Herrera Qualifies for Finals in 1-Meter at NCAAs
AUSTIN, Texas – Step 1: complete.
University of Miami redshirt senior Briadam Herrera qualified for one of eight spots in the finals of the 1-meter springboard at the 2019 NCAA Men’s Swimming & Diving Championships Thursday afternoon.
Now it’s onto Step 2.
After finishing in third place with 356.35 points in the morning’s preliminary round, the Cuba native is looking to become the 14th Miami diver to win a national championship under head coach Randy Ableman.
Thursday night’s finals start at 8 p.m. ET.
After a slow start, Herrera rebounded with a strong finish to secure a spot in the finals and the sixth NCAA All-America recognition of his career.
“I was pretty excited at the beginning, but the event is pretty long, so I slowed down a little bit in between,” Herrera said. “It wasn’t my best performance, but it was enough to make the finals, and I’m excited for that. [Tonight] should be a lot better.”
Ableman said that a field of nearly 50 divers in the 1-meter can throw off the focus of any individual.
“It’s tough to stay locked in that long, when it feels like there’s 30 minutes in between dives,” he said. “The goal this afternoon was to get one of eight spots, and everything resets tonight. Now it’s time to turn our attention to the next goal.”
Herrera’s fifth dive – an inward 2 ½ somersault pike that scored 69.70 points – was his best dive of the afternoon at the Lee & Joe Jamail Texas Swim Center.
“That was a very key dive for him,” Ableman said. “But he can do all his dives like that. He has so many weapons. If he misses one a little bit, he has so many dives he can come back with. He just has to get on a roll tonight.”
He followed it up with a reverse 1 ½ somersault, 2 ½ twist free on his sixth and final dive.
“I wanted to make sure to make it, first of all, to continue onto the finals. I had to make sure did those as well as I could,” Herrera said of his strong finish.
Herrera now turns his focus to the night’s finals, where he faces a talented field of 1-meter competitors.
“I have to be sharp, focused. I’ll have the energy, so I just have to be on my game,” Herrera said.
