HOUSTON -- Freshman diver Cassie Weil snagged a third place finish on the women's three-meter springboard at the NCAA Zone 'D' Diving Regionals hosted at the CRWC Natatorium in Houston, Texas to earn a spot at the NCAA Championships.
"Cassie solidified her spot to the NCAA Championships with a stellar performance on the three-meter," Diving Coach Doug Shaffer said. "We've preached all year that this is a 12-dive contest. She struggled a bit in the prelims, but she never lost faith."
Eight men and seven women will emerge from the field to earn a spot at the NCAA Championships through a qualifying process that involves final places on the one-meter, three-meter and platform.
Tomorrow, the men's three-meter begins at 11 a.m. and the women's one-meter begins at 4:30 p.m. Five men's spots and four women's spots for the NCAA Championships are still up for grabs.
Weil registered a 12-line score of 662.70 after notching a final mark of 345.90 and a prelim mark of 316.80.
Junior Sean McKinney finished his one-meter run in seventh place after scoring a 12-line total of 653.80 and posting a 320.60 in the prelims. McKinney's final round score of 333.20 was 1.60 points less than his career best.
Junior Kevin Leong took eighth on the one-meter with a 12-line total of 645.55 after scoring a 308.75 in the prelims. Leong's final round total of 336.80 is LSU's 10th best all-time score for the event.
Sophomore Alex Bettridge ended her three-meter run in 13th place with a 12-line total of 573.75. The Austin, Texas native compiled a prelim score of 305.90 and a final score of 267.85.
"The men were really solid today," Shaffer said. "They were gamers and players today. This championship is really an elite field. I think we have a better opportunity on three-meter tomorrow for the men and on the one-meter for the women. That is really Alex's best event. We're taking it one day at a time."
Freshman Allie Alter scored a prelim score of 254.10 on the three-meter.
Zone 'D' Region consists of LSU, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Texas, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, TCU, Iowa State, Houston, Kansas, SMU, North Texas, North Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota State, Texas A&M and Missouri State.
For live results head to DiveMeets.com. Please visit LSUSports.net/fancage to stay connected to the program as the NCAA Championships approach.
