Texas A&M swim and dive had a near two-month hiatus from early December to late January because of two meet cancellations that took the team out of it’s rhythm. But, the maroon and white returned to win consecutive meets against LSU and SMU to get back on pace with postseason festivities approaching.
The SEC Championships are just around the corner and this past weekend, A&M went to Colorado Springs looking to fine-tune its diving skills and come out on top against primarily western schools over the course of three days.
The Air Force Diving Invite was a success for the Aggies, setting a new school record. There were also two first-place finishes and other high placements in springboard events that took place on Thursday, Feb. 3 and Friday, Feb. 4 before the platform competitions on Saturday.
Senior diver Kurtis Mathews had a great weekend, headlined with a new men’s 3-meter springboard school record of 483.55 set on Day 2. The record was intact for nearly five years, and Mathews now holds two No. 1 program records in the 3-meter and the 1-meter, which he set at the 2020 SEC Championships.
A&M saw its most success on Day 1 of the event, when seven Aggies advanced to the finals of their respective events. Senior and sophomore divers Aimee Wilson and Victor Povzner each took first place with Wilson posting a top score of 352 in the 3-meter final, her sixth win of the year. Povzner came in at 433.55 with Mathews right behind him in second place for the men.
Junior and senior divers Alyssa Clairmont and Chloe Ceyanes joined Wilson in the women’s 3-meter final, finishing fourth and sixth, respectively, with sophomore diver Payton Props earning second place in consolation with a score of 279.20.
That success carried into Friday with the men’s and women’s teams sweeping the springboard events for a second straight day. Povzner finished behind Mathews’ record performance with a season-best 429.95.
Wilson took home another first-place finish with a 306.20 in the 1-meter final, Clairmont finishing behind her with a 295.35. Ceyanes and Props also participated in the final on Friday night, finishing fourth and seventh, respectively.
Platforms on Saturday were slightly less productive for the Aggies, but A&M still sent two divers to the finals in the afternoon with Clairmont representing the women and junior diver Tony Stewart for the men.
Stewart was the top finisher for the Aggies in third place with a score of 337.65 as Clairmont had the top preliminary round score for the women but did not compete in the final event.
The 2022 SEC Championships, hosted by the University of Tennessee, will take place from Tuesday, Feb. 15 to Saturday, Feb. 19. In last year’s championships, Wilson placed second in the 3-meter final with Mathews looking to defend his 3-meter title and Stewart looking to improve a 259.80 platform score that made him A&M’s top finisher.