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Choosing the greatest Northwestern athlete of all time: Round of 32

The first round was mostly chalk, but some underdogs made noise.

By Colin Kruse
NFL: SEP 08 Titans at Browns

The Round of 32 is underway!

First off, to address the omission of athletes: when you come up with the grand idea to do something like this, you overthink and miss some obvious ones. My bad.

Now that we’re through the first round, here’s where we stand in each region with the second round matchups. Voting ends Sunday at 11 p.m CT, shortly after “The Last Dance.”

Sheridan Region

The two top seeds, John Shurna and Luke Donald, advanced with ease. Damien Anderson, who perhaps was slightly under-seeded, went through a tough opponent in Tammy Williams. Amy Jaeschke edged her Amy counterpart by a forty-vote margin, the smallest one in the region. The big upset, of course, is 13-seed Frank Ehmann’s defeat of 4-seed Bryant McIntosh by nearly 300 votes. There’s no way to track the legitimacy of voting, but it’s funny to think that someone is refreshing their page to vote for Ehmann six hundred times.

Shurna vs Anderson is an intriguing second-round matchup to keep an eye on. Ehmann might be the dark horse in this tournament, buoyed by his unexpected high voter turnout. Thornton and Armstrong, two star athletes with with plenty of personal accolades and impressive team records, should be a very interesting 3 vs 6 matchup. Here are the matchups for the second round of the Sheridan Region:

1. John Shurna (Men’s Basketball, 2008-2012) vs. 8. Damien Anderson (Football, 1997-2001)

Poll

John Shurna or Damien Anderson?

This poll is closed

  • 55%
    John Shurna
    (476 votes)
  • 44%
    Damien Anderson
    (383 votes)
859 votes total Vote Now

13. Frank Ehmann (MBB, 1952-1955) vs. 5. Gretchen Scheuermann (Field Hockey, 1991-1994)

Poll

Frank Ehmann or Gretchen Scheuermann?

This poll is closed

  • 41%
    Frank Ehmann
    (1558 votes)
  • 58%
    Gretchen Scheuermann
    (2192 votes)
3750 votes total Vote Now

2. Luke Donald (Men’s Golf, 1997-2001) vs. 7. Amy Jaeschke (Women’s Basketball, 2001-2005)

Poll

Luke Donald or Amy Jaeschke?

This poll is closed

  • 45%
    Luke Donald
    (450 votes)
  • 54%
    Amy Jaeschke
    (530 votes)
980 votes total Vote Now

3. Chelsea Armstrong (FH, 2009-2012) vs. 6. Taylor Thornton (Women’s Lacrosse, 2010-2013)

Poll

Chelsea Armstrong or Taylor Thornton?

This poll is closed

  • 50%
    Chelsea Armstrong
    (494 votes)
  • 49%
    Taylor Thornton
    (476 votes)
970 votes total Vote Now

Sherman Region

The region named after the street home to Jimmy John’s and that now-famous hat store saw two lower seeds take out higher-ranked competition. Commenters noted Autry’s seemingly disrespectful ranking and elevated him over Christy Finch. The other upset was Alexis Prousis’ nearly 150-vote victory over Amy Kekeisen Fedorchak in what get-out-the-vote activists are calling the Sherman Region’s highest turnout.

Fitzgerald and Autry should receive a high turnout as two of the most recognizable names (and teammates) in Northwestern football history, while Hinton and McKinney each garnered around 60 percent of the votes in their respective first round victories. Anthony Walker, Jr., as a recent graduate with some NFL name recognition, could put Anucha Browne Sanders on upset watch, while fans of Alexis Prousis could will her over Shannon Smith.

1. Pat Fitzgerald (FB, 1993-1996) vs. 9. Darnell Autry (FB, 1994-1996)

Poll

Pat Fitzgerald or Darnell Autry?

This poll is closed

  • 65%
    Pat Fitzgerald
    (441 votes)
  • 34%
    Darnell Autry
    (230 votes)
671 votes total Vote Now

4. Chris Hinton (FB, 1979-1982) vs. 5. Billy McKinney (MBB, 1974-1977)

Poll

Chris Hinton or Billy McKinney?

This poll is closed

  • 49%
    Chris Hinton
    (288 votes)
  • 50%
    Billy McKinney
    (293 votes)
581 votes total Vote Now

2. Anucha Browne Sanders (WBB, 1982-1985) vs. 7. Anthony Walker (FB, 2013-2016)

Poll

Anucha Browne Sanders or Anthony Walker?

This poll is closed

  • 65%
    Anucha Browne Sanders
    (578 votes)
  • 34%
    Anthony Walker
    (311 votes)
889 votes total Vote Now

3. Shannon Smith (WLAX, 2009-2012) vs. 11. Alexis Prousis (Women’s Tennis, 2003-2007)

Poll

Shannon Smith or Alexis Prousis?

This poll is closed

  • 43%
    Shannon Smith
    (352 votes)
  • 56%
    Alexis Prousis
    (452 votes)
804 votes total Vote Now

Orrington Region

The most recent and the only current Northwestern athletes fared quite differently in the first round. All-time sacks leader Joe Gaziano fell to field hockey’s Jennifer Averill by a mere 33 votes while Lindsey Pulliam handled Scott Rowe with 80 percent of her matchup’s vote. 12-seed Todd Martin took down lacrosse’s all-time leading goal scorer Selena Lasota and could be another tennis player serving as a potential dark horse. As many commenters and tweeters noted, Otto Graham is the early favorite for the overall title. Even my mother knows who he is, which is saying a lot. Early aughts quarterback Brett Basanez took down Sybil Bauer, who sports the coolest name in the competition.

Matchups to watch in round two are the upstart Martin’s battle with softball’s Lisa Ishikawa Sliwa, a four seed, and Pulliam’s contest with four-time national champion Hilary Bowen, a two seed.

1. Otto Graham (FB, MBB, BASE, 1941-1944) vs. 8. Jennifer Averill (FH, WLAX, 1983-1986)

Poll

Otto Graham or Jennifer Averill?

This poll is closed

  • 71%
    Otto Graham
    (467 votes)
  • 28%
    Jennifer Averill
    (183 votes)
650 votes total Vote Now

4. Lisa Ishikawa Sliwa (SB, 1984-1987) vs. 12. Todd Martin (Men’s Tennis, 1988-1990)

Poll

Lisa Ishikawa Sliwa or Todd Martin?

This poll is closed

  • 56%
    Lisa Ishikawa Sliwa
    (340 votes)
  • 43%
    Todd Martin
    (265 votes)
605 votes total Vote Now

2. Hilary Bowen (WLAX, 2006-2009) vs. 7. Lindsey Pulliam (WBB, 2017-Present)

Poll

Hilary Bowen or Lindsey Pulliam?

This poll is closed

  • 64%
    Hilary Bowen
    (443 votes)
  • 35%
    Lindsey Pulliam
    (248 votes)
691 votes total Vote Now

3. Evan Eschmeyer (MBB, 1995-1999) vs. 6. Brett Basanez (FB, 2002-2005)

Poll

Evan Eschmeyer or Brett Basanez?

This poll is closed

  • 57%
    Evan Eschmeyer
    (307 votes)
  • 42%
    Brett Basanez
    (225 votes)
532 votes total Vote Now

Central Region

One big upset in this region killed what would’ve been an all-chalk first round: Katrina Adams aced Northwestern football’s touchdown and passing yards leader by 47 votes. None of the other results was particularly surprising, but they certainly lead into some interesting matchups in the Round of 32.

Adams has another tough matchup in two-time Tewaaraton Award winner Hannah Nielsen. Jake Herbert, one of wrestling’s greatest, faces off against Ndidi Opia Massay, softball’s small ball specialist. And of course, the current manager of the Philadelphia Phillies takes on a running back from the Los Angeles Chargers (of Inglewood, please let me make Chargers jokes).

1. Justin Jackson (FB, 2014-2017) vs. 8. Joe Girardi (BASE, 1983-1986)

Poll

Justin Jackson or Joe Girardi?

This poll is closed

  • 50%
    Justin Jackson
    (310 votes)
  • 49%
    Joe Girardi
    (308 votes)
618 votes total Vote Now

4. Kate Oleykowski Bernatowicz (WLAX, FH, 1984-1987) vs. 5. Kristen Kjellman (WLAX, 2004-2007)

Poll

Kate Oleykowski Bernatowicz or Kristen Kjellman?

This poll is closed

  • 37%
    Kate Oleykowski Bernatowicz
    (184 votes)
  • 62%
    Kristen Kjellman
    (311 votes)
495 votes total Vote Now

2. Hannah Nielsen (WLAX, 2006-2009) vs. 10. Katrina Adams (WTEN, 1984-1987)

Poll

Hannah Nielsen or Katrina Adams?

This poll is closed

  • 36%
    Hannah Nielsen
    (266 votes)
  • 63%
    Katrina Adams
    (458 votes)
724 votes total Vote Now

3. Jake Herbert (WREST, 2003-2009) vs. 6. Ndidi Opia Massay (SB, 1986-1989)

Poll

Jake Herbert or Ndidi Opia Massay?

This poll is closed

  • 40%
    Jake Herbert
    (289 votes)
  • 59%
    Ndidi Opia Massay
    (425 votes)
714 votes total Vote Now

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