Wright State first-generation student bowls over obstacles

Paige Patterson is a first-generation student at Wright State majoring in marketing, a member of the women’s bowling team and an intern with the  Athletics Department. (Photos by Erin Pence)

For someone who at first did poorly at bowling and had no encouragement to attend college, Paige Patterson has come a long way in both.

The junior from Springfield is one of the kingpins of Wright State University’s championship Division I women’s bowling team. And as the first person in her extended family to enroll in higher education, Patterson not only is doing well academically but also is learning in her major beyond the classroom.

Majoring in marketing with a minor in economics, Patterson is a marketing and promotional intern with the Wright State Athletics Department and serves on the Student Athletic Advisory Committee.

Good accomplishments, especially considering she started with the figurative equivalent of throwing a gutter ball.

Bowling is in her pedigree; her parents bowled.

“I grew up in a bowling alley,” Patterson said. “I wasn’t interested in watching, then I tried it in late middle school. I was in a Saturday morning league with kids I went to school with.”

She did not do well but stuck with the sport. In high school she got her first ball drilled to fit her hand, instead of relying on alley balls.

“I skyrocketed into doing well,” Patterson said.

In the first year of having that ball, she qualified for the state scholastic bowling championship and was player of the year in her conference.

That got the attention of college recruiters, who came calling in her junior year. While that was nice, college wasn’t in her plans. Patterson said no one on either side of her family ever attended college, and there was no encouragement for her to be the first.

As a senior, Patterson was approached by Wright State, which then had a women’s club bowling team — meaning she would have to pay tuition and cover the expenses to continue with the sport. Still, the thought of continuing her education came to mind.

“I thought maybe college would be good, but I had doubts,” she recalled. “After discussing it with my mom, she said I should try it — that if I didn’t like it, I didn’t have to do it forever. So I called the coach and said I changed my mind and that I would happily come bowl for Wright State.”

Three days later the coach called with good news — bowling was becoming a Division I sport, so she would have a scholarship and bowling expenses covered.

When she arrived at Wright State she dove right into campus life.

“I lived on campus and did the full experience. I knew I’d be involved, going to every event possible,” said Patterson, a self-described extrovert.

Academically, she initially considered accountancy and or general business as a major but eventually decided to major in marketing and later added a minor in economics.

Athletically, she and the women’s bowling team have done well. Last season, the team won the Ohio Bowling Conference.

“We got really cool Super Bowl-esque rings,” she said. “We’re on pace to win the conference again.”

Paige Patterson grew up bowling and decided to enroll at Wright State after being recruited to play on the women’s bowling team.

Melding her interest in marketing and athletics, Patterson is also an intern with the Athletic Department, assisting with in-house production during games.

“We make the music playlist, make graphics for the Jumbotron, write scripts for the announcers,” she said.

And when ESPN airs Raider games, she sits beside their announcers to assist as needed.

Patterson widens her education and experience by serving on the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, which oversees activities related to athletics, ways to encourage students to attend games and volunteer opportunities. The most recent activity was a toy drive to benefit young people in For Love of Children (FLOC) in Dayton. She is also the director of the NCAA affairs subcommittee, which discusses new rules or developments from the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

Patterson’s accomplishments and contributions are not lost on Joylynn Brown, Wright State’s director of athletics at Wright State.

“When women’s bowling transitioned to a Division I sport two years ago, there were some growing pains,” Brown said. “A more stringent practice schedule, much more time commitments for the team within the Athletics Department and more difficult competition. Paige accepted every one of those challenges and thrived doing so.

“She is so willing to get involved and will step up anytime we need someone,” Brown continued. “Her work as an intern for us has been top-notch. We are fortunate to have student-athletes like Paige in our department.”

Patterson has found a calling in sports marketing, hoping to work with a professional team after she graduates. Football and basketball come to mind first, “but I would enjoy any of the sports that we work with here,” she said.

And she has found a home at Wright State, where she said her parents are proud of her accomplishments.

“I love Wright State,” she said. “It’s the best experience. The opportunities and the people I’ve met here — things have never been better.”