March 27, 2006
NCAA Championships
A number of our winter sports teams enjoyed great success in their NCAA Championships, highlighted by our men's swimming team's 10th-place finish. We earned a top-10 finish for the second consecutive year (we finished eighth last year). Junior Matt Grevers defended his national championship in the 100 back. He became the first Northwestern athlete to win back-to-back national championships since 1948. We had numerous outstanding performances during the meet as Grevers, Mike Alexandrov, Kyle Bubolz, Ben Dexter and Eric Nilsson earned All-America honors.
Our wrestling team also had a strong showing at the NCAA Championships in Oklahoma City. Seven of our wrestlers qualified for NCAAs (a program best!), and three ended up earning All-America honors -- Jake Herbert, Ryan Lang and John Velez. Jake deserves special mention for a tremendous season. He finished second in the national championships, and ended the season with a 36-1 record. Our team finished 13th overall, one position better than last year.
Our women's fencing team also had a strong finish at the NCAA Championships, finishing seventh among the women's teams. We had a total of two fencers earn All-America honors -- foilists Jessica Florendo and Sam Nemecek. In addition, Andrea Hupman and Chelsea Davis from our women's swimming team earned All-America honors.
Congratulations to these teams and their student-athletes for these great performances. They have represented Northwestern well.
Masters
For golf fans, the Masters golf tournament holds a special place. It is the first major of the year, is always played on the same course (the picturesque Augusta National Golf Club) and has produced some of the most memorable moments in golf history. This year's Masters will hold special significance for Northwestern sports fans as well. Northwestern alumnus, Luke Donald, currently ranked 10th in the world rankings, will attempt to win his first major. He finished third last year. In addition, senior Dillon Dougherty will be playing in the Masters as a result of his second-place finish in the U.S. Amateur Championship last summer. We wish both Luke and Dillon the best of luck in the tournament.
Great Win
Our softball team, ranked 18th in the country, concluded their spring break trip in spectacular fashion, with a 3-2 win over top-ranked UCLA. It was our first win over a No. 1-ranked team since 2000. The loss was only UCLA's second loss of the season (versus 28 wins). Our team starts Big Ten play this weekend, and the great win over UCLA certainly bodes well for the rest of the season.