University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Celebrate 2020 Olympic Hopefuls
8/23/2019 10:00:00 AM | Athletics
The University of Minnesota joins the U.S. Olympic Committee in celebrating its past and future Olympians.
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Golden Gophers join the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) in celebrating the University of Minnesota's past and future Olympians. Among the Olympic hopefuls for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo are the following Gophers.
Gymnastics
Shane Wiskus, USA
Wiskus recently took another big step in his Olympic pursuit with an impressive showing at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships. Wiskus took the national title on vault, came in fourth all-around, and earned a spot on the U.S. Senior National Team. He will next head to the World Team Selection Camp Sept. 5-9, looking for a place on the team that will compete at Worlds in Stuttgart, Germany October 4-13. Wiskus is a rising junior captain at Minnesota and two-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Year.
Justin Karstadt, Canada
Karstadt, a recent Minnesota graduate, has had a busy run with Team Canada over the past few months. He recently helped the team win its first Pan Am Games medal since 1999 with a bronze, and finished third all-around at Canadian Nationals. He will also look to punch his own ticket to Stuttgart at Canada's World Team Trials Selection Camp August 23-25. The Canadian look to qualify for their first summer Olympics as a team since 2008.
Swimming & Diving
Sarah Bacon, USA
This past offseason, Bacon took the gold medal in the one-meter springboard and the silver medal in the three-meter synchro at the Pan American Games, while also being crowned a FINA World Championships silver medalist in the one-meter springboard two weeks prior. At the NCAA Championships in March, Bacon set a new NCAA record in the 1-meter with a score of 363.20 and became the first Gopher diver to ever win back-to-back national titles in the event. Although she will use an Olympic redshirt this upcoming season, Bacon was named an All-American in both the 1-meter and the 3-meter in 2018-19, as well as the Big Ten Diver of the Year.
Bowe Becker, USA
Becker finished as the NCAA runner-up in the 100 free in 2019, breaking the Big Ten Conference record for the event in the process. Having also placed fourth in the 50 free at the NCAA Championships, he garnered All-American honors in both events his senior season. Becker received All-American honors in all four years of his Gopher career and has already qualified for Olympic Trials in the 50 free and 100 free.
Kristen Hayden, USA
After finishing 11th in the NCAA and earning Honorable Mention All-America honors in the three-meter dive last season, Hayden will be taking an Olympic redshirt year in 2019-20. Hayden has been named an Honorable Mention All-American in each of her three seasons at Minnesota, while also winning a silver medal in the three-meter synchro with Bacon at the 2019 USA Diving Senior National Championships.
Mackenzie Padington, Canada
Also electing for an Olympic redshirt season this upcoming year, Padington was an All-American in both the 500 free and 1650 free in 2018-19, including Honorable Mention All-America honors in the 800 free relay. As a freshman, Padington was a member of Minnesota's All-American 800 free relay team that also set the school record.
Kierra Smith, Canada
A 2017 graduate of the U, Smith achieved All-American honors in both her senior and junior seasons. As a junior, Smith was the National Champion in the 200 breast and a two-time All-American. Her senior season, she swam what was the second fastest college time on record in the 200 breast en route to finishing as the NCAA runner-up.
The following members of the Minnesota Swimming & Diving program are also aiming for an opportunity to compete in Tokyo, having notched U.S. Olympic Trials cuts in the past calendar year.
In addition, a few former Gophers swam OT cut times and will also attempt to make the U.S. Olympic team.
Softball
Sara Groenewegen, Canada
Groenewegen is fresh off a silver medal performance at the Pan-American games. She pitched a perfect game on the way to a silver medal and was just named a First Team pitcher by National Pro Fastpitch. Groenewegen is the only three-time All-American in Minnesota softball history. She was named the Big Ten Player, Pitcher (twice) and Freshman of the year in her career and finished as the Gophers all-time strikeout leader with 1,214 in her career.
Baseball
Max Meyer, USA
A 2019 All-Big Ten selection, Meyer spent the past summer pitching for the USA Collegiate National Team, registering 13 innings on the mound with a 0.69 ERA. As a sophomore in 2019, Meyer led the Gophers with 76 2/3 innings, finishing with a 5-3 record and a 2.11 ERA. This came on the heels of an All-America Third Team freshman season, as Meyer recorded a program-record 16 saves and held a 2.06 ERA out of the Minnesota bullpen. Meyer was recently named the No. 12 college prospect by Baseball America.
Soccer
Katie Duong, USA
A freshman from Portland, Oregon, Duong was recently called up to the Under-22 United States Women's National Team. Duong will compete with the team against Japan's squad as the United States looks to add 2020 Olympic Gold after securing the 2019 World Cup.
Cachet Lue, Jamaica
Lue has been a member of Jamaica's age-level teams for years now and trained with the national team prior to both the 2015 and 2019 World Cups. Lue, a graduate transfer, is a force on the Gophers backline and hopes to do the same for Jamaica in Tokyo next year.
Triathlon
Tamara Gorman (2014-17), USA
Gorman competed for the Gopher cross country and track & field teams for three seasons from 2014-17 before turning her attention to focus on her triathlon training. As a Gopher, Gorman ran a career-best six-kilometer time of 21:25.0 in her Big Ten debut at the 2015 B1G Cross Country Championships; she went on to race at the 2015 NCAA Cross Country Championships where she finished seventh on the team. On the track, she placed 17th in the indoor 5,000m (17:18.15) and 13th in the 10,000m (35:45.26) at the 2016 Big Ten Championships. The Rapid City, S.D., native wrapped up her collegiate career with career-best times of 4:38.31 in the 1,500m, 4:59.48 in the mile, and 17:04.30 in the 5,000m. Prior to her Gopher career, Gorman became the first American woman to win a junior worlds title at the 2013 International Triathlon Union (ITU) Junior World Championships with a first-place time of 57 minutes, 8 seconds on the 750-meter swim, 22.5-kilometer bike, 5-kilometer run course.
Track & Field
Temi Ogunrinde (2014-19), Nigeria
Ogunrinde was a two-time All-American for the Gophers in hammer throw, earning Second Team All-America accolades in 2018 and improving to First Team All-America in 2019. The Cottage Grove, Minn., native was also a three-time Big Ten Conference champion and All-Big Ten First Team honoree as the first woman to win three-consecutive B1G titles in hammer throw in league history. She ended her career as Minnesota's program record-holder in hammer throw and also holds the Big Ten Championships meet record and Nigerian national record in hammer throw. In addition to being a three-time NCAA Championships representative for the Gophers, Ogunrinde competed for Nigeria at the 2018 African Athletics Championships; she went on to place fourth in hammer throw while representing Africa at the 2018 Continental Cup as well.
Volleyball
Tori Dixon (2010-13), USA
Dixon was a standout for the Gopher Volleyball program from 2010-13. A two-time All-American and All-Big Ten selection, Dixon ranks first in the Minnesota recordbooks as the program's most efficient hitter. During her career, Dixon hit .369, including .436 her junior year. She went on to play professionally following her senior season in 2013 and since then has also is a regular within the USA Volleyball gym. Playing professionally since 2013, Dixon has competed in a variety of locations internationally. She most recently played with BAIC Motors in China in 2018-19, a place she has also signed a contract to play with them again in 2019-20.
Sarah Wilhite Parsons (2013-16), USA
Wilhite Parsons made history her senior year with the Golden Gophers when she was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association's Player of the Year, Minnesota first-ever recipient. Playing for the Gophers from 2013-16, Wilhite Parsons saved her best season for her last. In her final year with the Gophers, she not only was named the nation's player of the year, but also Big Ten Player of the Year, espnW Player of the Year, and earned First Team All-America honors. She ended her senior season with a team-best 537 kills and averaged 4.26 kills per set. As an outside hitter, Wilhite finished her collegiate career with a .288 hitting clip, ranked second on the team in digs (327) and aces (29). She amassed over 1,000 kills during her Gopher tenure and helped the Gophers to the 2015 Big Ten Championship title as well as back-to-back NCAA Final Four Appearances in 2015 and 2016. She has now played professionally the past two seasons and is headed to Brazil for her third professional year this fall.
Hannah Tapp (2013-16), USA
During her tenure, Tapp helped the Gophers to the 2015 Big Ten Championship title as well as back-to-back NCAA Final Four Appearances in 2015 and 2016. Tapp was a two-time American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American, a two-time All-Big Ten honoree, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and Academic All-District honoree. She went on to play professionally immediately after graduating in December 2016 and will play in Brazil this upcoming season.
Paige Tapp (2013-16), USA
During her tenure, Tapp helped the Gophers to the 2015 Big Ten Championship title as well as back-to-back NCAA Final Four Appearances in 2015 and 2016. As a Gopher, Tapp was a two-time American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American and a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American. She was also Minnesota's first-ever Senior CLASS Award recipient, an honor given to one collegiate individual in each sport that represents the highest standards, athletically, academically and within her community. She finished her career with 783 kills, hit .317 and had 495 career blocks. She's set to begin her fourth professional volleyball season in Italy, after she spent the past two seasons in Germany.
Lauren Gibbemeyer (2007-10), USA
Gibbemeyer played for the Gophers from 2007-2010 and helped Minnesota to a NCAA Final Four appearance in 2009. During her four-year career, the former All-American hit .336 in her career and still holds the school record for total blocks with 591. She was named a three-time All-American and All-Big Ten selection with Minnesota. Since graduating from Minnesota Gibbemeyer has played professional volleyball and will return to Turkey this season for the second-straight year.
Nicole Branagh (1997-2000), USA
Following an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention freshman season, Branagh emerged as a star in 1998, when she earned her first of three First Team All-Big Ten honors. In 1999, she added an All-America honor to her resume. As a senior in 2000, Branagh earned her third consecutive First Team All-Big Ten selection and her second straight All-America nod. She was also named the Big Ten Player of the Year that season. Her 2,379 career kills are the most in school history and, at the time, set a new mark for the entire Big Ten conference. That total was also sixth-best in NCAA history at the time, and it still ranks 14th in NCAA history. In 2014, Branagh was inducted into the Minnesota "M" Club Hall of Fame.
Check back to GopherSports.com for updates on the Gopher Olympic Hopefuls as the 2020 Olympic Games get closer.
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Gymnastics
Shane Wiskus, USA
Wiskus recently took another big step in his Olympic pursuit with an impressive showing at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships. Wiskus took the national title on vault, came in fourth all-around, and earned a spot on the U.S. Senior National Team. He will next head to the World Team Selection Camp Sept. 5-9, looking for a place on the team that will compete at Worlds in Stuttgart, Germany October 4-13. Wiskus is a rising junior captain at Minnesota and two-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Year.
Justin Karstadt, Canada
Karstadt, a recent Minnesota graduate, has had a busy run with Team Canada over the past few months. He recently helped the team win its first Pan Am Games medal since 1999 with a bronze, and finished third all-around at Canadian Nationals. He will also look to punch his own ticket to Stuttgart at Canada's World Team Trials Selection Camp August 23-25. The Canadian look to qualify for their first summer Olympics as a team since 2008.
Swimming & Diving
Sarah Bacon, USA
This past offseason, Bacon took the gold medal in the one-meter springboard and the silver medal in the three-meter synchro at the Pan American Games, while also being crowned a FINA World Championships silver medalist in the one-meter springboard two weeks prior. At the NCAA Championships in March, Bacon set a new NCAA record in the 1-meter with a score of 363.20 and became the first Gopher diver to ever win back-to-back national titles in the event. Although she will use an Olympic redshirt this upcoming season, Bacon was named an All-American in both the 1-meter and the 3-meter in 2018-19, as well as the Big Ten Diver of the Year.
Bowe Becker, USA
Becker finished as the NCAA runner-up in the 100 free in 2019, breaking the Big Ten Conference record for the event in the process. Having also placed fourth in the 50 free at the NCAA Championships, he garnered All-American honors in both events his senior season. Becker received All-American honors in all four years of his Gopher career and has already qualified for Olympic Trials in the 50 free and 100 free.
Kristen Hayden, USA
After finishing 11th in the NCAA and earning Honorable Mention All-America honors in the three-meter dive last season, Hayden will be taking an Olympic redshirt year in 2019-20. Hayden has been named an Honorable Mention All-American in each of her three seasons at Minnesota, while also winning a silver medal in the three-meter synchro with Bacon at the 2019 USA Diving Senior National Championships.
Mackenzie Padington, Canada
Also electing for an Olympic redshirt season this upcoming year, Padington was an All-American in both the 500 free and 1650 free in 2018-19, including Honorable Mention All-America honors in the 800 free relay. As a freshman, Padington was a member of Minnesota's All-American 800 free relay team that also set the school record.
Kierra Smith, Canada
A 2017 graduate of the U, Smith achieved All-American honors in both her senior and junior seasons. As a junior, Smith was the National Champion in the 200 breast and a two-time All-American. Her senior season, she swam what was the second fastest college time on record in the 200 breast en route to finishing as the NCAA runner-up.
The following members of the Minnesota Swimming & Diving program are also aiming for an opportunity to compete in Tokyo, having notched U.S. Olympic Trials cuts in the past calendar year.
- Cameron Kelley | 400 free
- Abbey Kilgallon | 1500 free
- Lindsey Kozelsky | 100 breast, 200 breast
- Max McHugh | 100 breast, 200 breast
- Tevyn Wadell | 100 fly, 100 back, 200 back
In addition, a few former Gophers swam OT cut times and will also attempt to make the U.S. Olympic team.
- Conner McHugh | 100 breast, 200 breast
- Danielle Nack | 50 free
Softball
Sara Groenewegen, Canada
Groenewegen is fresh off a silver medal performance at the Pan-American games. She pitched a perfect game on the way to a silver medal and was just named a First Team pitcher by National Pro Fastpitch. Groenewegen is the only three-time All-American in Minnesota softball history. She was named the Big Ten Player, Pitcher (twice) and Freshman of the year in her career and finished as the Gophers all-time strikeout leader with 1,214 in her career.
Baseball
Max Meyer, USA
A 2019 All-Big Ten selection, Meyer spent the past summer pitching for the USA Collegiate National Team, registering 13 innings on the mound with a 0.69 ERA. As a sophomore in 2019, Meyer led the Gophers with 76 2/3 innings, finishing with a 5-3 record and a 2.11 ERA. This came on the heels of an All-America Third Team freshman season, as Meyer recorded a program-record 16 saves and held a 2.06 ERA out of the Minnesota bullpen. Meyer was recently named the No. 12 college prospect by Baseball America.
Soccer
Katie Duong, USA
A freshman from Portland, Oregon, Duong was recently called up to the Under-22 United States Women's National Team. Duong will compete with the team against Japan's squad as the United States looks to add 2020 Olympic Gold after securing the 2019 World Cup.
Cachet Lue, Jamaica
Lue has been a member of Jamaica's age-level teams for years now and trained with the national team prior to both the 2015 and 2019 World Cups. Lue, a graduate transfer, is a force on the Gophers backline and hopes to do the same for Jamaica in Tokyo next year.
Triathlon
Tamara Gorman (2014-17), USA
Gorman competed for the Gopher cross country and track & field teams for three seasons from 2014-17 before turning her attention to focus on her triathlon training. As a Gopher, Gorman ran a career-best six-kilometer time of 21:25.0 in her Big Ten debut at the 2015 B1G Cross Country Championships; she went on to race at the 2015 NCAA Cross Country Championships where she finished seventh on the team. On the track, she placed 17th in the indoor 5,000m (17:18.15) and 13th in the 10,000m (35:45.26) at the 2016 Big Ten Championships. The Rapid City, S.D., native wrapped up her collegiate career with career-best times of 4:38.31 in the 1,500m, 4:59.48 in the mile, and 17:04.30 in the 5,000m. Prior to her Gopher career, Gorman became the first American woman to win a junior worlds title at the 2013 International Triathlon Union (ITU) Junior World Championships with a first-place time of 57 minutes, 8 seconds on the 750-meter swim, 22.5-kilometer bike, 5-kilometer run course.
Track & Field
Temi Ogunrinde (2014-19), Nigeria
Ogunrinde was a two-time All-American for the Gophers in hammer throw, earning Second Team All-America accolades in 2018 and improving to First Team All-America in 2019. The Cottage Grove, Minn., native was also a three-time Big Ten Conference champion and All-Big Ten First Team honoree as the first woman to win three-consecutive B1G titles in hammer throw in league history. She ended her career as Minnesota's program record-holder in hammer throw and also holds the Big Ten Championships meet record and Nigerian national record in hammer throw. In addition to being a three-time NCAA Championships representative for the Gophers, Ogunrinde competed for Nigeria at the 2018 African Athletics Championships; she went on to place fourth in hammer throw while representing Africa at the 2018 Continental Cup as well.
Volleyball
Tori Dixon (2010-13), USA
Dixon was a standout for the Gopher Volleyball program from 2010-13. A two-time All-American and All-Big Ten selection, Dixon ranks first in the Minnesota recordbooks as the program's most efficient hitter. During her career, Dixon hit .369, including .436 her junior year. She went on to play professionally following her senior season in 2013 and since then has also is a regular within the USA Volleyball gym. Playing professionally since 2013, Dixon has competed in a variety of locations internationally. She most recently played with BAIC Motors in China in 2018-19, a place she has also signed a contract to play with them again in 2019-20.
Sarah Wilhite Parsons (2013-16), USA
Wilhite Parsons made history her senior year with the Golden Gophers when she was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association's Player of the Year, Minnesota first-ever recipient. Playing for the Gophers from 2013-16, Wilhite Parsons saved her best season for her last. In her final year with the Gophers, she not only was named the nation's player of the year, but also Big Ten Player of the Year, espnW Player of the Year, and earned First Team All-America honors. She ended her senior season with a team-best 537 kills and averaged 4.26 kills per set. As an outside hitter, Wilhite finished her collegiate career with a .288 hitting clip, ranked second on the team in digs (327) and aces (29). She amassed over 1,000 kills during her Gopher tenure and helped the Gophers to the 2015 Big Ten Championship title as well as back-to-back NCAA Final Four Appearances in 2015 and 2016. She has now played professionally the past two seasons and is headed to Brazil for her third professional year this fall.
Hannah Tapp (2013-16), USA
During her tenure, Tapp helped the Gophers to the 2015 Big Ten Championship title as well as back-to-back NCAA Final Four Appearances in 2015 and 2016. Tapp was a two-time American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American, a two-time All-Big Ten honoree, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and Academic All-District honoree. She went on to play professionally immediately after graduating in December 2016 and will play in Brazil this upcoming season.
Paige Tapp (2013-16), USA
During her tenure, Tapp helped the Gophers to the 2015 Big Ten Championship title as well as back-to-back NCAA Final Four Appearances in 2015 and 2016. As a Gopher, Tapp was a two-time American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American and a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American. She was also Minnesota's first-ever Senior CLASS Award recipient, an honor given to one collegiate individual in each sport that represents the highest standards, athletically, academically and within her community. She finished her career with 783 kills, hit .317 and had 495 career blocks. She's set to begin her fourth professional volleyball season in Italy, after she spent the past two seasons in Germany.
Lauren Gibbemeyer (2007-10), USA
Gibbemeyer played for the Gophers from 2007-2010 and helped Minnesota to a NCAA Final Four appearance in 2009. During her four-year career, the former All-American hit .336 in her career and still holds the school record for total blocks with 591. She was named a three-time All-American and All-Big Ten selection with Minnesota. Since graduating from Minnesota Gibbemeyer has played professional volleyball and will return to Turkey this season for the second-straight year.
Nicole Branagh (1997-2000), USA
Following an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention freshman season, Branagh emerged as a star in 1998, when she earned her first of three First Team All-Big Ten honors. In 1999, she added an All-America honor to her resume. As a senior in 2000, Branagh earned her third consecutive First Team All-Big Ten selection and her second straight All-America nod. She was also named the Big Ten Player of the Year that season. Her 2,379 career kills are the most in school history and, at the time, set a new mark for the entire Big Ten conference. That total was also sixth-best in NCAA history at the time, and it still ranks 14th in NCAA history. In 2014, Branagh was inducted into the Minnesota "M" Club Hall of Fame.
Check back to GopherSports.com for updates on the Gopher Olympic Hopefuls as the 2020 Olympic Games get closer.
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