University of Central Florida senior Stefanie Nation has a second chance at ending her college career on top. And she's hoping her third trip to the United States Bowling Congress Intercollegiate Singles Championships will be the charm.

Nation, the 2005-06 National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association Most Valuable Player and Bowling Writers Association of America Collegiate Player of the Year, heads the list of the top 16 male and female college bowlers vying for national titles at the 2006 USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships, set for May 22-23 at Olympic Lanes in Milwaukee.

Hammer Bowling, an Ebonite International brand, is the official sponsor of the 2006 USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships.

Participants will bowl eight qualifying games beginning at 10:30 a.m. CDT on May 22 to determine seeding for the best-of-5, single-elimination match play competition on May 23, beginning at 9 a.m. The top four seeds in each division will receive byes to match play's third round, while No. 5 through No. 8 seeds will receive byes to the second round.

"I'd like to think that would give me somewhat of an edge. Hopefully that will help me," said Nation, who lost in the semifinals last season, on her third consecutive trip to the national finals. "You still have to score because anyone can win on any given day."

Last month, Nation and her Central Florida teammates fell just short of capturing the school's first national championship, losing to Lindenwood in the women's final of the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships in Rockford, Ill.

Other notable women's participants include:

* Wichita State senior Olivia Sandham, a first-team All-American and helped lead the Shockers to the women's national title in 2005. Sandham also won the U.S. Junior Amateur title in 2002 and is a two-time Team USA member.

* Lindenwood senior Jessica Lesagonicz, who also qualified for the third straight year and closed out the Lions' run to the women's national championship last month. Lesagonicz was an All-American honorable mention pick this season.

* Two-time Junior Team USA members -- junior Elysia Current of Penn State and junior Michelle Quirk of Fresno State. Current was the collegiate Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year in 2003-04 at Fairleigh Dickinson.

* Nation's teammates, Central Florida sophomore Michelle Carcagente and freshman Brigette Harrelson. Carcagente was a second-team All-American selection this season, while Harrelson received honorable mention.

Last year, Nation witnessed collegiate MVP P.J. Haggerty of Fresno State suffer a heartbreaking defeat in the men's final of the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships, only to rebound and win at the Singles Championships. It's a feat Nation would like to mirror.

"This is definitely the strongest women's field in the three years," said Nation, the three-time reigning U.S. Junior Amateur champion and Team USA member for the past two years. "That probably will help me bowl better. Also having two of my teammates there, it will be great to have their support and for me to support them."

The men's field is led by Lindenwood junior Brian Valenta (left), a first-team All-American who was a runner-up at this event in 2004. Valenta, a two-time Junior Team USA member, helped Lindenwood claim the men's national championship in 2005.

Also featured is honorable mention All-American Daniel Hannagan, a junior from Martin Methodist as well as East Tennessee State senior Aaron Murray, a Junior Team USA member in 2004, and Rochester Tech freshman Dan Vick, a Junior Team USA member in 2006.

Qualifying for the USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships was held at the four Intercollegiate Bowling Championships Sectional Qualifier sites -- Allentown, Pa.; Chattanooga, Tenn.; Fairview Heights, Ill.; and Fort Worth, Texas -- on March 24. All participants bowled six games with total pinfall determining final standings. The top four finishers in each division (male and female) at each site advanced to the USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships.

The event replaced the Association of College Unions International National Championships as the premier individual college bowling tournament supported by the USBC Collegiate program.

MEN
Players with School, Year and Hometown

LeRoy Anderson, Saginaw Valley State, Senior, Annapolis, Md.
Brandon Baker, Arizona State, Freshman, Tempe, Ariz.
Jason Blevins, Texas Tech, Senior, Houston
Steve Elson, Wichita State, Junior, Wichita, Kan.
Brandon Frazier, Newman, Senior, Mulvane, Kan.
Vito Genova, Western New England, Senior, Franklin Square, N.Y.
Daniel Hannagan, Martin Methodist, Junior, Hendersonville, Tenn.
Collin Kerschner, Purdue, Sophomore, Fort Wayne, Ind.
David Kipperman, Sacred Heart, Sophomore, Northford, Conn.
Kevin Kovash, Pikeville, Junior, Clarksville, Tenn.
Aaron Murray, East Tennessee State, Senior, Greenville, Tenn.
Tim Pfeifer, Robert Morris (Pa.), Freshman, Cranberry Twp., Pa.
Matt Robinson, Fresno State, Sophomore, Richmond, Calif.
Kevin Tabron, Wichita State, Senior, Colorado Springs, Colo.
Brian Valenta, Lindenwood, Junior, Lockport, Ill.
Daniel Vick, Rochester Tech, Freshman, Pittsford, N.Y.


WOMEN
Players with School, Year and Hometown

Melissa Brownie, Morehead State, Senior, Chester, Va.
Michelle Carcagente, Central Florida, Sophomore, Palm Coast, Fla.
Elysia Current, Penn State, Junior, Ephrata, Pa.
Stephanie Ehlers, Cincinnati, Senior, Mason, Ohio
Brigette Harrelson, Central Florida, Freshman, Homestead, Fla.
Lisa Hunt, Purdue, Freshman, Indianapolis
Jessica Lesagonicz, Lindenwood, Senior, Reading, Pa.
Jamie Miller, California-Davis, Senior, Salem, Ore.
Tracy Miller, Pikeville, Senior, Louisville, Ky.
Stefanie Nation, Central Florida, Senior, Miami
Mindy Pancoast, Virginia Tech, Junior, Newport News, Va.
Michelle Quirk, Fresno State, Junior, Roseville, Calif.
Leslie Rapach, Florida State, Senior, West Palm Beach, Fla.
Olivia Sandham, Wichita State, Senior, Wichita, Kan.
Brandy Silva, New Mexico, Senior, Albuquerque, N.M.
Courtney Ward, West Texas A&M, Senior, Missouri City, Texas