A 4th Consecutive Big Ten Championship for Ohio State
2/18/2023 9:37:11 PM | Women's Swim & Dive
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State women’s swimming and diving team won its fourth consecutive Big Ten Conference championship Saturday evening at the Canham Natatorium on the campus of the University of Michigan. The Buckeyes totaled 1,425 points to capture the championship over runner-up Indiana, with 1,291.5 points, and third-place Michigan, with 1,108 points.
The Buckeyes won two more races Saturday to go along with nine previous wins for a total of 11 Big Ten race wins, including four relay champions. Along the way the program established seven Canham Natatorium pool records, seven school records and one Big Ten championships mark.
Ohio State led this championship meet since Thursday, from the fifth race on, and oh my was that race special: Katherine Zenick, Amy Fulmer and Teresa Ivan went 1-2-3 in the 50 free with Nyah Funderburke fifth and Catherine Russo ninth for a convincing and dominant show of Scarlet and Gray strength and speed.
While that 50 free put the team in the lead, it was actually the race before it – a win in the 200 individual medley by Josie Panitz – that gave the team a boost of confidence and spirit that this was going to be Ohio State’s year once again. Starting with that 200 IM, Ohio State won five consecutive races, and nine of the next 12, and the team never looked back.
Ohio State’s 2023 Big Ten Champions
(*Canham Natatorium pool record; #Big Ten championships record; !Ohio State record)
- 200 medley relay – Nyah Funderburke, Hannah Bach, Kaherine Zenick, Teresa Ivan; 1:33.95*
- 200 individual medley – Josie Panitz; 1:54.96*
- 50 freestyle – Katherine Zenick; 21.85
- 400 medley relay – Nyah Funderburke, Hannah Bach, Kaherine Zenick, Amy Fulmer; 3:26.68*
- 100 butterfly – Katherine Zenick; 51.48
- 400 individual medley – Felicia Pasadyn; 4:03.62*
- 100 breaststroke – Hannah Bach; 58.19
- 100 backstroke – Nyah Funderburke; 51.52
- 200 free relay – Katherine Zenick, Nyah Funderburke, Teresa Ivan, Amy Fulmer; 1:26.70*#!
- 100 freestyle – Amy Fulmer; 47.02*!
- 400 freestyle relay – Katherine Zenick, Catherine Russo, Teresa Ivan, Amy Fulmer; 3:10.12*!
Ohio State is second in Big Ten history with nine women’s swimming and diving team championships (1982-83-84-85-86-2020-21-22-23). Head coach Bill Dorenkott has now coached teams to seven Big Ten Conference championships, including four Ohio State teams, and he is second in Big Ten history in women’s Big Ten titles.
Saturday Highlights:
1,650 Freestyle
Swimming in the final heat to kick off the evening session, the duo of Maya Geringer and Gwen Woodbury finished fourth and fifth in the 1,650 freestyle to give the Buckeyes 51 big team points. Geringer went 16:05.34 and Woodbury went 16:05.80.
200 Backstroke
Ohio State had three A finalists and two B finalists with Felicia Pasadyn leading the way with a school-record swim of 1:52.29 to finish in second. A finalists Morgan Kraus was fourth in 1:54.53 and Tristan Harrison was fifth in 1:54.84. Paige Hall and Kyra Sommerstad were 10th and 14th, respectively. The five scorers accumulated 109 points to help Ohio State build a 110-point lead over second-place Indiana.
100 Freestyle
Amy Fulmer set a Canham Natatorium record of 47.23 and was fastest in the prelims and then she went even faster to win the 100 free final in 47.02 to set an Ohio State record and break her five-hour-old Canham Natatorium record. Katherine Zenick and Teresa Ivan joined Fulmer in the A final and finished third in 47.92 and fourth in 48.30, respectively. Catherine Russo was ninth in 48.69 and Nyah Funderburke 18th in 49.25.
200 Breaststroke
Josie Panitz finished 2nd in 2:07.57 and Hannah Bach placed 8th for Ohio State. Panitz broke the Ohio State school record in the prelims, swimming a 2:07.38 time.
200 Butterfly
A second school record on the day for Felicia Pasadyn; this time in the 200 butterfly in 1:54.33 to finish second. With Aislinn Walsh, Kyra Sommerstad and Jessica Eden all scoring in the B final, Ohio State extended its lead at these Big Ten championships to 136 points. Walsh won the B final in 1:58.24 while Sommerstad was 13th in 1:59.02 and Eden 15th in 1:59.74.
10-Meter Diving
Junior Ciara McGing and freshman Lena Hentschel each competed in the B final and scored points for the Buckeyes. McGing was ninth with 316.85 points and Hentschel was 16th.
400 Freestyle Relay
The team of Katherine Zenick, Catherine Russo, Teresa Ivan and Amy Fulmer smashed the Canham Natatorium record and set a new school mark by winning by over three seconds with a time of 3:10.12.
Eight Buckeyes earned first-team all-Big Ten honors: Teresa Ivan, Nyah Funderburke, Katherine Zenick, Josie Panitz, Hannah Bach, Felicia Pasadyn, Catherine Russo and Amy Fulmer.
Earning second-team all-Big Ten honors: Morgan Kraus and Lena Hentschel.
Final Team Scores
- Ohio State – 1,425
- Indiana – 1,291.5
- Michigan – 1,108
- Wisconsin – 954
- Minnesota – 768.6
- Northwestern – 710
- Purdue – 492.5
- Penn State – 475
- Rutgers – 467.5
- Nebraska – 437
- Illinois – 215
- Iowa – 198
