AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn senior Alison Maillard was named the SEC Female Diver of the Year while head diving coach Jeff Shaffer was recognized as the Women's Diving Coach of the Year as well as the Men's Co-Diving Coach of the Year, the conference announced Tuesday.
Maillard, a team captain, won the SEC Championship in the 1-meter event with a school-record 365.15 points. She also finished third at the SEC meet on 3-meter and qualified for the NCAA Championships on all three events. She was a three-time SEC Diver of the Week this season and had 11 individual wins in dual meets.
"That's a great honor because first of all it's voted on by the other coaches," Shaffer said. "She did a phenomenal job and I think improved this year as much as years past. Her 1-meter performance to win the SEC title was one of the best performances obviously of her career but also of mine in developing a diver to that level. I'm very proud of the effort there."
Maillard has steadily improved at Auburn since her first year when she was named the SEC Female Freshman Diver of the Year in 2017. She became the fourth female diver in program history to win an SEC Championship with her performance on 1-meter in February.
For Shaffer, who just wrapped up his 21st season as Auburn's head diving coach, this is the ninth time he's earned SEC Diving Coach of the Year honors.
Shaffer coached a group this year that saw all six divers score points at the SEC Championships with five of the six earning a spot in the finals in at least one event. In addition to Maillard making podium twice, sophomore Conner Pruitt finished second in the men's 1-meter and freshman Gretchn Wensuc took third on women's platform.
"Jeff is extremely deserving of this outstanding accolade," Auburn head coach Gary Taylor said. "He absolutely brings his best work each and every day to the pool. He does a great job connecting with the athletes, developing athletes and getting them to perform at extremely high levels.
"This year was no different. He coached the SEC Female Diver of the Year and did a great job developing the two freshmen. And then on the men's side, he coached three men who performed each and every time out, scored a lot of points for Auburn and I think ultimately had the highest score of any men's squad in the conference meet. What more can I say about his effort, dedication to these athletes and most importantly to Auburn?"
In 21 seasons at Auburn, Shaffer has now coached 27 SEC champions.
The SEC also released its 2020 All-SEC and All-Freshman Teams on Tuesday. The First Team consists of the top finisher in each event at the SEC Championships, and the Second Team consists of the second- and third-place finishers in each event. The All-Freshman Teams consist of any redshirt or true freshman who finished either in the top eight or is the highest scoring freshman of each event at the SEC Championships, excluding relays.
The Tigers had a total of 11 student-athletes recognized, including six First Team All-SEC selections on the women's side and five on the All-Freshman Team between from both the men's and women's sides.
WOMEN
First Team All-SEC
Robyn Clevenger, Senior
Claire Fisch, Senior
AJ Kutsch, Freshman
Alison Maillard, Senior
Julie Meynen, Senior
Abbey Webb, Freshman
Second Team All-SEC
Gretchen Wensuc, Sophomore
All-Freshman Team
AJ Kutsch
Averee Preble
Abbey Webb
Gretchen Wensuc
MEN
Second Team All-SEC
Santiago Grassi, senior
Conner Pruitt, sophomore
All-Freshman Team
Skip Donald