Ohio State had five varsity wins on Sunday.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – No. 2 Ohio State claimed its second-consecutive Big Ten Championship ON Sunday morning at Eagle Creek Park in Indianapolis, Ind., posting five varsity wins to total a championship record 164 points en route to its fifth conference title overall.
Michigan placed second (140 points), Wisconsin placed third (109) and Indiana finished fourth (103). Michigan State (60), Minnesota (55) and Iowa (39) rounded out the team standings.
The Buckeyes, who have now won three titles in the past four years, become the first team since Michigan State (2008-09) to earn two consecutive conference titles, and are now tied with Michigan for the most conference championships with five. Michigan State has won three, while Minnesota and Wisconsin have each claimed one.
The first varsity eight of Aina Cid Centelles, Elodie Ravera, Eelkje Miedema, Ashley Bauer, Stephanie Williams, Catherine Shields, Holly Norton, Claire-Louise Bode and coxswain Victoria Lazur clinched the title for the Buckeyes, sounding the horn in 6:29.37 to win its second-consecutive conference title and remain undefeated (9-0) on the season. The crew placed more than four seconds ahead of Michigan (6:34.21) and more than eight seconds ahead of Indiana (6:38.05).
Prior to the final race, the second varsity eight of Daphne Socha, Chloe Meyer, Nicole Becks, Lauren Eckles, Meghan Birkbeck, Anne Dietrich, Katie King, Taylore Urban and coxswain Alex Sawatzki earned its second-consecutive title and eighth win of the season (8-1) after crossing the line in first-place with a time of 6:38.09. Michigan finished second in 6:45.34 while Indiana finished third in 6:49.57.
The first varsity four gave the Buckeyes some breathing room, as Ohio State and Michigan were tied for first heading into the last three races of the morning. The crew of Sarah Kessler, Anna Ralph, Anna Gackowski, Katie Beletskaya and coxswain Sarah Asad won its third-consecutive conference title, sounding the horn in 7:27.30 to place ahead of Wisconsin, who finished the race second in 7:31.42, and Michigan State, who finished the race third in 7:35.62.
The second and third varsity fours were also victorious for the Buckeyes, each capturing gold medals in their respective races. The second varsity four of Sarah Peffley, Audrianna Penza, Sytske Miedema, Kelsey Albrinck and coxswain Sami Jurofsky closed its season with an 8-1 record, earning its second-consecutive title in a time of 7:34.32 to beat Michigan (7:42.22) and Wisconsin (7:47.47) to the line while the third varsity four of Jillian Getz, Anna Lind, Corinne Jones, Anne Fruth and coxswain Megan Mahoney posted a time of 7:34.95 to clip Michigan (7:35.70) at the line in a tightly contested race.
In novice competition, the first novice eight of Samantha Rhodes, Kelsey Hoehn, Mary Clare Stannard, Grace Moeller, Casey Schaffer, Ana Sinicariello, Emily Markham, Lindsey Steinbauer and coxswain Danielle Figliuolo earned a second-place finish in 7:09.18, finishing behind Michigan who sounded the horn first in 7:04.56 but ahead of Wisconsin who finished the race third in 7:11.83.
The second novice eight opened the morning of racing with a bronze medal performance. The crew of Allison Rudolf, Sarah Davis, Erica Yoder, Leila Salhi, Allyson Baker, Kelly Anne Baird, Jamie Kuhlman, Alina Tiber and coxswain Danielle Macklin closed its race in 7:27.87, behind first-place Wisconsin (7:16.12) and second-place Michigan (7:21.50).
Five Buckeyes earned All-Big Ten honors at the conclusion of the championships, as Bode, Norton and Shields were named First Team All-Big Ten and Bauer and Miedema were named Second Team All-Big Ten. King was named the Ohio State Sportsmanship Award honoree.
