 1988-2019.
From 1997-2019, Straub led the Nebraska women to an overall record of 2,370 wins against just 467 losses, a winning percentage of nearly 84%.
Those accolades and many others led to Straub being named National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) National Coach of the Year four times (2005, 2013, 2017 and 2018).
Teigen, who passed away in March of 2011 at the age of 88, will be inducted posthumously in the Contributor Category and be represented at the Night of Champions Banquet by his son, Tom Teigen of Fort Worth, Texas.
Gordon Teigen dedicated his life to bowling, serving as a successful collegiate coach, mentor and administrative leader at the local, state and national levels.
He worked for the American Bowling Congress (ABC) from 1964-1967, during which time he was tasked with organizing the collegiate division of the ABC and Women’s International Bowling Congress. Teigen’s work there led to him being considered one of the founders of the ABC/WIBC Collegiate Division – now USBC Collegiate.
From 1969-1971, Teigen worked for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), serving as chairman of the bowling sports section.
All the while, he molded some of the best collegiate bowlers of the day while serving as a collegiate coach, first at North Dakota State – then North Dakota Agricultural University – and then at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
Teigen founded the North Dakota State University bowling program in 1954.
During his 11 seasons as head coach, Teigen’s Bison amassed a dual-match record of 118 wins and 50 losses and won three state titles (1960, 1961 and 1963).
Teigen also was responsible for helping establish the Tri-State Collegiate Bowling Conference, the North Dakota State Bowling Conference and the North Dakota Bowling Proprietors Association, an organization he served as executive secretary for three years.
After transitioning to UW-La Crosse, Teigen’s men’s team won nine conference championships while his women’s squads brought home eight.
His team won an NAIA title in 1968 and NAIA and National Intercollegiate Bowling Association (NIBA) crowns in 1969.
For his contributions to collegiate bowling both on and off the lanes, Teigen was inducted into the NAIA, North Dakota Bowling and North Dakota Sports Halls of Fame.
In 1980, he was awarded the National Bowling Coaches Service Award, which has since been renamed the Gordon Teigen Service Award.
The bowling lanes at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Cartwright Center also were renamed Teigen Lanes in his honor.
The USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame was announced in November 2022, and the inaugural class of five inductees was enshrined in April of 2024.
The Class of 2024 featured Connaughton of Lafayette, Indiana; Kelly Kulick of Union, New Jersey; and Rick Steelsmith of Wichita, Kansas, as Student-Athletes. Gordon Vadakin of Wichita, Kansas, joined the inaugural class in the Coach category while Karl Nickolai of Canton, Michigan, completed the 2024 class for his dedication to collegiate bowling as a Contributor.
The USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame Committee reviewed the applications to determine the members of the 2025 class. The committee is comprised of 14 individuals, featuring representatives appointed by the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association, USBC Hall of Fame members and the International Bowling Media Association. The committee only considered collegiate achievements when reviewing applications.
For more information on USBC Collegiate, CLICK HERE.
Roger Dalkin of Greendale, Wisconsin; Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, Pennsylvania; and Vicki Vallie (née Parker) of Nashua, New Hampshire, have earned induction for their on-lane performances as Student-Athletes. Bill Straub of Lincoln, Nebraska, will join this year’s class in the Coach category. Gordon Teigen of Onalaska, Wisconsin, completes the Class of 2025 for his dedication to collegiate bowling as a Contributor.
The ceremony for the 2025 USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame will take place April 16 during the Intercollegiate Team Championships Night of Champions banquet in Las Vegas and be streamed live on BowlTV.
Dalkin, 74, was a standout at Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) from 1969-1972, during which time he won a combined 15 Association of College Unions International (ACUI) titles, five at the national level and 10 during regional competition.
He was crowned ACUI Region VI champion in team, singles and all-events in 1969, team in 1970, doubles and all-events in 1971 and team, doubles, singles and all-events in 1972.
That gave Dalkin an incredible 10 regional titles in 16 events against the best collegiate bowlers in Florida, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi over that stretch, during which he qualified for the national tournament three times.
Dalkin’s ACUI National Championship record is equally impressive as he won national titles in five different events over the course of his four years at Georgia Tech, winning the doubles championship with Joseph Hill of Oklahoma State in 1969, singles and all-events in 1971 and doubles (with Kenneth Knowles of Florida State) and all-events in 1972.
Those five titles tie Dalkin with Jack Connaughton of Wisconsin-La Crosse – who was inducted into the inaugural USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame class in 2024 – for the most national championship victories in collegiate bowling history.
Dalkin’s collegiate successes earned him the right to represent Team USA at the 1971 AMF World Cup in Hong Kong, where he emerged as champion. The following year, Dalkin finished fourth while attempting to successfully defend his title at the 1972 event in Hamburg, Germany.
Once his competitive bowling days were behind him, Dalkin went on to serve the sport of bowling by serving in multiple administrative positions, including USBC CEO. Those contributions led to Dalkin’s induction into the USBC Hall of Fame in the Meritorious Service category in 2008.
O’Neill, 43, was a collegiate star at Saginaw Valley State University from 2001-2004.
The talented right-hander wasted no time making a name for himself upon joining the Cardinals’ program as he earned National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association (NCBCA) All-American honors as a freshman during the 2000-2001 season.
O’Neill would repeat the feat during each of his final three seasons at SVSU, adding his name to the short but impressive list of collegiate bowlers to reach four-time First-Team All-American status.
That wasn’t the only honor bestowed upon O’Neill, however, as he was named NCBCA Men’s Player of the Year for both the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 seasons.
O’Neill’s efforts helped the Cardinals to a runner-up finish at the 2004 Intercollegiate Team Championships.
After leaving Saginaw Valley State, O’Neill went on to enjoy success as a seven-time member of Team USA, where he was a four-time world championships gold medalist, and as a standout performer on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour, where he is a 14-time titlist and three-time major champion.
Vallie, 60, was a dominant force while competing for Indiana State University from 1983-1986.
Big things were expected of Vallie from her very first days competing on the lanes for the Sycamores. That’s because she came to Indiana State after having won the Alberta E. Crowe Award – given to one of the nation’s top female high school bowlers – in 1982.
Vallie didn’t buckle under the weight of the expectations though; instead, she thrived.
She earned NCBCA First-Team All-American honors and was the women’s Rookie of the Year during her freshman season in 1983, helping the Indiana State team to a runner-up finish at the national tournament in the process.
The Sycamores got over the hump and secured the women’s national title in 1984 with Vallie contributing heavily during another First-Team All-American season.
During her final two seasons at Indiana State, Vallie brought home a singles national championship (1985), recorded another runner-up team performance at the national tournament (1985) and earned two more First-Team All-American awards.
At the time, that made Vallie the first four-time First-Team All-American in collegiate bowling history.
She would go on to record a sixth-place finish while competing for Team USA at the 1986 World Cup.
All of those accomplishments led to Vallie’s induction into the Indiana State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.
Straub, 73, was at the helm of the University of Nebraska men’s bowling program from 1984-2003 and the women’s squad from 1988-2019, helping the Cornhuskers claim 12 national titles between both teams over that stretch.
During Straub’s tenure, the Nebraska women’s program qualified for the national tournament for 32 consecutive years between 1988 and 2019, bringing home 10 national titles (1991, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2013 and 2015).
The men’s squad was equally impressive under Straub’s direction, reaching the national finals in 15 out of 16 seasons between 1988 and 2003 and emerging as national champions twice (1990 and 1996).
Straub-led teams were a permanent fixture in the top five in the end-of-year rankings throughout his coaching career with the Nebraska men’s team finishing no worse than ranked fifth every year from 1988-2003 – when Straub stopped coaching the men’s team – and the Cornhuskers’ women’s team landing in the top five in the final poll each season from 1988-2019.
From 1997-2019, Straub led the Nebraska women to an overall record of 2,370 wins against just 467 losses, a winning percentage of nearly 84%.
Those accolades and many others led to Straub being named National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) National Coach of the Year four times (2005, 2013, 2017 and 2018).
Teigen, who passed away in March of 2011 at the age of 88, will be inducted posthumously in the Contributor Category and be represented at the Night of Champions Banquet by his son, Tom Teigen of Fort Worth, Texas.
Gordon Teigen dedicated his life to bowling, serving as a successful collegiate coach, mentor and administrative leader at the local, state and national levels.
He worked for the American Bowling Congress (ABC) from 1964-1967, during which time he was tasked with organizing the collegiate division of the ABC and Women’s International Bowling Congress. Teigen’s work there led to him being considered one of the founders of the ABC/WIBC Collegiate Division – now USBC Collegiate.
From 1969-1971, Teigen worked for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), serving as chairman of the bowling sports section.
All the while, he molded some of the best collegiate bowlers of the day while serving as a collegiate coach, first at North Dakota State – then North Dakota Agricultural University – and then at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
Teigen founded the North Dakota State University bowling program in 1954.
During his 11 seasons as head coach, Teigen’s Bison amassed a dual-match record of 118 wins and 50 losses and won three state titles (1960, 1961 and 1963).
Teigen also was responsible for helping establish the Tri-State Collegiate Bowling Conference, the North Dakota State Bowling Conference and the North Dakota Bowling Proprietors Association, an organization he served as executive secretary for three years.
After transitioning to UW-La Crosse, Teigen’s men’s team won nine conference championships while his women’s squads brought home eight.
His team won an NAIA title in 1968 and NAIA and National Intercollegiate Bowling Association (NIBA) crowns in 1969.
For his contributions to collegiate bowling both on and off the lanes, Teigen was inducted into the NAIA, North Dakota Bowling and North Dakota Sports Halls of Fame.
In 1980, he was awarded the National Bowling Coaches Service Award, which has since been renamed the Gordon Teigen Service Award.
The bowling lanes at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Cartwright Center also were renamed Teigen Lanes in his honor.
The USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame was announced in November 2022, and the inaugural class of five inductees was enshrined in April of 2024.
The Class of 2024 featured Connaughton of Lafayette, Indiana; Kelly Kulick of Union, New Jersey; and Rick Steelsmith of Wichita, Kansas, as Student-Athletes. Gordon Vadakin of Wichita, Kansas, joined the inaugural class in the Coach category while Karl Nickolai of Canton, Michigan, completed the 2024 class for his dedication to collegiate bowling as a Contributor.
The USBC Collegiate Hall of Fame Committee reviewed the applications to determine the members of the 2025 class. The committee is comprised of 14 individuals, featuring representatives appointed by the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association, USBC Hall of Fame members and the International Bowling Media Association. The committee only considered collegiate achievements when reviewing applications.
For more information on USBC Collegiate, CLICK HERE.