Dec. 17, 2009
AUBURN, Ala. - Six divers represented Auburn on day one of the three-day Christmas Diving Classic at the University of Alabama. The women opened competition on the one-meter springboard, while the men competed on the three-meter.
"There was solid competition overall on day one," said Jeff Shaffer, head diving coach. "We missed a few finishes on dives. We are striving to get our focus back and have better performances on areas we have worked on so far this season."
On the one-meter springboard, sophomore Anna Aguero finished fourth with a Zone qualifying score of 274.45. Classmate Vennie Dantin picked up a Zone score of 266.05 to finish sixth and Mary Catherine Cochran closed out the day with an eighth-place finish (223.75).
Competing in her first-ever competition for Auburn was freshman Laura Russell. The Mobile, Ala., native competed in the consolation finals and finished 10th overall on the one-meter with a score of 233.25.
Leading the way for the men was Kelly Marx. The senior recorded a third-place finish on the three-meter springboard with a Zone score of 376.40. Freshman Thad Ellis finished just six points behind Marx, taking fourth with 370.75 points. Also competing for Auburn was sophomore Adam Godzinski, who finished eighth with a Zone score of 313.85.
The Tigers continue competition Friday, seeing the women face off on the three-meter and the men compete on the one-meter.