March 13, 2013
CHICAGO – Mike Greco, Connor Howard and Whitney Johnson make their way to West Lafayette, Ind., to compete at the 2013 NCAA Zone C Diving Championship, running Thursday through Saturday. Hosted by Purdue, competition gets underway with prelims at 9 a.m. (CT) and finals at noon Thursday and Friday at the Boilermaker Aquatic Center.
The Flames enter into competition vying for a spot to the NCAA Championships among the region's elite. The top 18 finishers in the prelims advance to the championship rounds, from which the top four in the 3-meter, top three in the 1-meter and top top in the platform move on to compete March 28-30 in Indianapolis, Ind.
Through competition this season, Greco and Howard were able to meet the NCAA qualifying standard of 300 on 1-meter and 320 on 3-meter a total of 16 times. Greco tallied 14 qualifying scores, eight on 1-meter and six on 3-meter, as Howard came in with two on 1-meter.
A senior from Naperville, Ill., Greco came away with 20 first-place finishes this season out of a possible 27, while earning the Horizon League Diver of the Week honor four times. Greco's season-high scores came at the UIC Diving Invitational on Jan. 26, scoring a career-high 326.00 on the 1-meter board and a 359.65 on the 3-meter.
A Homer Glen, Ill., native, sophomore Howard finished in the top three 18 times this season. Career bests were produced at the UIC Diving Invitational, after Howard scored a second-place 323.90 on the 1-meter and a score of 312.50 on the 3-meter.
Johnson was faced with NCAA qualifying standards of 265 on 1-meter and 280 on 3-meter, and was able to exceed those scores 11 times, seven from the 1-meter and four from the 3-meter.
A sophomore out of Roscoe, Ill., Johnson took first place 17 times through 28 events, as she was named Horizon League Diver of the Week on five occasions. Johnson captured career-high scores on both boards this season, taking a first-place 296.95 at the HL Championships, setting a school and Championship record, and recording a score of 306.50 at the UIC Diving Invitational.
The Flames hit the boards beginning with prelims on Thursday, with the men competing on the 1-meter and the women taking to the 3-meter, before switching on Friday as the men dive off the 3-meter and the women head to the 1-meter. While UIC does not compete in the event, platform diving takes place on Saturday.
Live results can be found at www.divemeets.com
Schedule of Events
Thursday, March 14
Prelims begin at 9 a.m. (CT)
Men’s 1-Meter
Women’s 3-Meter
Friday, March 15
Prelims begin at 9 a.m. (CT)
Men’s 3-Meter
Women’s 1-Meter
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