By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics
 
When she was 4 years old, Melanie Bowling was given a choice: Learn how to play with this two-foot piece of metal like everyone else here or go home. Either way, she would not be riding that tricycle all over the place while her mom tried to teach other children the art of baton twirling.
 
Those turned out to be humble beginnings.
 
Chances are, you've probably seen Bowling do her thing on the field at Zable Stadium, the court at Kaplan Arena or wherever on campus she sets up to practice — always with a broad smile. She's a third-generation twirler, and she's amazing.
 
And now, seven weeks away from receiving her degrees in kinesiology/health sciences and biochemistry, her time at William & Mary is winding down.
 
"When I got here, the very first football game, I was terrified," said Bowling of her debut performance at Zable. "It was like 90 degrees and it was the first big event I had done that wasn't our high school football games. When I came here, nobody knew who I was.
 
"But it was incredible. My parents came down for the game. My coach was at the game. It was truly, truly special. My dreams to that point had been accomplished."
 
Bowling never would have guessed those dreams would happen at William & Mary. She grew up in Lynchburg, about 60 miles down Route 29 from Charlottesville. And it was the University of Virginia where she saw herself studying and twirling.
 
But you know what they say about best laid plans. And one thing leading to another.
 
Bowling has a cousin named Ashley Ferguson, who happens to be the cheerleading coach at William & Mary. Ferguson convinced Bowling to come visit the campus, and she agreed. She came looking for one thing.
 
"I had been praying for clarity," said Bowling, who is taking the MCAT this week. "And when I came to tour the campus, (Ferguson) said 'I have this bracelet, and my word of the year is clarity.' I was like, wow, this is the word I've been praying for.
 
"After touring the campus and seeing the interactions between people and CW, I knew this is where I wanted to be. I committed to the school long before I knew I was going to twirl."
 
At Brookville High in Lynchburg, Bowling had a duet partner during her twirling routines. Not so at William & Mary. For the Tribe's home opener in 2021, she twirled solo in front of 6,162 fans, a few more than the Brookville Bees drew for their games.
 
Another difference: For high school games, she only twirled with the marching band during the halftime show. This would be halftime plus on the sideline during the game.
 
"The thought of that was intimidating at first, just figuring out spacing and stuff," said Caren Bowling, Melanie's mother. "And twirling alongside a cheer team was not something she had done. But she absolutely would not change a moment of that. She loves it.
 
"She was twirling in front of the entire student section, and they went crazy. Honestly, her confidence boosted throughout that game."
 
Ferguson had never had a twirler on her team before Bowling came along. It has added a unique touch to the routines.
 
"For a lot of my athletes, this is the first time they had really seen a very elite baton twirler," Ferguson said. "Every year, especially with new people coming in, they've been so impressed with her skills. They love having her there.
 
"Even though she does something totally different, she's a leader on the team. She's really embraced being part of our family, and our family has really embraced having her as an extra special element."
 
In addition to her performances at games and parades, Bowling also has competed. As a freshman, representing her school, Bowling won the Feature Twirler section of the National Collegiate FANtastic competition. As a sophomore, she won the Virginia State Baton Twirling Championship and the Joyce Grey Award.
 
Baton twirling can best be described as a niche sport in that very few even know how to do it. As opposed to, say, tennis. You might not be Novak Djokovic, but you know how to hit a ball with a racket.
 
But you probably have no clue how to throw a baton 15-20 feet in the air and catch it while dancing.
 
"I don't think too many people realize how many hours it takes to learn to catch behind my head or spin around three times to get back to the front," Bowling said. "It's all a progression. You don't start out with that. You start out tossing it barely above your head."
 
And even now, she has an occasional drop. It happens to all twirlers, just like Steph Curry and Caitlin Clark will miss an occasional free throw.
 
"As much as we train to not drop, the best of the best still drop," Bowling said. "You're tossing a medal stick in the air, and at football games you have factors like wind and rain or the sun gets in your eyes. You can't see where the baton is coming down, and you're kind of hoping for the best.
 
"But it's OK to pick it up and keep going. It's not about dropping it, and it's not about you catching, really. It's about how you continue. You pick it up, you smile, and you keep going."
 
And so she has.

One Tribe One Day
One Tribe One Day is William & Mary's annual day of giving which over the last 11 years has grown into a university tradition. The day highlights the strength and unity of the W&M community while undeniably impacting the university's future. This year, One Tribe One Day is Wednesday, April 2.
 
Last year, more than 11,500 people from around the world came together on one day to raise over $3.7 million for the people, places and programs they love most at William & Mary, including Tribe Athletics. To learn more about One Tribe One Day or to give back on this special day, visit Athletics's One Tribe One Day webpage.