Jordan Windle (center) seen here with Jacob Fielding (left) and Max Flory (right) after winning 16-18 Boys' platform at the 2017 USA Diving National Championships
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The final day of junior events at the 2017 USA Diving National Championships produced both individual winners and team champions at the McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion on the campus of the Ohio State University Saturday night. Jordan Windle (Fort Lauderdale Diving Team), Maria Coburn (Longhorn Aquatics), Jack Matthews (Ohio State Diving Club) and Hailey Hernandez (GC Divers) all won individual gold, while GC Divers took the overall team title (149 points) and girls’ team title (138 points). Alexandria Dive Club clinched the boys’ team title at 87 points.
Windle proved to be too much for the 16-18 Boys’ platform field by totaling a score of 596.00 points. He struck 70.00 or more points on four dives in the final and ignited the crowd in the semifinal with a forward 4½ somersault tuck worth 103.60 points. Trojan Dive Club’s Jacob Fielding constructed an impeccable final to snag silver with 564.35 points after finishing 11th in the semifinal. Max Flory (Dominion Dive Club) won bronze with 547.55 points. The gold elevated Windle’s national championship medal haul to three with two golds and a silver.
“Getting another title felt amazing,” Windle said. “The final wasn’t the best performance I’ve had, but I did end up on top which was what I was looking for. Everyone dove amazing, so it was a great final.”
Coburn also added more hardware to her meet, winning the 16-18 girls’ 3-meter event.
“I’m really excited,” said Coburn. “I had some really good starts and I’m excited to make some more improvements.”
She topped Duke Diving’s Grace Cable (487.55) and SoCal Divers’ Daria Lenz (454.40) to earn her second gold of the national championships. She won 1-meter on Thursday. The silver gave Cable her second medal of the meet, having forged gold on platform.
Matthews supplied clutch dives to compile a score of 408.25, including a reverse 1½ somersault 1½ twist free that earned 59.80 points. The event was highly contested as Kevin Mendez (Pine Crest Diving) finished second just 7.20 points behind Matthews at 401.05. Maxwell Weinrich (Montgomery Dive Club) sealed bronze with a total of 393.25 points.
The 14-15 girls’ platform final also proved to be intense as Hernandez put up a mark of 334.90 to win her second gold of the meet and third medal overall. She previously won the 3-meter competition and took silver on 1-meter. Daryn Wright (Indiana International School of Diving) collected silver for her first medal of the national championships with 326.80 points. Sophia McAfee (Trojan Dive Club) took third with 313.70 points, her third bronze of the meet.
Tomorrow marks the first of two scheduled off days at the 2017 USA Diving National Championships. The senior portion of the meet begins Tuesday, August 8, with the senior men’s 1-meter semifinal, senior women’s 1-meter semifinal, senior men’s 1-meter final and senior women’s 1-meter final on the slate. Competition starts at 9:00 a.m. ET.
The USA Diving National Championships is part of the 2017 Team USA Summer Champions Series, presented by Comcast. The Champions Series showcases numerous Olympic sports throughout the season, highlighting the year-round quest of Team USA athletes to compete at the Olympic Games.
Overall Team Results – Top 5
1. GC Divers (149.00); 2. Alexandria Dive Club (122.00); 3. Ohio State Diving Club (107.00); 4. Fort Lauderdale Diving Team (90.00); 5. Stanford Diving (89.00)
Girls’ Team Results – Top 5
1. GC Divers (138.00); 2. Duke Diving (81.00); 3. Rose Bowl Aquatics (74.00); 4. Pacific Diving Academy USA Inc. (57.00); 5. Arrow Dive Club (55.00)
Boys’ Team Results – Top 5
1. Alexandria Dive Club (87.00); 2. Ohio State Diving Club (84.00); 3. Fort Lauderdale Diving Team (77.00); 4. Dominion Dive Club (63.00); 5. Woodlands Diving Academy (53.00)
Click here for full results.
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