Flory, Scapens Punch Tickets to NCAA Championships
ATHENS, Ga. – A pair of Miami Hurricanes had impressive debuts in NCAA Zone B qualifiers Monday, punching their tickets to the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships later this month in the 3-meter springboard.
Freshmen Max Flory and Brodie Scapens were among the day’s top performers at the Gabrielsen Natatorium in the campus of the University of Georgia, finishing second and third, respectively.
“I would say that was their best performance on 3-meter of the whole year,” head diving coach Randy Ableman said. “It was a nice time to do it, obviously. 3-meter isn’t their forte – their game is platform, and they’ve been working hard to expand their repertoire.”
Flory, who won the morning’s preliminary round, finished second with a score of 781.00. Not far behind was Scapens (767.90), who impressed Ableman with his efforts Monday.
“Brodie has come such a long way on springboard. He’s going to end up being a really good springboard diver. It was the best performances of their careers to this point, and they still have more to give.”
Flory, who posted the top score in the morning round (387.15), was just behind Anton Down Jenkins of South Carolina (791.40) for the top spot in the night’s finals.
“We’re extremely steady, especially for just being freshmen,” Ableman said. “They handled it no problem. They’re a little tired now and got a lot on their plate. They leave early tomorrow morning to start warming up and they’re going to try to do all three events, finishing off with the platform Wednesday.”
Ableman said that, despite the duo making their NCAA Zone debut, he was unsurprised with their determination on the boards against a talented field. Flory and Scapens were two of eight divers to punch automatic tickets to the NCAA Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., from March 26-28.
“I expected them to be in the top 10, but they got off to a great start and kept on rolling and gaining confidence,” Ableman said. “Max was upset on that last dive – if he hit his last one, he would have won, and that’s what he wanted. I just love that attitude. Even though we’re just getting going, he’s in there fighting and expecting to win.”
The Hurricanes likely would have had another freshman qualify – Mia Vallée in the 1-meter – but she fell just short after a late trip-up in the final rounds. Vallée finished 24th (243.00), joined by senior Alicia Blagg (266.95, 12th), sophomore Millie Haffety (262.90, 16th) and freshman Jessie Creed (237.55, 28th).
Vallée was in first place through the first five rounds of the 1-meter.
“Hopefully, and this is what I talked to her briefly after the contest, she puts things into perspective,” Ableman said. “She proved to everyone she’s one of the best divers here, and she had a terrible knee buckle and it knocked her out of contention, but people know who she is and what she can do. Hopefully she can bounce back tomorrow. She was upset obviously, but hopefully she can get past that and take the good that she’s diving well and she’s better on 3-meter. Sometimes you have to be punched in the face before you learn how to battle through and fight back.
“I’m looking forward to tomorrow and her future, she’s going to be a great one for us.”
Flory and Scapens will compete in the 1-meter springboard Tuesday, while Creed, Haffety and Vallée compete in the 3-meter.
