KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — LSU divers Rebecca St. Germain, Daniel Helm and Sean McKinney advanced to the final of their respective springboard events Monday to highlight the Tiger efforts on Day 1 of the Tennessee Diving Invitational.
St. Germain executed a pair of fine dives in her final two attempts in the women’s three-meter final to close strong with a 296.15 score and take eighth overall. The San Antonio native qualified for the final after placing eighth out of 44 competitors in the prelims with 281.50 points.
Helm delivered 10th in the men’s one-meter final (274.45) after tying for sixth out of 51 divers in the prelims with a 307.90 score. McKinney followed up an 11th-place finish and mark of 289.00 in the one-meter prelims with a 12th-place finish in the final (255.15).
Junior Brian Gemberling registered 16th in the one-meter with a 279.50 score, while fellow junior Matt Vieke was 21st (271.25). Lady Tigers’ sophomore Elle Schmidt posted an 18th-place finish in the three-meter (238.90).
“We were a little rusty getting back into the groove of things after the holidays in a marathon event, but I’m proud of Sean, Daniel and Becca making it back to the finals this afternoon,” co-head coach Doug Shaffer said.
“Becca performed well under the circumstances since she had been battling an illness coming into this competition. I am optimistic and confident that we will perform stronger tomorrow.”
The men and women will switch springboards for Day 2 of the Tennessee Diving Invite. Prelim action is slated to begin at 11 a.m. (CST). Live results can be accessed on www.divemeets.com.