Season Review: 2020-21 Michigan Rowing
8/10/2021 9:00:00 AM | Rowing
Big Ten Championships: 1st (191 points)
NCAA Championships: 4th (108 points)
For the third time in the past four years, the University of Michigan rowing program earned a top-five finish at the NCAA Championships, placing fourth to end the 2021 spring season after repeating the teams' Big Ten Championship team title. After a disastrous spring 2020 for the sport as a whole, the 2021 season brought positive results and memorable performances for the Wolverines.
Team Highlights
• Maintaining NCAA Success: After third-place finishes at the NCAA Championships in 2017 and 2019, the Wolverines narrowly missed the podium with a fourth-place team finish in 2021. U-M scored 108 points, led by a fourth-place finish from the 1V8 while the 2V8 and 1V4 each placed sixth.
• Defending the Big Ten Title: Repeating in sports is never easy, but when a two-year gap separates your championship events it is even more difficult. U-M defended its 2019 conference title with a program-record 191 points to win the Big Ten again in 2021. The Wolverines were a single point shy of a perfect score, with the second novice eight boat placing second in the first race of the morning.
• Improving on Team Records for Academics: U-M has set a new program record for Academic All-Big Ten honorees in six straight seasons. Over the last three years, the Wolverines have collected 33 (2019), 44 (2020), and 49 honorees this year in 2021. The program also had an astounding 20 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars, the most among all U-M programs and more than 15 percent of the full department total (119 honorees).
• Back at Belleville: After a year away, it was a season highlight for the Wolverines to race at Belleville Lake again. The program hosted Texas (April 10) and Louisville and Iowa (May 2). Though fans were unable to attend in person, live-streamed races and photography made the days feel as if they were in-person, and parents watched from across the shore as the Wolverines swept the latter event.
Individual Highlights
• Hoffmann Cleans Up Award Season: In a year filled with honors for the U-M program, Annika Hoffmann collected the most hardware. She became the program's seventh individual to earn Big Ten Athlete of the Year honors and was a first-team all-conference pick following the team's repeat Big Ten title. She became the program's 31st first team All-American. In the classroom, she was named Academic All-Big Ten, a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, and a first-team CoSIDA At-Large Academic All-American (the first in program history).
• Honored by Pocock: Michigan's streak of All-Americans is alive and well. Including 2020 honorees, it marks 14 consecutive years running that U-M has had at least one All-America selection. This year, Hoffmann (first team), Madison Byrd, Tayla-May Bentley, Lilia Duncan, and Charlotte Powers (second team) were honored. The program is up to 55 All-America honors from 38 individuals, and Hoffmann became the program's 21st different woman to earn a first-team honor.
• Rothstein is Big Ten Coach of the Year: For the sixth time in his career, head coach Mark Rothstein was honored as the Big Ten Coach of the Year. Rothstein directed U-M to a near-perfect performance at the conference championship regatta and led to the program's first repeat Big Ten Championship since the 2003-04 seasons. The Wolverines produced first-place finishes in seven of eight events with one second-place finish to yield 191 points, one point shy of a perfect score. U-M was rewarded with five all-conference athletes (three first-team) for their performance.
• Wolverines Competing Internationally: Rising junior Elena Collier-Hezel (U.S. BW4+) and rising sophomore Abigail Dent (Canada, BW2x) competed at the World Rowing Under-23 Championships in Racice, Czech Republic, in July. Dent and Canada went on to place sixth in the B Final and Collier-Hezel helped the U.S. finish fifth. For the second year in a row, assistant coach Liz Tuppen was part of the U.S. Under-23 Selection Camp coaching staff.
Honors and Awards
Annika
Hoffmann
Madison
Byrd
Tayla-May
Bentley
Lilia
Duncan
Charlotte
Powers
All-America (5)
Annika Hoffmann (first team)
Tayla-May Bentley (second team)
Madison Byrd (second team)
Lilia Duncan (second team)
Charlotte Powers (second team, coxswain)
All-Big Ten Conference (5)
Annika Hoffmann (first team)
Madison Byrd (first team)
Tayla-May Bentley (first team)
Lilia Duncan (second team)
Grace Collins (second team)
Other Individual Big Ten Awards
Big Ten Coach of the Year -- Mark Rothstein
Big Ten Athlete of the Year -- Annika Hoffmann
CRCA Scholar Athletes (16)
Paige Badenhorst, Organizational Studies, Environment (third honor)
Tayla-May Bentley, Psychology, Communications (second honor)
Kate Burns, Industrial & Operations Engineering (second honor)
Grace Collins, Applied Exercise Science
Victoria Cooke, Biology, Health & Society
Annaka Draaisma, Movement Science
Lilia Duncan, Masters of Health Information
Julia Gehlert, English
Emma Luniewicz, Sport Management
Lillian Mei, Mechanical Engineering (second honor)
Darien Moses, Business Administration
Charlotte Powers, Biopsychology, Cognition & Neuroscience
Jeri Rhodes, Communication & Media
Ariana Shokoohi, Biology, Health & Society
Noa Sreden, Economics, International Studies, Middle East Studies
Annika Hoffmann, Comparative Literature, Political Science (third honor)
Big Ten Distinguished Scholars (20)
Paige Badenhorst, Sr., Organization Studies, Environment, Benoni, RSA
Lauren Benitez, So., Organizational Studies, International Studies, Spanish, Oakland Township, Mich.
Tayla-May Bentley, Sr., Psychology, Communications, Johannesburg, RSA
Faith Bridgeman, Jr., Neuroscience, Sociology, Clinton Township, Mich.
Kate Burns, Sr., Industrial & Operations Engineering, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Elle Caton, So., LSA undeclared, West Chester, Pa.
Annaka Draaisma, So., Movement Science, Ada. Mich.
Lilia Duncan, Gr., Public Health, Sterling Heights, Mich.
Ally Eggleton, Sr., Environment, Psychology, Thomaston, Conn.
Tara Flaherty, Jr., Civil Engineering, La Grange, Ill.
Julia Gehlert, Sr., English, Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich.
Annika Hoffmann, Sr., Political Science, Comparative Literature, Geelong, Australia
Kate Kikilo, So., Biology, Health & Society, Denver, Colo.
Ember Larson, So., Movement Science, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Lillian Mei, Jr., Mechanical Engineering, San Ramon, Calif.
Sophia Rallis, So., Sport Management, Novi, Mich.
Lauren Sickmiller, Jr., Movement Science, Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich.
Noa Sreden, Sr., Economics, International Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, Phippsburg, Maine
Ashley Veldheer, So., Nursing, Byron Center, Mich.
Katie Zaslaw, So., LSA undeclared, Yorktown Heights, N.Y.
Academic All-Big Ten (49)
Paige Badenhorst, Sr., Organizational Studies, Environment, Benoni, RSA
Lauren Benitez, So., Organizational Studies, International Studies, Spanish, Oakland Township, Mich.
Tayla-May Bentley, Sr., Psychology, Communications, Johannesburg, RSA
Faith Bridgeman, Jr., Neuroscience, Sociology, Clinton Township, Mich.
Kate Burns, Sr., Industrial and Operations Engineering, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Hadley Camp, Jr., Business Administration, Midland, Mich.
Julia Casey, So., LSA Undeclared, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Elle Caton, So., Biopsychology, Cognition and Neuroscience, West Chester, Pa.
Grace Collins, Sr., Applied Exercise Science, Ridgefield, Conn.
Victoria Cooke, Jr., Biology, Health and Society, New Albany, Ohio
Annaka Draaisma, So., Movement Science, Ada, Mich.
Lilia Duncan, Gr., Health Informatics MHI, Sterling Heights, Mich.
Caitlin Dusenbury, So., Business Administration, Chelsea, Mich.
Ally Eggleton, Sr., Environment, Psychology, Thomaston, Conn.
Kayla Ehrlich, Jr., Mechanical Engineering, Arlington, Va.
Caitlin Esse, So., LSA Undeclared, New Canaan, Conn.
Haven Essien, Jr., French, Plymouth, Mich.
Aubrey Fitts, So., Business Administration, Winter Park, Fla.
Tara Flaherty, Jr., Civil Engineering, La Grange, Ill.
Julia Gehlert, Sr., English, Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich.
Grace Haller, So., Mechanical Engineering, Bellevue, Wash.
Hawthorne Haywood, Sr., Biology, Health and Society, Severna Park, Md.
Annika Hoffmann, Sr., Comparative Literature, Political Science, Geelong, Australia
Eliese Hornberger-Rocco, Sr., Master of Management, East Lansing, Mich.
Kate Kikilo, So., Biology, Health and Society, Denver, Colo.
Jessica Kohl, Jr., Applied Exercise Science, Scituate, Mass.
Ember Larson, So., Movement Science, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Emma Luniewicz, Sr., Sport Management, Walpole, Mass.
Caroline McGee, Jr., Biopsychology, Cognition and Neuroscience, Scarsdale, N.Y.
Olivia McMullen, So., Movement Science, Grand Haven, Mich.
Lillian Mei, Jr., Mechanical Engineering, San Ramon, Calif.
Isabel Mezei, So., Psychology, Carlsbad, Calif.
Darien Moses, Sr., Business Administration, Newport Beach, Calif.
Lily Pence, So., Communication and Media, Summit, N.J.
Samantha Perlman, Jr., Business Administration, Aventura, Fla.
Charlotte Powers, Sr., Biopsychology, Cognition and Neuroscience, Fairfield, Conn.
Sophia Rallis, So., Sport Management, Novi, Mich.
Jeri Rhodes, Jr., Communication and Media, St. Louis, Mo.
Olivia Rodriguez, Jr., Movement Science, Jackson, Mich.
Kendra Sanders, Sr., Biopsychology, Cognition and Neuroscience, Torrance, Calif.
Jessica Schoonbee, Jr., Computer Science, Johannesburg, RSA
Ariana Shokoohi, So., Biology, Health and Society, Saginaw, Mich.
Lauren Sickmiller, Jr., Movement Science, Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich.
Noa Sreden, Sr., Economics, International Studies, Middle East Studies, Greenwich, Conn.
Taylor Toudouze, Sr., Economics, Dallas, Texas
Lara Vanderbilt, Sr., Chemical Engineering, Davis, Calif.
Ashley Veldheer, So., Nursing, Byron Center, Mich.
Kathryn Ward, Jr., Biopsychology, Cognition and Neuroscience, Chesterfield, Mo.
Katie Zaslaw, So., LSA Undeclared, Yorktown Heights, N.Y.
Players Mentioned
