2026 Women's Bowling National Championship Recap

LANSING, Mich. - (NAIA Release | Results) Two schools from the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) took part in the NAIA Women's Bowling National Championships in Lansing over the weekend. 

A new format was in play for this year's championships. As the NAIA entered its sixth year of bowling championships, 2026 marks the debut of a new championship structure, highlighted by the Mega Match format in the winner's bracket. The 12-team field is split into two sections — the Blue Bracket (seeds 1, 4, 5, 8, 9, 12) and the Red Bracket (seeds 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 11) — with each operating as a double-elimination bracket. Within each section, teams compete through a winner's bracket using the Mega Match format and an elimination bracket utilizing a Best-of-7 Baker format, ultimately producing two finalists for the national championship match.

WHAC tournament champion, St. Francis, entered as the No. 12 seed and knocked off No. 5 Spring Arbor 2-0 in its opening match. St. Francis then dropped its second round match 2-1 to No. 4 SCAD Savannah. In the lower level bracket, St. Francis fell to No. 8 William Penn to conclude its 2026 season.

No. 6 Lawrence Tech faced off with No. 11 Cumberland in its opening round match, falling 2-0. The Blue Devils then faced off with No. 10 morning side in the lower bracket, falling 4-3 to bring the season to a close. 

Bracket Play Results

No. 11 Cumberland (Tenn.) def. No. 6 Lawrence Tech, 2-0
No. 10 Morningside (Iowa) def. No. 6 Lawrence Tech, 4-3

No. 12 St. Francis def. No. 5 Spring Arbor, 2-0
No. 4 SCAD Savannah def. No. 12 Spring Arbor, 2-1
No. 8 William Penn (Iowa) def. No. 3 St. Francis, 4-3