Lexington, Ky. ? The Southeastern Conference passed out its yearly honors on Tuesday naming Kentucky junior Taryn Ignacio Women?s Diver of the Year and Mike Lyden Women?s Diving Coach of the Year, respectively, for the second consecutive year. The Cats also had five members named All-SEC.
Ignacio had another outstanding campaign in her second season as a Cat becoming UK?s first-ever NCAA Diving Champion in the platform event, setting an NCAA record with a score of 335.20 in the finals. The Richmond, Ky., native also successfully defended her platform title at the 2006 SEC Championships. Ignacio?s other honors this season included placing second in the 1-meter event at the SEC Championships and garnering All-America honors by finishing in eighth in the same event at the NCAA Championships.
Lyden earns his eighth coach of the year award at Kentucky. He was named the SEC Diving Coach of the Year in 1995, 1996, 2002 and 2003 by the Knoxville News-Sentinel and has been designated as the league?s top diving coach in 1995, 1996 and 2005 by his peers. Under Lyden?s tutelage, Kentucky swept the women?s SEC diving titles in 2005. At the 2006 SEC Championships, UK accomplished the unthinkable by placing the top three finishers in the platform diving event (Ignacio, senior Jessica Thompson and junior Joey Brown). The Cats were also a force on the one-meter board placing four of the top six finishers. In the three-meter event, the Wildcats took four out of the top seven places.
In other SEC accolades, senior Steven Manley was honored as Kentucky?s lone first team All-SEC selection. Manley became UK?s first SEC freestyle champion in 50 years when he finished first in the 200 freestyle.
On the ladies side, senior Laura Graham, sophomore Jill Southerlan, Ignacio as well as sophomores Jenny and Heather Bradford were named second team All-SEC. Jenny finished second at the SEC Championships in the 50 freestyle while Heather finished fifth. The Bradford twins also teamed with Graham and Southerlan to help the Cats finish second at the SEC Championships in the 200 medley relay.
