Divers Head to NCAA Zone Competition
Thursday, March 13, 2008 | Women's Swimming & Diving
The University of Florida will send to three women and two men to the NCAA Zone Diving competition, this weekend. The competition is being hosted by Auburn University and will determine who will go on to compete at the NCAA meets.
Florida will send five women, Monica Dodson, Sarah Ellerby, and Jennifer Funch, Whitney Stern and Jeana Bartell. The men will send Aaron Leech.
Dodson has led the Gators meet after meet, turning in several top finishes throughout the year. Dodson took fourth place on the three-meter spring board at the Southeastern Conference Championships with a total of 305.70 points during the finals. She accumulated her second highest point total of the year during the preliminary round, totaling 306.50 points. Dodson went on to finish seventh on the platform, finishing with 230.05 points after finishing second during preliminaries with a total of 246.65.
Ellerby had her best performance of the season against Auburn on the three-meter spring board, exhibitioning her dives for a total of 264.16 points. Ellerby's best total in on the one-meter board was during the SEC meet where she brought in 261.90 points to finish 11th. On the platform she dove to a 16th place finish with a point total of 195.00. She picked up her only win of the season against Florida Atlantic in her final meet at home, finishing with a grand total of 249.75 points on the one-meter.
Funch had her best finish at the SEC Championship meet on the three-meter board, finishing with a total of 287.20 points. She also placed 15th on the one-meter and 12th on the platform. Funch currently ranks second on the Gators' top-10 list this season after diving her way to a total of 278.62 points on the one-meter at Kentucky.
Bartell totaled 255.80 on the one meter during the SEC Championships; she later went on to score 258.20 on the three meter and 195.10 points on the platform. She earned her highest point totals of the season against Auburn on the one meter (266.64), Florida State on the three-meter (306.00) and 195.10 in the preliminaries at the SEC meet on platform.
Stern had her best finish on the one-meter at the Georgia invitational, totaling 259.95 points. She totaled 287.10 in the preliminaries at the same meet on the three-meter board and garnered 248.95 points on the platform at Georgia for her best point totals of the season.
Leech was one of two divers on the UF men's squad, picking up his best score of the year on the one-meter of 307.35 points at Tennessee. Against FAU, Leech earned a total of 318.08 to win the three-meter board.
Should any of the divers qualify for the NCAA meet they will join their teams in Columbus, Ohio for the women and Federal Way, Washington for the men.
Schedule:
| Friday, March 14 | Saturday, March 15 | Sunday, March 16 |
