University of Tennessee Athletics
Sunday, May 31
Gainesville, Ga. / Lake Lanier Olympic Park
9 a.m. ET
University of Tennessee
vs
NCAA Championships
Tennessee Claims Third at NCAA Championships, Matches Program-Best Finish
May 31, 2026 | Rowing
GAINESVILLE, Ga. -- The Tennessee rowing program capped a historic season at the NCAA Championships on Sunday, earning a third-place team finish. The result marked the program's third consecutive top-five finish and tied the best team finish in school history.
The performance continued a historic stretch under head coach Kim Cupini. Across her three seasons at the helm, the Lady Vols have produced the most successful run in program history at the NCAA Championships. Sunday's third-place finish matched the 2024 squad, which also placed third nationally in Cupini's first season. Tennessee totaled 119 points at the 2026 championship event to secure its second third-place finish in the last three seasons.
The 2026 campaign was filled with milestones for Tennessee, which captured the SEC Championship on May 10. It marked the program's first conference title in more than a decade, with the previous championship coming in 2012 when the team competed in Conference USA. Cupini was named SEC Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season after leading the Lady Vols to the conference crown. Meg Flanagan and Frida Werner Foldager also earned SEC honors, with Flanagan being named Rower of the Year and Werner Foldager receiving Freshman of the Year recognition.
The highlight of Sunday's competition came in the varsity four, where Tennessee finished second. The result marked the best NCAA Championships finish in program history for the 1V4, surpassing the previous best of fifth place achieved in 2024. Running in third place for much of the race, Tennessee moved into second in the final 500 meters after a Stanford rower caught a crab, allowing the Lady Vols to overtake the Cardinal down the stretch. The Lady Vols crossed the line in 6:41.292. Texas won the event, followed by Tennessee, Washington, Rutgers, Stanford, and Virginia.
Tennessee's first varsity eight capped its NCAA Championships run with a third-place finish in 5:51.450. The Lady Vols and Stanford battled throughout the race, with Stanford narrowly claiming second place in 5:50.160, just more than a second ahead of Tennessee. The Lady Vols finished ahead of several top-ranked programs, including No. 6 Virginia (5:52.398), No. 7 Yale (5:53.412) and No. 5 Princeton (6:00.056).
The result capped a remarkable season for Tennessee's 1V8, which began an unbeaten streak April 3 at the Rocky Top Invite. It also secured the crew's third consecutive top-five finish at the NCAA Championships.
The second varsity eight was Tennessee's third boat to compete in the Grand Final. The 2V8 finished fourth with a time of 6:02.917. Stanford (5:52.905) and Texas (5:54.761) claimed the top two spots, while Virginia edged Tennessee for third. The Lady Vols held off Princeton, which finished fifth, while Yale placed sixth.
Results
First Varsity Eight (Grand Final)
1. Texas: 5:47.706
2. Stanford: 5:50.160
3. Tennessee: 5:51.450
4. Virginia: 5:52.398
5. Yale: 5:53.412
6. Princeton: 6:00.056
Second Varsity Eight (Grand Final)
1. Stanford: 5:52.905
2. Texas: 5:54.761
3. Virginia: 5:58.225
4. Tennessee: 6:02.917
5. Princeton: 6:03.119
6. Yale: 6:05.691
Varsity Four (Grand Final)
1. Texas: 6:35.728
2. Tennessee: 6:41.292
3. Washington: 6:47.654
4. Rutgers: 6:48.982
5. Stanford: 6:52.518
6. Virginia: 6:52.692
Team Standings
1. Texas: 130 points
2. Stanford:125 points
3. Tennessee: 119 points
4. Virginia: 114 points
5. Yale: 103 points
T-6. Princeton: 100 points
T-6. Washington: 100 points
8. California: 89 points
9. Syracuse: 80 points
10. Brown: 77 points
11. Rutgers: 75 points
12. Michigan: 69 points
13. Miami: 54 points
14. Ohio State: 52 points
15. Columbia: 49 points
16: UCF: 48 points
17: Oregon State: 38 points
18: Northeastern: 35 points
19: Boston University: 25 points
20. Rhode Island: 14 points
21. UMass: 12 points
22. Jacksonville: 10 points
Boat Lineups
1V8+: Taryn Graves (coxswain), Meg Flanagan, Alexandra Axten, Hannah Richardson, Alex Pidgeon, Nicole Campbell, Hannah Smith, Maylie Valiquette, Frida Werner Foldager
2V8+: Mykayla Fluster (coxswain), Sheya Lavin, Roxy Welford, Olivia Tattersfield, Ellexi Fulton, Emma Flanagan, Ariella Jeffery, Thea Coull, Zoe DeFeo
1V4+: Audrey Bast (coxswain), Stevie Mabey, Megan Wood, Ūla Jonušaitė, Ava Mulholland
The performance continued a historic stretch under head coach Kim Cupini. Across her three seasons at the helm, the Lady Vols have produced the most successful run in program history at the NCAA Championships. Sunday's third-place finish matched the 2024 squad, which also placed third nationally in Cupini's first season. Tennessee totaled 119 points at the 2026 championship event to secure its second third-place finish in the last three seasons.
The 2026 campaign was filled with milestones for Tennessee, which captured the SEC Championship on May 10. It marked the program's first conference title in more than a decade, with the previous championship coming in 2012 when the team competed in Conference USA. Cupini was named SEC Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season after leading the Lady Vols to the conference crown. Meg Flanagan and Frida Werner Foldager also earned SEC honors, with Flanagan being named Rower of the Year and Werner Foldager receiving Freshman of the Year recognition.
The highlight of Sunday's competition came in the varsity four, where Tennessee finished second. The result marked the best NCAA Championships finish in program history for the 1V4, surpassing the previous best of fifth place achieved in 2024. Running in third place for much of the race, Tennessee moved into second in the final 500 meters after a Stanford rower caught a crab, allowing the Lady Vols to overtake the Cardinal down the stretch. The Lady Vols crossed the line in 6:41.292. Texas won the event, followed by Tennessee, Washington, Rutgers, Stanford, and Virginia.
Tennessee's first varsity eight capped its NCAA Championships run with a third-place finish in 5:51.450. The Lady Vols and Stanford battled throughout the race, with Stanford narrowly claiming second place in 5:50.160, just more than a second ahead of Tennessee. The Lady Vols finished ahead of several top-ranked programs, including No. 6 Virginia (5:52.398), No. 7 Yale (5:53.412) and No. 5 Princeton (6:00.056).
The result capped a remarkable season for Tennessee's 1V8, which began an unbeaten streak April 3 at the Rocky Top Invite. It also secured the crew's third consecutive top-five finish at the NCAA Championships.
The second varsity eight was Tennessee's third boat to compete in the Grand Final. The 2V8 finished fourth with a time of 6:02.917. Stanford (5:52.905) and Texas (5:54.761) claimed the top two spots, while Virginia edged Tennessee for third. The Lady Vols held off Princeton, which finished fifth, while Yale placed sixth.
Results
First Varsity Eight (Grand Final)
1. Texas: 5:47.706
2. Stanford: 5:50.160
3. Tennessee: 5:51.450
4. Virginia: 5:52.398
5. Yale: 5:53.412
6. Princeton: 6:00.056
Second Varsity Eight (Grand Final)
1. Stanford: 5:52.905
2. Texas: 5:54.761
3. Virginia: 5:58.225
4. Tennessee: 6:02.917
5. Princeton: 6:03.119
6. Yale: 6:05.691
Varsity Four (Grand Final)
1. Texas: 6:35.728
2. Tennessee: 6:41.292
3. Washington: 6:47.654
4. Rutgers: 6:48.982
5. Stanford: 6:52.518
6. Virginia: 6:52.692
Team Standings
1. Texas: 130 points
2. Stanford:125 points
3. Tennessee: 119 points
4. Virginia: 114 points
5. Yale: 103 points
T-6. Princeton: 100 points
T-6. Washington: 100 points
8. California: 89 points
9. Syracuse: 80 points
10. Brown: 77 points
11. Rutgers: 75 points
12. Michigan: 69 points
13. Miami: 54 points
14. Ohio State: 52 points
15. Columbia: 49 points
16: UCF: 48 points
17: Oregon State: 38 points
18: Northeastern: 35 points
19: Boston University: 25 points
20. Rhode Island: 14 points
21. UMass: 12 points
22. Jacksonville: 10 points
Boat Lineups
1V8+: Taryn Graves (coxswain), Meg Flanagan, Alexandra Axten, Hannah Richardson, Alex Pidgeon, Nicole Campbell, Hannah Smith, Maylie Valiquette, Frida Werner Foldager
2V8+: Mykayla Fluster (coxswain), Sheya Lavin, Roxy Welford, Olivia Tattersfield, Ellexi Fulton, Emma Flanagan, Ariella Jeffery, Thea Coull, Zoe DeFeo
1V4+: Audrey Bast (coxswain), Stevie Mabey, Megan Wood, Ūla Jonušaitė, Ava Mulholland
Players Mentioned
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