Michigan
Big Ten Championships - Day 5
Wolverines Finish Runner-Up at Big Ten Championships
2/27/2021 10:14:00 PM | Women's Swimming & Diving
» The Wolverines placed second (1,326.5 points). Ohio State won the team title.
» Maggie MacNeil won her third gold medal of the meet, winning the 100-yard freestyle. Daria Pyshnenko tied for second.
» Kaitlynn Sims won the 1650-yard freestyle from lane eight in the final heat. Sierra Schmidt finished second.
» Michigan ended the meet with a win in the 400-yard freestyle relay behind MacNeil, Megan Glass, Pyshnenko and Olivia Carter.
Site: Minneapolis, Minn. (Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center)
Event: Big Ten Championships (Day 5 of 5)
U-M Team Standing: 2nd place of 13 Teams (1,326.5 points)
Next U-M Event: Sun-Tue., March 7-9 -- at NCAA Zone C Diving Championships (Lexington, Ky.), 10:30 a.m.
• Complete Results (PDF)
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Behind gold-medal swims from junior Maggie MacNeil (100-yard freestyle), sophomore Kaitlynn Sims (1650-yard freestyle) and the 400-yard freestyle relay, the No. 9-ranked University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team wrapped up a second-place finish (1,326.5 points) on Saturday (Feb. 27) at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center. Ohio State won the team title for the second year in a row (1,584 points).
Despite enduring multiple interruptions to their training over the course of the season, the Wolverines made it to Minneapolis and fought for every point in a valiant team-wide effort. They claimed seven individual or relay championships, highlighted by MacNeil, who once again was named Big Ten Swimmer of the Championships. Michigan won a total of 17 medals, set 40 new career bests and saw nine new entries on the team's all-time top performers list.
And in West Lafayette, Ind., site of the Big Ten Diving Championships meet, six Michigan divers combined to score 187 points for the team over three days of competition.
"Despite all the stuff that's happened to this team, the continued adversity that we've been under, to score more points this year than we did last year is truly incredible," said head coach Mike Bottom. "Nobody faced what we faced. It was wonderful to experience that as a coach. We always talk about champions, and that's what they are. What an amazing group."
"The last relay sums it up," said associate head coach Rick Bishop. "They came together. We know we didn't win the meet, but there was no quit. After all the disruptions, we battled through. We won events. We threw down times on par with the best in the country with limited training. We found a way to persevere."
MacNeil won her third individual gold medal of the meet, accelerating down the final 25 yards to touch in 47.36 seconds, pulling away from teammate Daria Pyshnenko and Northwestern's Madeline Smith, who tied for second (47.98). Just two-tenths of a second separated the three swimmers at the 75-yard mark, but MacNeil came home in 12.05, providing enough cushion for the win. Freshman Claire Newman also got in on the scoring, taking 23rd (50.33).
WATCH: Maggie MacNeil defends her title in the 100-yard Freestyle, while teammate Daria Pyshnenko ties for second. #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/qd3hjeR4gl
— Michigan Swimming & Diving (@umichswimdive) February 28, 2021
After a heartbreaking finish in the 500-yard freestyle on Wednesday, Sims left no doubt on Saturday, cruising to claim gold in the 1,650-yard freestyle (15:59.70). From lane eight, Sims took it out fast and held onto the speed, winning by eight and a half seconds. Taking second place was senior Sierra Schmidt, who beat Northwestern's Lola Mull to the wall on last lap, winning by one-tenth of a second (16:08.23).
But it was junior Caroline Sisson who provided the breakthrough swim of the day. From heat one, swimming the event for the very first time in a collegiate meet, Sisson went 16:15.74 to finish seventh, likely confirming her spot at the NCAA Championships. The performance ranks her 28th in the NCAA -- well under last year's cut line -- and is just off the program's all-time top-10 performers list. Sophomore Octavia Lau scored her first points at Big Tens, taking 15 seconds off her old personal best to finish 24th (16:46.73).
For the second straight day, the Wolverines loaded up in a backstroke event, showcasing both their depth in that particular training group and its bright future. Six freshmen and one sophomore earned second swims, led by sophomore Mariella Venter, who capped an excellent week of swimming with a sixth-place finish (1:54.41). Freshman Sophie Housey qualified for her third individual 'A' final the week, taking seventh (1:55.83)
Behind those two were five freshmen in consolation or bonus finals: Noelle Kaufmann in ninth (1:56.17), Kathryn Ackerman in 11th (1:56.33), Sophia Tuinman in 17th (1:57.32), Casey Chung in 21st (1:57.77) and Claire Donan in 22nd (1:58.00). Together, the seven swimmers combined for 99 points.
At the Big Ten Diving meet in West Lafayette, Ind., five Wolverines scored points in the one-meter final, led by senior Nikki Canale (fifth, 306.95) and sophomore Lucy Hogan (seventh, 305.25). [ Recap ]
Though the team finish was already decided, the Wolverines went all-out to win the 400-yard freestyle relay in the final event of the meet. MacNeil (47.47) and Pyshnenko (47.68), fresh off their podium finishes in the 100-yard freestyle earlier, both cracked 48 seconds again. The other two legs were comprised of fresh swimmers who had not yet swum on Saturday: sophomore Megan Glass (48.53) and junior Olivia Carter (47.93). They finished in 3:11.61, an NCAA 'A' cut and more than a second faster than second-place Ohio State.
Swimming and relay selections for the NCAA Championships are to be announced Wednesday (March 3). Divers will next compete at the NCAA Zone C Championships, March 7-9 in Lexington, Ky.
Michigan Big Ten Champions (7)
Maggie MacNeil (3): 50-yard Freestyle, 100-yard Freestyle, 100-yard Butterfly
Olivia Carter: 200-yard Butterfly
Kaitlynn Sims: 1,650-yard Freestyle
400-yard Freestyle Relay: Maggie MacNeil, Megan Glass, Daria Pyshnenko, Olivia Carter
800-yard Freestyle Relay: Sophie Housey, Kathryn Ackerman, Megan Glass, Sierra Schmidt
Big Ten Award Winners
Swimmer of the Championships: Maggie MacNeil, Michigan
Diver of the Championships: Abigail Knapton, Nebraska
Freshman of the Year: Phoebe Bacon, Wisconsin
U-M Sportsmanship Award Honoree: Sierra Schmidt
2020-21 Michigan All-Big Ten Selections
First Team: Kathryn Ackerman, Olivia Carter, Megan Glass, Sophie Housey, Maggie MacNeil, Daria Pyshnenko, Sierra Schmidt, Kaitlynn Sims
Second Team: Claire Newman
Career Bests
100 Freestyle -- Claire Newman (49.90)
100 Freestyle -- Sophia Kudryashova (50.35)
100 Freestyle -- Madeleine Bauer (50.60)
1,650 Freestyle -- Caroline Sisson (16:15.74)
1,650 Freestyle -- Octavia Lau (16:46.73)
200 Backstroke -- Mariella Venter (1:53.92 -- No. 5 at U-M)
200 Backstroke -- Sophie Housey (1:55.83)
200 Backstroke -- Noelle Kaufmann (1:56.17)
200 Backstroke -- Kathryn Ackerman (1:56.33)
200 Backstroke -- Sophia Tuinman (1:57.32)
200 Backstroke -- Casey Chung (1:57.77)
200 Backstroke -- Claire Donan (1:58.00)
One-Meter Diving -- Nikki Canale (306.95 -- No. 7 at U-M)
One-Meter Diving -- Lucy Hogan (305.25 -- No. 8 at U-M)
Players Mentioned
