It’s that time of the year again. SwimSwam will be previewing the top 12 men’s and women’s teams (and then some) from the 2024 NCAA Championships. Follow along with the College Swimming Preview Channel. Want to read even more? Check out the latest edition of the SwimSwam magazine.
Note that Ohio State and NC State tied for 9th last season.
#9 OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
Key Losses: Amy Fulmer (19 NCAA points, 4 NCAA relays), Hannah Bach (13 NCAA points, 2 NCAA relays), Josie Panitz (12 NCAA points), Janie Boyle (12 NCAA points), Ciara McGing (5 NCAA points), Maya Geringer (5 NCAA points)
Key Additions: Paola Pineda (University of Texas transfer/Mexico, diving), Emma Finlin (Canada, distance free), Maria Ramos (Spain, breast), Delia Lloyd (Canada, sprint free/back), Sienna Angove (Canada, mid-d free), Erin Little (Great Britain, sprint free), BOTR Mila Nikanorov (distance free), BOTR Rachel Bockrath (sprint free), Ava DeAngelis (George Washington transfer – breast)
Returning Fifth Years: Katherine Zenick (8 NCAA points, 5 NCAA relays)
GRADING CRITERIA
Over the years, we’ve gone back and forth on how to project points, ranging from largely subjective rankings to more data-based grading criteria based on ‘projected returning points.’ We like being as objective as possible, but we’re going to stick with the approach we’ve adopted post-Covid. The “stars” will rely heavily on what swimmers actually did last year, but we’ll also give credit to returning swimmers or freshmen who have posted times that would have scored last year.
Since we only profile the top 12 teams in this format, our grades are designed with that range in mind. In the grand scheme of college swimming and compared to all other college programs, top 12 NCAA programs would pretty much all grade well across the board. But in the interest of making these previews informative, our grading scale is tough – designed to show the tiers between the good stroke groups, the great ones, and the 2015 Texas fly group types.
- 5 star (★★★★★) – a rare, elite NCAA group projected to score 25+ points per event
- 4 star (★★★★) – a very, very good NCAA group projected to score 15-24 points per event
- 3 star (★★★) – a good NCAA group projected to score 5-14 points per event
- 2 star (★★) – a solid NCAA group projected to score 1-4 points per event
- 1 star (★) – an NCAA group that is projected to score no points per event, though that doesn’t mean it’s without potential scorers – they’ll just need to leapfrog some swimmers ahead of them to do it
We’ll grade each event discipline: sprint free (which we define to include all the relay-distance freestyle events, so 50, 100 and 200), distance free, IM, breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly and diving. Use these grades as a jumping-off point for discussion, rather than a reason to be angry.
Also, keep in mind that we are publishing many of these previews before teams have posted finalized rosters. We’re making our assessments based on the best information we have available at the time of publication, but we reserve the right to make changes after publication based on any new information that may emerge regarding rosters. If that does happen, we’ll make certain to note the change.
2023-24 LOOKBACK
After four consecutive Big Ten Championship titles, Ohio State’s run came to an end last season after they were upended by Indiana by half a point at the 2024 championships. That came after the Buckeyes were disqualified in the 200 free relay—after initially touching first—for an early takeoff.
The team swept the medley relays at Big Tens, and also had individual titles come from Teresa Ivan (50 free), Amy Fulmer (100 free), Hannah Bach (100 breast), Katherine Zenick (100 fly) and Lena Hentschel (1-meter diving).
Ohio State has arguably underperformed at NCAAs during their four-year conference championship run—they placed 7th in 2021, 9th in 2022, and 6th in 2023. Last season, they fell back to 9th again, tying with NC State with 162 points after scoring 223 the season before.
However, for what it’s worth, they were ranked 10th in psych sheet scoring coming into the 2024 NCAA Championships, so they ended up performing about as expected.
Fulmer led the team in scoring with 19 individual points while Bach (13), Josie Panitz (12) and Janie Boyle (12) also hit double digits. The Buckeyes’ best performance came in the first race of the meet, the 200 medley relay, where they were the runners-up to Virginia in 1:33.09, with Nyah Funderburke, Bach, Zenick and Ivan all delivering elite splits.
OSU was only nine points clear of 11th-place Cal at NCAAs, so staying in the top 10 can be looked at as a success, but relinquishing the Big Ten title to rival Indiana after their long streak (with the relay DQ) is tough to swallow.
SPRINT FREESTYLE: ★★★
Losing their top sprint freestyler is a blow to the Buckeyes, as Amy Fulmer graduates after she was the only swimmer to race all of the the 50, 100 and 200 free at NCAAs, scoring in all three and making the ‘A’ final in the 100 (5th).
There’s a solid group returning in the 50 and 100, led by Teresa Ivan and Katherine Zenick, who both made one consolation final apiece last year in freestyle. Ivan was 13th in the 50 free and Zenick finished in the same position in the 100.
Ivan (21.74) and Zenick (21.81) give the team two returning sub-22 50 freestylers, and Nyah Funderburke (22.14) isn’t too far off.
In the 100 free they’ve got Zenick (47.60) as their lone sub-48 returner, while Ivan (48.26) was the only other swimmer under 49—Funderburke is next up at 49.06.
However, as Fulmer leaves, new blood comes in. OSU will gain Canadians Delia Lloyd and Sienna Angove, Britain’s Erin Little, and American Rachel Bockrath who can all make an impact in sprint free.
Lloyd (25.29), Angove (25.54) and Little (25.73) have long course 50 free times that convert to 22-low-to-mid, while Bockrath has been as fast as 22.78. In the 100 free, Angove (54.89), Lloyd (55.01) and Little (55.46) have conversions of 48.00, 48.11 and 48.52, respectively, with Bockrath having been 49.01.
The impact those four freshmen project to have on the sprint free group will do wonders for rebuilding OSU’s relays. From an individual scoring perspective, Ivan and Zenick are the only two in position to score right now, but both Lloyd and Angove could be in the mix if they have a smooth transition to yards.
The 200 free is a bit of a different story, as Fulmer was the only competitive swimmer OSU had in the event (at least individually) last season, with no one else under 1:47 on the team. They did manage to put together a scoring 800 free relay, with Zenick splitting 1:44.1 at NCAAs and Paige Hall and Krista Marlin both splitting 1:46 to finish 16th after Fulmer led off in a blistering 1:43.41.
Help is on the way with Angove having placed 7th at the Canadian Olympic Trials in a time of 1:58.53, which converts to 1:43.90 in yards. They’ve also got Bockrath with a PB of 1:45.98, Little with a 2:01.0 LCM time that converts to 1:46.1, and distance specialists Mila Nikanorov (1:46.79) and Emma Finlin (2:00.3 SCM/1:48 conversion).
Angove has the potential to fill in the missing ‘B’ final points scored by Fulmer last year, which would give OSU one scoring swim per event at NCAAs with the potential for more.
DISTANCE FREESTYLE: ★★★
Ohio State is in a good position in distance freestyle entering 2024-25, particularly in the mile.
Maya Geringer placed 12th in the event at NCAAs last season, but she’s transferring to Cal for her fifth year of eligibility. However, they have one returning sub-16:00 swimmer in Gwen Woodbury, who went 15:58.37 early last season before placing 20th at NCAAs in 16:03.69, just over a second shy of the 16th-place scoring cut-off (16:02.47).
In addition to Woodbury, they’ve got incoming freshmen Emma Finlin and Mila Nikanorov with plenty of scoring potential.
Finlin, a Canadian Olympian who competed in the open water 10km in Paris, has been 16:15.77 in long course and 15:58.93 in short course meters in the 1500, converting to a swift 15:53.21, a time that would’ve been 6th at the 2024 NCAAs.
Nikanorov has an altitude-adjusted personal best time of 15:57.41 in yards, which was a 16:17.41 clocking without the adjustment. That swim was her only 1650 in the last year and a half, but she is coming off setting a LCM PB of 16:27.05 en route to placing 10th at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
With three swimmers who can be under 16 minutes on paper, the Buckeyes theoretically can have a scoring trio in the 1650 next season.
There’s some optimism for the first-years to deliver in the 500 as well, led by Nikanorov and her 4:37.49 altitude-adjusted best time (4:42.49 unadjusted).
Sienna Angove has been 4:14.37 in long course, converting to 4:45-flat, and Finlin’s 4:15.49 time converts to 4:46.26. Those times are well shy of the scoring threshold (4:38.87), but conversions are never an exact science.
The distance freestyle outlook largely hinges on the freshman stepping in seamlessly and producing at the peak of their capabilities, but the group is looking good considering they’re losing their top performer from last season in Geringer.
BACKSTROKE: ★★★
Nyah Funderburke finally broke through and scored in the 100 back at NCAAs last season after tying for 16th in the prelims during her freshman year and falling short in the swim-off. In 2023, she won the Big Ten title—after she wasn’t on the scoring roster in 2022—but finished 22nd at NCAAs.
In her junior year, after placing 3rd at Big Tens, she saved her best for NCAAs, qualifying 13th out of the heats in a PB of 51.43 before matching the time and ranking in the final. As a consistent 51-mid 100 backstroker, she’s the Buckeyes’ best bet for points in a backstroke event this season and their go-to lead-off swimmer on the medley relays.
Krista Marlin, a rising junior, narrowly missed scoring last season in the 200 back, placing 17th in 1:52.65 after setting a PB of 1:52.49 at the midseason OSU Invitational. She was three one-hundredths shy of tying for 16th last season, so there’s sure to be some extra motivation to put some points on the board this season for Marlin.
Paige Hall was also in the mix last season at NCAAs in the 200 back, placing 24th in a lifetime best of 1:53.59. That swim marked a big drop, her first time breaking 1:55 since February 2022, so it will be interesting to see if Hall can carry that momentum into this season and be an elite 200 backstroker.
The backstroke group will get a massive shot in the arm from Delia Lloyd, who was a finalist in all three backstroke distances at the 2023 World Juniors and was 4th in the 100 at Junior Pan Pacs last month.
Lloyd has been 58.19 in the 100 and 2:06.35 in the 200 in short course meters, converting to 52.42/1:53.82. Given her pedigree, reaching the NCAA scoring threshold of 51-mid/1:52-mid looks to be well within reach.
If everything falls their way, OSU could have two scorers per backstroke event next season, but given how competitive is backstroke is in the NCAA, that’s far from a sure thing.
BREASTSTROKE: ★★
The primary area where OSU takes a hit this season in breaststroke. After fifth-years Hannah Bach and Josie Panitz were both ‘A’ finalists last season in the 100 breast, the team will be relying heavily on Spanish recruit Maria Ramos and George Washington transfer Ava Deangelis to provide some scoring and be able to step in on the medley relays.
Ramos is an intriguing prospect, specifically because she’s been better in short course meters than she has in long course. With SCM bests of 1:05.28 and 2:23.37 in the 100 and 200 breast, she has conversions of 58.81 in the 100 and 2:09.16, putting her under the scoring cut-off in the 100 (59.23) and within a second in the 200 (2:08.18).
Ramos also has drop dead speed with 29.73 SCM/31.33 LCM bests in the 50 breast, indicating she’ll be even better in yards than she is in either meters format.
The Buckeyes also pick up Deangelis, the 2024 A-10 champion in the 100 breast, who was an NCAA qualifier last season, placing 33rd in the 100 and 45th in the 200 breast. After setting personal bests of 59.75/2:09.94 last year, she has a shot to score with some improvement in the 100, but regardless, adds depth to a breaststroke group that suffered two major losses in the offseason.
The fastest returning breaststroker on the team is Reese Dehen, who was 1:00.52/2:10.29 last season.
BUTTERFLY: ★★
The scoring prospects for OSU in either butterfly event starts and ends with Zenick, who was 13th in the 100 fly last season and should be able to place in the top 16 again in her fifth year.
Zenick set a best time of 50.84 to crack the ‘A’ final at the 2023 NCAAs, but was 51.32 last season (51.40 in the final) to finish in the middle of the consols.
The team’s other two sub-52 100 fly swimmers last season, Morgan Kraus and Tristan Harrison, are both moving on, and their only recruits with any fly pedigree are 1:02 in long course and don’t figure to focus on the event in college.
The Buckeyes’ lone 200 fly entrant last year at NCAAs was Kyra Sommerstad, who has transferred to Duke for her fifth year of eligibility. That leaves Jessica Eden (1:57.12) as the team’s top 200 fly returner.
IM: ★
Despite there being no imminent scoring threats, there’s a lot to like about OSU’s depth in IM.
Paige Hall (1:56.26) and Krista Marlin (1:57.67) placed 20th and 36th, respectively, at NCAAs last season in the 200 IM, and Marlin (4:09.13) and Mia Rankin (4:10.48) return after racing the 400 at NCAAs, with Marlin placing 19th.
Hall (200) and Marlin (400) can be in the mix for a top-16 finish at NCAAs next season with small improvements, though that could said about a lot of swimmers around the country.
Incoming freshman Sienna Angove has been 2:14.9/4:45.4 in long course, converting to 1:58.6/4:11.4, and they’ve also got Jessica Eden (1:58.17/4:11.52) for additional depth.
The Buckeyes will likely have multiple swimmers racing both medley events at NCAAs once again, but will need to improve if they’re to crack the points.
DIVING: ★★★
Ohio State loses its two scoring divers from NCAAs last season in Janie Boyle and Ciara McGing, but in one of the most underrated additions of the offseason, they bring in Paola Pineda.
A graduate transfer from Texas, Pineda last competed collegiately at the 2022 NCAAs, where she accrued 26 points after scoring in all three diving events, making the ‘A’ final in two of them. She was 5th in all three diving events at the 2021 NCAAs to score 42 points.
Whether or not Pineda will be on the same type of form she showed at Texas remains to be seen, but she did win gold at the Pan Am Games (in the synchronized 3-meter event) last October.
The Buckeyes also return 2024 Big Ten champion Lena Hentschel, who had a pair of 29th-place finishes at NCAAs and could challenge to score with a better performance.
RELAYS: ★★★
Ohio State was elite in the 200 medley relay last season, solid in the sprint free relays and the 400 medley, and managed to put points on the board by placing 16th in the 800 free relay.
Some maneuvering will be necessary this season with the departures of Amy Fulmer and Hannah Bach, who combined for six NCAA relay legs last year.
Teresa Ivan, Katherine Zenick and Nyah Funderburke remain from the sprint free (and medley) relays, and the additions of Delia Lloyd, Sienna Angove, Rachel Bockrath and Erin Little give the team plenty of options to fill in the vacant spot left by Fulmer.
The 800 free relay suffers a big blow with the loss of Fulmer, but bringing in Angove and Bockrath makes up for it if they can have good seasons. Last year, Zenick swam all five relays at NCAAs, and if both Angove and Bockrath are sub-1:45, Zenick could potentially shed this relay from her schedule and race a third individual event, with Krista Marlin and Paige Hall the other returning members of the relay.
Just like how success in the 800 free relay relies on first-year swimmers, the same goes for the medleys, as the departure of Bach means OSU will need Maria Ramos to come in and fill her shoes. Given her best times, Ramos should do just fine in that role, but it will be difficult to be as quick as Bach, who tied with Mona McSharry for the fastest breast split in the 200 medley relay last year at NCAAs (25.68).
Funderburke (back), Zenick (fly) and Ivan (free) coming back keep the other three legs of the medley relays in place.
Can the freshmen swimmers make up for the significant losses of Fulmer and Bach? On paper, no, but they shouldn’t be far off given the pedigree of Ramos and the freestyle depth in Lloyd, Angove, Bockrath and Little, which gives them options to select whichever swimmer is performing best.
They scored 80 relay points last season, nearly half of which came from the 200 medley (34). If the first-year swimmers transition well that number could be reachable again.
Total Stars: 20/40
2024-25 OUTLOOK
Ohio State’s losses are more significant than just looking at their individual NCAA scorers. In addition to Fulmer, Bach, Boyle, Panitz, McGing and Geringer, they’re also saying goodbye to some key contributors at the conference level in Kraus, Sommerstad, Harrison and Russo. That’s a big chunk of the team’s core gone.
With those departures, the likes of Zenick, Ivan and Funderburke will take over as the leaders of the team, and the impact the freshman swimmers are able to make will ultimately determine the Buckeyes’ performances at Big Tens and NCAAs.
Given the lost depth, the Big Ten title looks to be out of reach, but OSU could stay in the fight for a top-10 NCAA finish if the freshmen perform and Pineda is able to pick up where she left off in diving.
WOMEN’S 2024-25 COLLEGE PREVIEW INDEX
| RANK (2024) | TEAM | SPRINT FREE | DISTANCE FREE | BACK | BREAST | FLY | IM | DIVING | RELAY | TOTAL |
| 1 | Virginia Cavaliers | |||||||||
| 2 | Texas Longhorns | |||||||||
| 3 | Florida Gators | |||||||||
| 4 | Tennessee Volunteers | |||||||||
| 5 | Stanford Cardinal | |||||||||
| 6 | Louisville Cardinals | |||||||||
| 7 | Indiana Hoosiers | |||||||||
| 8 | USC Trojans | |||||||||
| t-9 | NC State Wolfpack | |||||||||
| t-9 | Ohio State Buckeyes | ★★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ | ★★ | ★★ | ★ | ★★★ | ★★★ | 20/40 |
| 11 | California Golden Bears | ★★½ | ★★ | ★★★★ | ★★ | ★★★½ | ★★★ | ★ | ★★★ | 21/40 |
| 12 | Michigan Wolverines | ★★★★ | ★★½ | ★ | ★★★ | ★★★ | ★½ | ★★ | ★★★ | 20/40 |
Not sure why it’s mentioned so many times that IU only won because of a OSU relay DQ…IU also had a relay DQ. Add both those DQ points back and IU still wins
These totals are out of 40, right?
Maybe one of these years they’ll actually perform as expected at NCAAs
They were seeded 10th at 2024 NCAAs to score 160.5 points, and finished 9th with 162 points.
You’re right, I should have worded differently. I was looking at it from the angle of dropping time at NCAA from B1Gs. Seems like only a select few OSU swimmers (F or M) are ever able to drop from conference at the Big Dance, something that other conference champion-caliber teams excel at
The seeding does not account for diving. Given they scored 17 points from diving, they actually underscored seed by about 15 points. Not terrible, but certainly gives a better picture of a slight underperformance overall.