Kentucky Nabs Four Spots on Platform for NCAA Championships
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Kentucky’s diving team wrapped up the NCAA Zone C Diving Championsips with a perfect day, as all four divers competing in the platform dive earned a spot at the NCAA Championships. Rebecca Hamperian and Levi Lindsey will return to the national stage in the event after both qualifying last year, and will be joined by first-year divers Courtney Clark and Seb Masterton.
Hamperian kept up her consistent performances that she showcased through the meet, finishing third on tower with 489.00 points. The redshirt-junior scored 244.50 points in both the prelims and the finals to nab an automatic qualifying spot. Clark finished right behind Hamperian with 486.35 points, scoring 242.25 in the prelims before recording 244.10 points in the finals. Hamperian and Clark are two of 19 total female divers to earn a berth in at least one event, with Hamperian being one of just four divers who will compete on the 1-meter and 3-meter springboards in addition to the platform dive, the others being Louisville’s Andrea Acquista and Indiana’s Michal Bower and Lacey Houser. Clark will also be a multi-event competitor for the Wildcats, having earned a qualifying score in the 1-meter dive.
For the men, Masterton finished fourth in the platform dive with 681.70 points, scoring 331.00 in the prelims before improving to 350.70 in the finals. Lindsey took sixth overall with 658.60 points, notching 344.85 points and 313.75 in the finals. Both divers will compete in all three disciplines, as Masterton was an automatic qualifier in the 1-meter and 3-meter dives while Lindsey earned a spot on both springboards by virtue of finishing in the top-12 in both events while automatically qualifying in the platform dive. The two are part of a group of 15 divers that will advance to the national championship in one event, and are two of seven divers who will competing in all three. Masterton is one of just three divers who recorded automatic qualifying marks in all three, joining Ohio State’s Zhipeng Zeng and Stephen Romanik.
The 2016 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships will be held on consecutive weeks in Atlanta, Ga., hosted by Georgia Tech. The women’s championships will be held on March 16-19, while the men’s will be on March 23-26.
For the latest on the Kentucky swimming and diving program, follow @UKSwimDive on Twitter, on Facebook at Facebook.com/UKSwimDive, and on the web at ukathletics.com.
