Nov. 19, 2015
Vanderbilt’s bowling program continues to add outstanding student-athletes to its roster with the announcement by Head Coach John Williamson that Emily Rigney of Australia and Bryanna Leyen of Maryland have signed national letters of intent.
Rigney, of East Doncaster, has successfully competed internationally in five countries already and was her class valedictorian while Leyen, from Perry Hall, is regarded as one of the top juniors in the United States and a member of six academic honor societies.
“We couldn’t be more pleased to welcome Emily and Bryanna to our program,” Williamson said. “Both of them have the academic and athletic drive for excellence that makes them ideal fits for this university. Both have been coached by experts and are highly decorated on the lanes while being equally strong in the classroom.”
Rigney has been a six-time member of the Australian Junior and Youth teams, earning three silver and two bronze medals. She was a three-time state Masters champion, a three-time National Junior All-Star team member and a two-time Youth All-Star team member. She won Australia’s 2015 National Junior and All-Events titles.
Leyen is already a veteran of the top tournaments in the United States. She won the Maryland State Youth singles and all-events championships in 2015, was fourth at the Teen Masters Nationals (2015) and also fourth at the Collegiate Masters (2015). She has been a regular at the Junior Gold for years, often bowling “up” an age group or more.
Both signees are well schooled in athletic fundamentals. Rigney’s father Dennis is the head coach of the Australian National Team and her mother, Sharon Rigney (McLeish), was a Gold Medal bowler for the Australian National Team. 
Leyen trains regularly with PBA champion John DiSantis and has been coached by PBA Hall of Famer Danny Wiseman.
Rigney has competed with the Australian team at the World Teen Masters in Las Vegas, the World Youth Championships in Bangkok, Thailand, the Asian Schools Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia and the Asian and World Youth Championships in China.
Leyen is a member of the National Honor Society, the National Spanish Honor Society, the National Math Honor Society, the National Social Studies Honor Society, the National English Honor Society and the National Science Honor Society. The Maryland star is a fitness buff who was also a member of the high school’s soccer and track teams and member of a running club.
In addition to graduating No. 1 in her class, Rigney won the 2015 Victoria Olympic Council “Pierre de Coubertin” Award for Academic and Athletic Excellence.
