Feb. 5, 2011
Iowa City, Ia. -- Divers Loren Figueroa, David Bonuchi, Christina Gailey and Dante Jones are making Missouri history this week at the USA Senior National Championships, held in Iowa City, Ia. The group, along with dive coach Jamie Sweeney, traveled this week to compete against the best divers in the country, and have made their presence known with dominating performances.
Performing at an incredibly high level in just her first college season, freshman Loren Figueroa has certainly made her presence known in the college diving circuit. Just a week after setting an all-time Missouri record in the 3 meter dive (376.05 points), Figueroa placed second in the national 1 meter dive competition today in Iowa. Her score of 283.90 was just 2.5 points shy of first-place finisher Kelci Bryant, a 2008 Olympian and 2010 NCAA Champion. Figueroa's silver medal finish qualifies her for the World University Games, held in China this summer, and is her highest ever score in the event (5 dives).
Fellow freshman David Bonuchi had an incredible day as well. Bonuchi qualified for the 3 meter diving finals, placing eighth in the event with 418.75 points. His scores qualified him for the Olympic trials in both the 3 meter and 10 meter competitions. Bonuchi also competed in the synchronized men's 3 meter springboard, where he placed second in the nation along with partner Michael Hixon, a 16 year old Connecticut diver. Their stellar performance qualifies the duo for the FINA Grand Prix, an elite international meet held in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. in May.
After strong performances in the women's 10 meter platform prelims and semifinals, senior Christina Gailey qualified for her first ever national finals, where her score of 248.30 earned her a 12th place finish.
Senior Dante Jones also competed in the men's 10 meter platform prelims, finishing in sixth place and qualifying him for finals competition tomorrow. Jones will compete in semifinals at 10:00 am and finals at 3:00 pm.
Overall, the Tigers had their most impressive performance of the season, and did so on the national stage. Every Missouri diver advanced to finals in their events, tallying five finals performances overall, with two silver medals.
UPDATE: Senior diver Dante Jones finished competition Sunday afternoon, taking ninth place at USA Nationals and qualifying for the Olympic Trials in that event.
### MIZZOU SWIMMING AND DIVING ###