2024 WOMEN’S BIG TEN SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Feb. 21-24, 2024
- Morgan J. Burke Aquatic Center
- West Lafayette, Indiana
- Defending champions:
- Women: Ohio State (4x)
- SCY (25 yards)
- Preview: Fan guide
- Championship central
- Schedule
- Live stream (B1G+)
- Live results
- Day 1 Finals Live Recap
- Day 2 Prelims Live Recap
Thursday Finals Heat Sheet | Day 2 Up/Mid/Down Report
Thanks in part to the emergence of Indiana junior Anna Peplowski in the 500 free, the Hoosiers are poised to extend their two-point lead over four-time defending champion Ohio State on the second night of the Women’s Big Ten Championships.
Peplowski led the 500 free prelims this morning with a personal-best 4:37.63, more than two seconds ahead of Wisconsin junior Abby Carlson (4:39.98), the defending champion. Wisconsin senior Phoebe Bacon enters the 200 IM as the top seed (1:55.28) with defending champion Josie Panitz of Ohio State not far behind (1:56.34).
Indiana sophomore Kristina Paegle will attempt to spoil the Ohio State party in the 50 free as the No. 3 seed (21.99). She has two Buckeyes in front of her — Kit Kat Zenick (21.86) and Teresa Ivan (21.75) — and another right behind her in Amy Fulmer (22.01).
Thursday’s session will conclude with the 1-meter diving and 400 medley relay finals.
Team Scores After Day 1:
- Indiana – 118
- Ohio State – 116
- Michigan – 112
- Wisconsin – 106
- Northwestern – 100
- Minnesota – 96
- Nebraska – 88
- Purdue – 86
- Illinois – 78
- Iowa – 72
- Rutgers – 64
- Penn State – 34
500 FREESTYLE – FINAL
- NCAA record: 4:24.06, Katie Ledecky – 2017
- Meet record: 4:34.40, G Ryan – 2017
- Pool record: 4:34.14, Allison Schmitt – 2010
- NCAA ‘A’ cut: 4:37.89
- 2023 NCAA invite time: 4:41.09
Top 8:
- Katie Crom (Michigan) – 4:37.24
- Anna Peplowski (Indiana) – 4:37.47
- Ayla Spitz (Northwestern) – 4:40.28
- Abby Carlson (Wisconsin) – 4:41.39
- Ching Hwee Gan (Indiana) – 4:41.71
- Elyse Heiser (Indiana) – 4:41.94
- Blair Stoneburg (Wisconsin) – 4:42.52
- Ella Ristic (Indiana) – 4:42.93
Michigan sophomore Katie Crom dropped almost two seconds in the 500 free to claim the conference crown in 4:37.24 ahead of top-seeded Indiana junior Anna Peplowski (4:37.47).
Crom, the defending Big Ten champion in the 200 butterfly, added the 500 free title to her growing list of accolades after placing 3rd last year in a previous-best time of 4:39.05. Her best time this season before this morning (4:40.77 in prelims) was 4:41.21. Now she ranks 7th nationally this season in the event, putting her in the A-final conversation at NCAAs next month.
Peplowski was the only other swimmer under 4:40 in the final, shaving .16 seconds off her lifetime best from prelims (4:37.63) with a runner-up finish in 4:37.47.
Northwestern fifth-year Ayla Spitz, a transfer from Cal, tallied a season-best 4:40.28 to pull closer to her best time (4:38.05) from the 2021 Pac-12 Championships. Defending champion Abby Carlson of Wisconsin was more than a second slower in the final (4:41.39) than her 4:39.98 from prelims.
Even though Peplowski didn’t bring home the victory for the Hoosiers, they still scored big in this event thanks to Indiana junior Ching Hwee Gan (4:41.71), junior Elyse Heiser (4:41.94), and senior Ella Ristic (4:43.09).
200 IM – FINAL
- NCAA record: 1:48.37, Kate Douglass – 2023
- Meet record: 1:51.66, Beata Nelson, 2020
- Pool record: 1:53.56, Julia Smit – 2010
- NCAA ‘A’ cut: 1:53.66
- 2023 NCAA invite time: 1:56.90
Top 8:
- Phoebe Bacon (Wisconsin) – 1:54.29
- Josie Panitz (Ohio State) – 1:55.31
- Megan Van Berkom (Minnesota) – 1:55.88
- Paige Hall (Ohio State) – 1:56.23
- Stephanie Balduccini (Michigan) – 1:56.60
- Callahan Dunn (Wisconsin) – 1:57.29
- Devon Kitchel (Michigan) – 1:57.37
- Claire Donan (Michigan) – 1:58.23
At long last, Wisconsin senior Phoebe Bacon is the Big Ten champion in the 200 IM.
After placing 2nd as a freshman, 3rd as a sophomore, and 2nd last year behind Ohio State’s Josie Panitz, Bacon got redemption this year with a winning time of 1:54.29 — more than a second ahead of Panitz (1:55.31). Bacon reached the wall within a second of her personal-best 1:53.56 from NCAAs last year, where she placed 5th.
Panitz settled for a runner-up finish at her final Big Tens, just about half a second ahead of Minnesota senior Megan Van Berkom (1:55.88). Van Berkom owns a best time of 1:54.92 from the 2022 Big Ten Championships, where she beat 2nd ahead of Bacon but behind Ohio State’s Kristen Romano.
Ohio State senior Paige Hall took 4th place in 1:56.23, knocking more than half a second off her previous-best time from prelims this morning (1:56.85). Michigan freshman Stephanie Balduccini also set a lifetime best en route to her 5th-place finish in 1:56.60. The Brazilian native knocked a few tenths off her previous-best 1:56.94 from November.
Led by Balduccini, sophomore Devon Kitchel (1:57.37), and senior Claire Donan (1:58.23), the Wolverines totaled 87 points in this event alone.
50 FREESTYLE – FINAL
- NCAA record: 20.57, Gretchen Walsh – 2024
- Meet record: 21.28, Liz Li – 2018
- Pool record: 21.48, Liz Li – 2017
- NCAA ‘A’ cut: 21.63
- 2023 NCAA invite time: 22.15
Top 8:
- Teresa Ivan (Ohio State) – 21.74
- Amy Fulmer (Ohio State) – 21.79
- Kit Kat Zenick (Ohio State) – 21.81
- Brady Kendall (Michigan) – 21.84
- Kristin Paegle (Indiana) – 21.87
- Lindsay Flynn (Michigan) – 21.94
- Claire Newman (Michigan) – 22.26
- Hailey Tierney (Wisconsin) – 22.31
For the second year in a row, Ohio State has swept the 50 free podium at Big Tens — but this time around, the order is flipped.
Buckeyes junior Teresa Ivan upgraded from 3rd place to 1st with her winning time of 21.74, a few tenths shy of her personal-best 21.46 from NCAAs last year, where she placed 4th. The Slovakian sprinter is fresh off an 18th-place finish in the 50-meter free at last week’s World Championships in Doha, Qatar.
Ohio State fifth-year Amy Fulmer (21.79) out-touched senior teammate and defending champion Kit Kat Zenick (21.81) by just .02 seconds for 2nd place. Michigan sophomore Brady Kendall was also close behind with a 21.84 — her first time under 22 seconds — as the top four finishers were separated by just a tenth of a second.
After qualifying 3rd in prelims this morning (21.99), Indiana sophomore Kristina Paegle placed 5th in front of a pair of Wolverines: junior Lindsay Flynn (21.94) and Claire Newman (22.26). Flynn narrowly missed her personal-best 21.90 from last year’s Big Ten Championships.
WOMEN’S 1M DIVING – FINAL
- Meet record: 376.10, Sarah Bacon – 2022
- Pool record: 362.65, Yu (Shelly) Zhou – 2017
- NCAA ‘A’ qualifying score: 265
Top 8:
- Lena Hentschel (Ohio State) – 307.4
- Ella Roselli (Indiana) – 305.15
- Elna Widerstrom (Minnesota) – 304.9
- Anne Fowler (Indiana) – 302.55
- Sophia McAfee (Purdue) – 296.05
- Lily Witte (Indiana) – 292.7
- Daryn Wright (Purdue) – 290.4
- Vivi Del Angel (Minnesota) – 287.45
There’s a youth movement happening in Big Ten diving as the entire podium was made up of underclassmen.
Ohio State sophomore Lena Hentschel led the way with a winning score of 307.4 to capture her first conference crown. Last year, she earned a runner-up finish on the 3-meter.
Indiana freshman Ella Roselli was just a couple points behind Hentschel with a runner-up finish (305.15). Fellow freshman Elna Widerstrom of Minnesota and Indiana senior Anne Fowler (302.55) — the defending champion — were both within five points of the winner in a tight showdown.
400 MEDLEY RELAY — FINAL
- NCAA record: 3:21.80, Virginia (2023)
- Meet record: 3:26.35, Ohio State (2022)
- Pool record: 3:25.71 (Beata Nelson/Lilly King/Maggie MacNeil/Siobhan Haughey, 2018)
- NCAA ‘A’ cut: 3:31.38
- 2023 NCAA invite time: 3:32.90
Top 8:
- Ohio State – 3:28.87
- Wisconsin – 3:30.25
- Michigan – 3:32.17
- Minnesota – 3:34.33
- Rutgers – 3:36.48
- Penn State – 3:37.49
- Nebraska – 3:37.60
- Purdue – 3:39.44
The session came to a wild and chaotic ending with the 400 medley relay as three teams — including the initial winner, Indiana (3:28.32) — were disqualified.
The Buckeyes’ quartet of Nyah Funderburke (52.28 backstroke), fifth-year Hannah Bach (58.50 breaststroke), fifth-year Morgan Kraus (51.55 butterfly) and fifth-year Amy Fulmer (46.54 freestyle) brought home the victory in 3:28.87, more than a second ahead of Wisconsin (3:30.25).
Mackenzie Mconagha (52.51 back), Hazal Ozkan (59.49 breast), Phoebe Bacon (50.24 fly), and Hailey Tierney (48.01 free) helped the Badgers sneak under the NCAA ‘A’ cut of 3:31.38.
The Hoosiers were disqualified for an early takeoff by junior Anna Peplowski (52.79 butterfly split), leaving them without an additional 64 points that would have offered a comfortable lead after Day 2. Instead, they’re sitting in 3rd place (426 points) behind Michigan (433) and Ohio State (444).
Northwestern (3:33.72) and Illinois (3:39.69) were also disqualified for early takeoffs by Margaret Papanicholas (1:00.16 breast) and Lillian Olson (49.59 free), respectively. If they had not been disqualified, the Illini’s 400 medley relay would have set a new program record.
Scores After Day 2
- Ohio State – 444
- Michigan – 433
- Indiana – 426
- Wisconsin – 381.5
- Minnesota – 286.5
- Purdue – 199
- Nebraska – 170
- Penn State – 153
- Iowa – 152
- Northwestern – 148
- Rutgers – 123
- Illinois – 86
Bacon is looking good! 1:43R / 1:54 200IM / 50.2R fly?! Considering she has always done better at NCAAs too, I’m excited to see what she puts together the rest of the season + this summer.
Any word on if she plans to use a 5th year? With Maggie Wanazek coming in, that could be a deadly duo.
Nice 50.24 fly split from Bacon! 🥓
400 MR belongs on day 2 of these championship meets. I’ll die on that hill.
No takeover reaction times published for any relay results so far? Anyone able to shed some light?
I don’t love how clear the article is about the identity of the early take-off swimmers. It feels a bit finger-pointy.
The identities are in the live results. SwimSwam is just reporting the results, good and bad.
These recaps mention when swimmers underperform in prelims sessions – and the comments section has a field day with repeat offenders – it just is what it is.
Imagine football if they didn’t tell you who dropped the pass.
Imagine basketball if they didn’t tell you who missed the freethrow.
See how silly that sounds?
Sports aren’t just the makes. Sports are the makes and the misses. If nobody ever missed, sports would be awful (and also wouldn’t teach the kids all of those great lessons that we all like to pretend are the value of sports).
Yeah I get it, but I’m also aware that an early take-off isn’t the whole story. Pointing the finger at the swimmer whose feet left the block early doesn’t account for a long finish by the finishing swimmer, for example, but the article reads like the responsibility for the DQ lies solely with the take off swimmer.
Crazy how little swimswam reader engagement this meet is getting as compared to the SEC and ACC
Looking like a spicy team battle – go blue!
Did the Penn State relay DQ get overturned? They now have about the right amount of points based on meet mobile
Yes