BATON ROUGE, La. – Sophomore Juan Celaya-Hernandez and junior Matthew Phillip will represent LSU at the 2018 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The meet starts later today at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center with the 800 freestyle relay, but the diving events start tomorrow and run through Saturday.
“Juan and Matthew have been training hard going into NCAA’s,” said LSU diving coach Doug Shaffer. “They know what needs to be done, and I’m fully confident that they’re prepared and where they need to be based on not just this past week, but what they’ve done all year long.”
“For Juan and Matthew, their previous experience at NCAAs is immensely valuable,” Shaffer explained. “Last year was the first appearance for both of them, so you gain a wealth of experience knowing what you’re going into. They know the judging, the facility, the competition, and so much more. This is a strong, deep field, and we’re part of that. We’re looking to go in and do what we’ve been doing all year long, and that’s to stay grounded and focused and do what we know we can do.”
For Celaya-Hernandez, this will be his second NCAA Championships. Last season, the sophomore finished third on three-meter springboard and ninth on one-meter to earn All-America Honors in both events. Celaya-Hernandez also finished 27th on platform.
After a standout performance at the 2018 NCAA Zone ‘D’ Diving Regionals, Celaya-Hernandez will once again be competing on all three boards. At Zones, the Mexico native finished first on three-meter, second on one-meter, and 12th on platform.
Junior Matthew Phillip will be competing Saturday on platform. The platform specialist will be making his second NCAA Championship appearance. Last season, he finished 23rd on platform and 34th on three-meter.
At Zones, Phillip took bronze on platform with a score of 726.60.
Celaya-Hernandez and Phillip will begin their NCAA Championships tomorrow with one-meter, and continue with three-meter and platform on Friday and Saturday, respectively. If either makes the top eight following the prelims each afternoon, they will advance to the finals that evening. If they finish between 9th and 16th, they will compete in the consolation finals 15 minutes after the conclusion of the prelims.
Live Results:
Divemeets: http://bit.ly/2DIUKsw
Broadcasting (All on BTN2GO unless otherwise stated):
Thursday – 1-meter springboard:
Prelims: http://bit.ly/2GPQ0V4
Finals: http://bit.ly/2HVLgg5
Friday – 3-meter springboard:
Prelims: http://bit.ly/2pAddDx
Finals: ESPN3
Saturday – platform:
Prelims- http://bit.ly/2Gbef21
Finals: ESPN3
For more information and updates on LSU Swimming and Diving please visit LSUsports.net, ‘like’ us on Facebook at LSU Swimming and Diving or follow us on Twitter and Instagram @LSUswimdive.