Walsh enters his fourth season at Niagara in 2026-27
In the 2026-27 season, the program saw its best season to date. The team finished 82-40 (.672) and 17-7 (.708) in NEC action. The team swept the NEC major awards as Emily Brock was named NEC Bowler of the year along with NEC First Team All-Conference, Brock was also named to the Championship CO-MVP and All-Tournament Team, Dakota Collins was tabbed with NEC Rookie of the Year and NEC All-Rookie Team, Kate Ackerman along with Jocelyn Smith were named to the NEC Second Team All-Conference, as Head Coach Jeff was awarded NEC Coach of the Year.
The program also saw members awarded to All-American Teams. Emily Brock was named to the NTCA as well as IMBA second team All-American second team as Kate Ackerman was named to the NTCA third team.
The program saw its first perfect game as Emily Brock recorded the first at the NEC Championships, the team was nationally ranked in four of the NTCA Coaches Poll as they were as high as eleventh in the poll. The Purple and White were also named co-NEC regular season champions. The team also saw five student-athletes named to the NTCA All-Academic Scholars.
To kick off the programs third season, the team was picked 25
th in the NTCA Preseason Poll. Jocelyn Smith was tabbed with NEC Rookie of the Year honors while earning All-NEC Second Team and All-Rookie Team. Eight different Purple Eagles were named to the NTCA All-Academic Scholars. After the Purple and White wrapped the 2024-25 season 71-52.
In the team’s Inaugural season, they posted a 56-46 record. The team posted victorious in the Mercyhurst Fall Classic, D’Youville Dual, Brunswick Fall Open, Brunswick Spring Classic and Roberts Wesleyan Quad Match. Which saw Kaelynn Weber being named to the National Tenpin Coaches Association All-Rookie Second Team. Including five players named to the Northeast Conference Academic Honor Roll. Four Purple Eagles were named to the National Tenpin Coaches Association All-Academic Scholar Team.
Walsh has been a part of the Western New York bowling circuit and national bowling industry for nearly 30 years, including the past six seasons with Medaille as an assistant and head coach. The Mavericks' bowling program has seen unprecedented success since Walsh joined the coaching staff in 2016-17, winning the 2019 Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) regular season title, six straight AMCC Tournament Championships and finishing the last two of the last three seasons with a top 15 national ranking for the first time in program history.
"We are very excited to join the Purple Eagles and launch the women's bowling program at Niagara," said Walsh. "While the closing of Medaille has been disruptive to our student-athletes, everyone at Niagara, especially Simon Gray and Susan Petronsky (deputy director of athletics), has been extremely helpful to our athletes and has made this transition very easy for all of us. We look forward to being a part of the Purple Eagles, and competing at the highest levels of competition for years to come."
In 2018, Walsh helped guide the Mavs to one of the most historic seasons of any team in Medaille history, earning the AMCC's first ever automatic bid to the NCAA Championships and becoming just the third Division III program to ever accomplish such a feat. In 2021, he would help the Mavs find their way back to the NCAA Tournament and defeat the eventual National Champions, the University of Nebraska in the opening round. This past season, the Mavericks finished with a 88-34 record, and again qualified for the an NCAA appearance. In total, Walsh's Mavericks have made four NCAA Tournament appearances.
