Aggie Divers Shoot for NCAA Berth This Weekend
Mar 12, 2009 | Women's Swimming and Diving
March 12, 2009
COLLEGE STATION - All four members of the Texas A&M women's diving team will have the opportunity to qualify for next week's NCAA Championships in College Station at the Zone D Diving Championships in Columbia, Mo., this weekend.
So far A&M has qualified 13 swimmers to compete at next weekend's national championship and hopes to add as many divers as possible to its already sizeable competitor total.
The A&M diving squad is led by mid-year addition Jaele Patrick (Lilydale, Victoria, Australia). In two short months, the Aggie sophomore has re-written the Aggie springboard record book. Patrick set the school record of 341.40 on the three-meter on Jan. 16 against Houston then three weeks later did likewise on the one-meter (320.25) in earning a win against No. 6 Auburn and Florida State.
Junior Haley Haynes (The Woodlands) has set the A&M record on the platform three times this season. Haynes earned a fourth-place platform finish at the Big 12 Championships two weeks ago with a career-best score of 272.30. Haynes also has zone qualifying scores of 271.80 and 291.90 on the one- and three-meter springboards.
Sophomore Emily Watson (Frisco) ranks second on the team on both springboards and is coming off the best Big 12 springboard performances of her career. Watson set a career-best one-meter score of 277.57 against Penn State on Halloween while racking up a lifetime-best total of 297.76 on the three-meter against Texas on Jan. 23.
Freshman Lorena Lujan (San Antonio) qualified for the Zone D meet at the last possible chance and in doing so earned herself a sixth-place finish at the Big 12 Championships. Lujan earned a score of 291.85 on the three-meter at the Big 12 meet, ensuring that all four Aggie female divers would get the opportunity to qualify for the NCAA Championships.
The meet will begin on Friday at 2:30 with the women's three-meter competition. The one-meter will be held on Saturday at 10 a.m. The meet will conclude with the platform competition on Sunday at 10 a.m. The Zone D Diving Championships will be held at the Mizzou Aquatic Center, site of the 2009 Big 12 Championships.
Players Mentioned
