Buckeye Spotlight – March 21
3/21/2023 3:00:34 PM | General
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Week in and week out, Buckeye student-athletes raise the standard of excellence set at Ohio State, whether that be in competition, in the classroom, or in the community. ‘Buckeye Spotlight’ recognizes student-athletes who had noteworthy accomplishments both in contests and beyond the box score.
Throughout the 50th anniversary of Title IX, Ohio State Athletics continues to celebrate exceptional female student-athletes and women’s teams throughout history, highlighting a new moment or person every week. This week, the Moraes sisters, decorated members of the synchronized swim team, are highlighted. Read more here.
Here are this week’s Buckeye Spotlight student-athletes:
Ohio State Women’s Golf Team
- The Buckeyes set two program records en route to a second-place finish at the Mountain View Collegiate in Arizona over the weekend.
- The team combined for the lowest 54-hole score in program history, a 27-under 837.
- Caley McGinty placed second overall at the tournament. She set a program record on the final day of competition, firing a 63 (-9), the lowest 18-hole round in Ohio State women’s golf history. It is the best round of McGinty’s collegiate career.
Katelyn Abeln | Pistol | Sr. | Douglasville, Ga
- Won the national championship in the three-event aggregate and air pistol events at last weekend’s Intercollegiate Pistol Championships.
- Helped the Buckeyes win their third consecutive overall team title at the event.
- Also had the top individual aggregate score (1702).
Faith Bender | Women’s Track & Field | So. | Bakersfield, Calif.
- Faith Bender competed in three events in her first outdoor meet as a Buckeye at the Bulls Invitational this past weekend. Bender won the women’s discus with a personal-best throw of 56.74m, which ranks second on the Buckeyes’ all-time records list.
- She also finished sixth in the shot put (14.52m) and competed in the hammer throw (42.69m) to lead the team.
- Bender’s discus mark ranks second in the country this season.
Robert Cash | Men’s Tennis | Sr. | New Albany, Ohio
- Helped lead the Buckeyes to a 4-2 win over No. 5 Michigan on Sunday
- Moved up to the No. 1 double spot and he and partner Justin Boulais beat the No. 9 ranked team 6-3
- In singles, he was the first to win his match, beating Jacob Bickersteth 6-2, 6-3 to put the Buckeyes in front 2-0
- He is now 14-1 in singles matches this season and 15-2 in doubles
Sophie Jaques | Women’s Hockey | Grad. | Toronto, Ontario
- On Saturday, Sophie Jaques was named the 2023 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner. The award honors the top player in Division I women’s hockey.
- Jaques, a two-time Top-3 Finalist for the award, is the first Buckeye to win the Patty Kazmaier and only the second defenseman to win in the 26-year history of the award.
- Jaques was instrumental in helping the Buckeyes to their second consecutive national title game appearance with 24 assists and a team and career-high 24 goals on the year.
- She was also named to the 2023 Frozen Four All-Tournament team.
Jacy Sheldon | Women’s Basketball | Sr. | Dublin, Ohio
- Jacy Sheldon made the game-winning shot with 1.8 seconds to play against North Carolina in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Monday, capping a terrific weekend for her and the Buckeyes as Ohio State secured its second-straight Sweet 16 appearance.
- In the first and second rounds, Sheldon averaged 16.5 points, 7.0 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals as she was back to full strength.
- Against JMU, Sheldon’s nine assists tied the third-most by a player in Ohio State NCAA Tournament history.
Allison Smith | Softball | Jr. | Champion, Ohio
- Went 3-0 last week during Ohio State’s spring break trip and also had a save.
- Finished with a 0.54 ERA, allowing just two earned runs over 26.0 innings.
- Set a career-high with 14 strikeouts in a 5-2 win over Presbyterian.
- Totaled 41 strikeouts to bring her season total to 99 in 74.2 innings.
Hayden Tobias | Men’s Track & Field | Jr. | Fishers, Ind.
- Hayden Tobias earned the first OSU men’s win of the outdoor season this past weekend at the Bulls Invitational.
- Tobias won the shot put with a best throw of 19.78m and also competed in the hammer throw (51.26m).
- His shot put mark ranks second in the country after the opening weekend of outdoor season.
Maria Tsarik | Pistol | Jr. | Lake Bluff, Ill.
- Was the individual national champion in the sport pistol and standard pistol.
- Had the second-highest overall aggregate score (1690) at the championships.
Katherine Zenick | Women’s Swimming & Diving | Jr. | Southlake, Texas
- Zenick helped the Buckeyes to a program-best sixth place finish at the NCAA Championships last week.
- Individually, Zenick had a phenomenal week, earning First Team All-American honors in the 100 fly and the 100 free.
- She was also part of the First Team All-American 200 medley relay, 200 free relay, 400 medley relay and 400 free relay teams.
#GoBucks
