IRVING, Texas – The Big 12 Conference today announced its 2026 annual rowing individual awards, with UCF collecting three of the honors following its second consecutive Conference title.
UCF’s Brigitte Kappler was named Big 12 Rower of the Year, while teammate Madison Lovejoy earned Newcomer of the Year. Knights head coach Mara Allen was voted Coach of the Year after leading UCF to a sweep of all five races at the 2026 Big 12 Rowing Championship presented by Allstate.
The Scholar-Athlete of the Year award was shared by Old Dominion’s Madeleine Enns and Tulsa’s Anna Lackner.
Kappler has been a key contributor for the Knights since her freshman season. The junior from Johannesburg, South Africa has rowed in the three-seat position of the 1V8+ - which earned Big 12 Boat of the Week honors twice this season – helping her team win its race at the Big 12 Championship by 13 seconds. She was named to the All Big 12 Team for the last two seasons and is only the second UCF rower to win the Conference’s top individual honor.
Lovejoy made an immediate impact during her freshman season in UCF’s second varsity eight. Competing from the four-seat position, she helped lead the boat to a 6:31.848 finish at the Big 12 Championship - almost 11 seconds ahead of the second-place boat. The freshman from Marietta, Ohio was also part of the UCF 1V8+ boat that was named Big 12 Boat of the Week twice this season.
Enns is a member of the varsity eight team at Old Dominion University where she has maintained a 3.9 GPA while studying BioMedical Science. A senior, she has played an active role in the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee throughout her collegiate career and has helped spearhead community service efforts for ODU Athletics, including leading ODU rowing to log the most community service hours of all rowing teams in the country.
Lackner is a senior who has maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA in Chemical Engineering and Energy Management (with a Minor in Economics and Math) at the University of Tulsa while competing in the second varsity eight after spending much of the season with the varsity eight crew. She also serves as President of the Tulsa Energy Management Student Association and President of Omega Chi Epsilon, the university’s chemical engineering honor society and has earned numerous academic and leadership honors including the Jess Chouteau Award for Tulsa’s Top 10 Outstanding Seniors.
Allen earned Coach of the Year recognition after guiding UCF to its second straight Big 12 title and another NCAA Championship appearance. In her third season leading the program, the Knights swept all five races at the Conference championship.
Big 12 Rowing Awards
Rower of the Year: Brigitte Kappler, UCF
Newcomer of the Year: Madison Lovejoy, UCF
Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Madeleine Enns, Old Dominion
Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Anna Lackner, Tulsa
Coach of the Year: Mara Allen, UCF