ARLINGTON, Texas - United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Gloria Bouvia died Sunday, May 29, at the age of 86.
Over the course of her bowling career, Bouvia, of Madras, Oregon, earned numerous accolades on the national, state and local levels, including her 1987 induction into the USBC Hall of Fame in the Superior Performance category.
Bouvia won consecutive titles in Classic Doubles in 1969 and 1970 at the USBC Women's Championships, when she partnered with fellow hall of fame member Judy Soutar. She was a four-time titlist at the Women's Championships, also winning Classic Singles in 1966 and Classic Team in 1974.
Bouvia captured the Bowling Proprietors' Association of America National All-Star title in 1967 (predecessor to the U.S. Women's Open) and had a fourth-place finish that same year at the USBC Queens.
Bouvia made history in 1966 when she became the first women to win back-to-back titles on the Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour. On the state level, she was outstanding in 1963 when she won the Oregon Women's Bowlers Association team and all-events titles and finished second in singles and doubles.
In addition to being inducted into the USBC Hall of Fame, Bouvia is a member of the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Inducted in 1994, Bouvia is one of four bowlers (and the only female) in this hall of fame (Marshall Holman, Dave Husted and Tom Perry). Bouvia also was inducted into the Oregon State USBC Hall of Fame in 1977.
