Wildcats Finish Season at Big 12 Championship

AUSTIN, Texas – The K-State women's rowing team finished the 2022-23 season racing in the Big 12 Championship on Sunday (May 14) at Lake Walter E. Long in Austin, Texas. The team finished in fifth place overall and third place among Big 12 schools.

The Wildcats tallied 40 points across all races, the day being highlighted by two fourth place finishes in the 3v8+ and 2v4+. Texas earned their eighth consecutive Big 12 title, while K-State finished eight points behind fourth place Oklahoma and five points ahead of sixth place Kansas.

"The aim of our program is to put as many boats as possible in medaling position at Big 12s. We were competitive this weekend, but we didn't produce the results our athletes will continue to work toward," head coach Patrick Sweeney said. "Our team gained a lot of experience and made definite progress throughout the year. Looking at how we finished the season, there is a lot to look forward to. We know what we need to do moving forward and we showed we have what it takes to get to that next level."

Redshirt sophomore Madison Koller was named to the All-Big 12 rowing team, along with 18 other athletes across the Big 12.

"Considering the difficult circumstances we had this year, including loss of water time at spring camp and unforgiving weather throughout the season, our team has shown a high level of maturity and grit," Sweeney said. "How they handled everything is a good sign of what is to come. This weekend we had some good racing, we competed in a way they can be proud of, and each of our athletes should feel confident in their abilities."

Leading into race day, the team continued to face uncertainty with possible shifts in race times and storms in the area. Adversity throughout the season helped them maintain focus and recognize they could be successful regardless of outside factors.

"We knew we could race through anything because we have raced in all types of conditions this year," sophomore Anna Ryan said.

"This year we have competed in a variety of weather so we were confident that we would be able to row well in the rain," freshman Kay Pakkebier said. "It was rewarding to see how far we've progressed this year."

Starting the day with the 3v8+, the boat came in fourth with a time of 6:58.47, two-tenths of a second ahead of fifth-place Alabama. The boat consisted of freshman coxswain Kennedy Loyd, freshmen Ellie Erwin, Makenzie Storm, Grace Hall, Emma Johnson, Zoey Whorton, junior McKenna Johnson and freshmen Tatum Alexander and Kyla Traub.

"I learned that this team is way more capable than anyone gives us credit for," Erwin said. "Being in the novice boat none of us had raced before March and we ended up having an incredible season where we were competitive with girls who have been doing this sport for years."

The 'Cats secured another fourth-place finish in the 2v4+, with freshman coxswain Kiersten Schmalz, junior Lindsey DeVreugd, sophomores Kendra Hamman, Catie Wood and junior Alyssa Buettner with a final time of 7:29.08, only .05 of a second out of medal contention behind third place Tennessee.

"Our boat started down at the beginning of the race and right around the 1000 meter mark we definitely made a big push," Buettner said. "That push gave us a lot of momentum for the third 500 which is usually pretty tough. That helped us walk through a few boats in the second half of the race. This is something we've been trying to focus on all year but haven't quite accomplished the way we wanted to, so it was really encouraging that we were able to do that today."

The 1v4+ consisting of senior coxswain Kaitlyn Henke, sophomore Neva Roenne, junior Jadyn Greisen and sophomores Emily Stark and Halle Fee, finished fifth with a time of 7:31.06.

"It was a good season of learning and understanding potential," Fee said. "I learned a lot more when it came to improving my technique in the boat and how to really work and contribute to my boat's success."

The 2v8+, with senior coxswain Lauren Plum, sophomore Grace Hendrickson, junior Kaylee Kleinschmit, freshman Sylvia Cunningham, sophomores Symone Simmons, Gracyn McClain, Madelyn Barrett, freshman Kay Pakkebier, and sophomore Jayden Brandt, finished with a time of 6:56.79, finishing in sixth place.

"As a boat we improved tremendously throughout the season," Pakkebier said. "Thinking back to our first race in California [Hornet Invitational] we've improved so much since then. Each race we got better in some way and built on what we had. I'm super proud of all the girls on the team, they make all the hard work worth it."

In the last race of the day, the 1v8+ placed fifth at 6:41.73. The boat consisted of sophomore coxswain Paige Fox, sophomores Rachel Harman, Jordan Girkin, Anna Ryan, Madison Koller, junior Patricia Hokanson, senior Madison Jensen, freshman Bianca Wollmeister and junior Idallis Shaffer.

"Our goal going into the race was to be productive at a [stroke] rate around 38 [strokes per minute] and we held that rate the entire race. We had the best time of the year," Ryan said. "I'm really happy with how we performed and came together as a boat. We raced a good race, and we have a lot to build on next year."

This season, the Wildcats achieved success while continuing to push the program forward. Highlights included four boats medaling April 15-16 at the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championship (SIRA), a sweep of Creighton with all five boats winning their races on April 22, and most recently, winning the Kansas Cup for the first time since 2019 with the 1v8+, 2v8+, and 3v8+ beating in-state rival Kansas in the Sunflower Showdown on April 29.

The 1v8+ also earned conference recognition as the final Big 12 Boat of the Week for the 2023 season, following their performance in the Showdown, where they were victorious by a margin of almost eight seconds.

"I feel like our team chemistry was really strong this year, which transfers into the boats," Harman said. "We all mesh well together and it's easy to push for each other in a race."

The team is maintaining their focus on the future as they wrap up another successful season of competition.

"We have plans on getting fitter and stronger and I'm excited to see the team find their true potential and really excel next season," Harman said.

"We're looking forward to seeing how the team develops. We have a strong, young group of athletes who have a number of years in front of them to compete," Sweeney said. "Many of them have learned and grown to the point that they are tapping into their full potential. This is an exciting time for our program, and we are in a good position."

Big 12 Championship
Lake Walter E. Long
Austin, Texas

Team Standings:
1. Texas; 98 points, 2. Tennessee; 76, 3. Alabama; 73, 4. Oklahoma; 48, 5. K-State; 40, 6. Kansas; 35, 7. West Virginia; 21

Final race times:
Third Varsity 8+ (3v8+)
1. Texas; 6:36.36, 2. Kansas; 6:55.53, 3. Tennessee; 6:55.86, 4. K-State; 6:58.47, 5. Alabama; 6:58.63, 6. Oklahoma; 7:04.93, 7. West Virginia; 7:44.48

Second Varsity 4+ (2v4+)
1. Texas; 7:01.12, 2. Alabama; 7:24.28, 3. Tennessee; 7:29.03, 4. K-State; 7:29.08, 5. Kansas; 7:31.75, 6. Oklahoma; 7:34.81

First Varsity 4+ (1v4+)
1. Texas; 6:54.10, 2. Tennessee; 7:19.18, 3. Kansas; 7:27.26, 4. Alabama; 7:29.00, 5. K-State; 7:31.06, 6. Oklahoma; 7:33.73, 7. West Virginia; 7:58.69

Second Varsity 8+ (2v8+)
1. Texas; 6:20.66, 2. Tennessee; 6:32.13, 3. Alabama; 6:36.96, 4. Oklahoma; 6:49.99, 5. West Virginia; 6:53.17, 6. K-State; 6:56.79, 7. Kansas; 7:00.67

First Varsity 8+ (1v8+)
1. Texas; 6:11.13, 2. Alabama; 6:29.80, 3. Tennessee; 6:31.00, 4. Oklahoma; 6:33.86, 5. K-State; 6:41.73, 6. Kansas; 6:45.76, 7. West Virginia; 6:52.58

K-State lineups:
3v8+ lineup:
Cox: Kennedy Loyd, Stroke: Ellie Erwin, 7. Makenzie Storm, 6. Grace Hall, 5. Emma Johnson, 4. Zoey Whorton, 3. McKenna Johnson, 2. Tatum Alexander, Bow: Kyla Traub

2v4+ lineup:
Cox: Kiersten Schmalz, Stroke: Lindsey DeVreugd, 3. Kendra Hamman, 2. Catie Wood, Bow: Alyssa Buettner

1v4+ lineup:
Cox: Kaitlyn Henke, Stroke: Neva Roenne, 3. Jadyn Greisen, 2. Emily Stark, Bow: Halle Fee

2v8+ lineup:
Cox: Lauren Plum, Stroke: Grace Hendrickson, 7. Kaylee Kleinschmit, 6. Sylvia Cunningham, 5. Symone Simmons, 4. Gracyn McClain, 3. Madelyn Barrett, 2. Kay Pakkebier, Bow: Jayden Brandt

1v8+ lineup:
Cox: Paige Fox, Stroke: Rachel Harman, 7. Jordan Girkin, 6. Anna Ryan, 5. Madison Koller, 4. Patricia Hokanson, 3. Madison Jensen, 2. Bianca Wollmeister, Bow: Idallis Shaffer

How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on the K-State Women's Rowing Team, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Kansas State University Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Tatum Alexander

Madelyn Barrett

Jayden Brandt

Alyssa Buettner

Sylvia Cunningham

Lindsey DeVreugd

Ellie Erwin

Halle Fee

Paige Fox

Jordan Girkin

Jadyn Greisen

Grace Hall

Kendra Hamman

Rachel Harman

Grace Hendrickson

Kaitlyn Henke

Patricia Hokanson

Madison Jensen

Emma Johnson

McKenna Johnson

Kaylee Kleinschmit

Madison Koller

Kennedy Loyd

Gracyn McClain

Kay Pakkebier

Lauren Plum

Neva Roenne

Anna Ryan

Kiersten Schmalz

Idallis Shaffer

Symone Simmons

Emily Stark

Makenzie Storm

Kyla Traub

Zoey Whorton

Bianca Wollmeister

Catie Wood