Johnson, Cook Win Synchronized Diving National Title With New Partners

Day two at the 2017 USA Diving Synchronized National Championships saw Olympians Steele Johnson and Kassidy Cook collect national titles with first-time partners Thursday in the Peach State. Johnson won the men’s synchronized 10-meter championship with fellow Purdue Boilermaker Brandon Loschiavo, while Cook and partner Maria Coburn bested the women’s synchronized 3-meter field. Both pairs qualified in their respective events for the 2017 FINA World Championships this summer in Budapest, Hungary, July 14-22.

Johnson, Olympic silver medalist at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on synchronized 10-meter, and Loschiavo did not leave any doubt to their new partnership as the duo won the men’s event by nearly 100 points with a score of 821.16. Jordan Windle and Ryan Hawkins of Ft. Lauderdale Diving Team finished second with 723.93 as Benjamin Bramley and Max Flory took bronze with 716.28. Max Showalter and Zach Cooper rounded out the field in fourth with 700.14. Johnson and Loschiavo will represent Team USA in the event this summer in Budapest.

Cook and Coburn topped the women’s synchronized 3-meter final with a score of 573.15. Cook, who finished 13th in Rio in the individual 3-meter event, formed a nice pairing with Coburn for the victory, outdoing the field by nearly 50 points. Cook also won silver in the event, forging a second-place finish withAlison Gibson. Coburn also won multiple medals, finishing third with Emma Ivory-Ganja. Cook and Coburn secured Team USA’s spot in the event at the upcoming FINA World Championships.

The 13&U division also featured national championship events with the boy’s synchronized 3-meter and girl’s synchronized 1-meter. Max Fowler and Finnian Gelbach finished first with a score of 563.43, with Maxwell Miller and Jacob Jonesclaiming second at 558.96 points and Nicholas Stone andTrever Cheung coming in third at 538.56. The girl’s synchronized 1-meter saw Elena Yeh and Supisara Shauntel Lim taking the top spot with 528.30, followed by Dillan DeLugoand Kamryn Wong in second at 496.02. Chloe McKnight andSydney Joiner placed third with 477.00 points.

The 2017 USA Diving Synchronized National Championships continue through April 15 at the McAuley Aquatic Center on the campus of Georgia Tech, the same pool that hosted aquatic events at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games. Tomorrow’s events begin at 9:00 a.m. ET and include the mixed synchronized 3-meter, girl’s 14-18 synchronized 3-meter, girl’s 13&U synchronized platform, boy’s 13&U synchronized platform, boy’s 14-18 synchronized 3-meter and the mixed synchronized platform. Both mixed synchronized events are finals. Cook will be in the mixed synchronized 3-meter field with fellow OlympianKatrina Young competing on mixed synchronized 10-meter.

Men’s Synchronized 10-meter Final

1. Brandon Loschiavo (Purdue University) & Steele Johnson (Purdue University) 821.16; 2. Jordan Windle (Ft. Lauderdale Diving Team) & Ryan Hawkins (Ft. Lauderdale Diving Team) 723.93; 3. Benjamin Bramley (Unattached) & Maxwell Flory (Dominion Dive Club) 716.28; 4. Max Showalter (Purdue University) & Zach Cooper (Ripfest) 700.14

Women’s Synchronized 3-meter Final

1. Kassidy Cook (Stanford University) & Maria Coburn (Longhorn Aquatics) 573.15; 2. Alison Gibson (Longhorn Aquatics) & Kassidy Cook (Stanford University) 523.71; 3. Emma Ivory-Ganja (Longhorn Aquatics) & Maria Coburn (Longhorn Aquatics) 516.99; 4. Alison Gibson (Longhorn Aquatics) & Krysta Palmer (Nevada Diving Club) 507.30; 5. Emily Grund (GC Diving) & Hailey Hernandez (GC Diving) 493.32; 6. Hailey Hernandez (GC Diving) & Mayson Richards (GC Diving) 488.16; 7. Mayson Richards (GC Diving) & Bridget O’Neil (GC Diving) 474.63; 8. Anne Fowler (Alexandria Dive Club) & Carolina Sculti (Marlins Diving Club) 473.64

13&U Boy’s Synchronized 3-meter Final

1. Max Fowler (Alexandria Dive Club) & Finnian Gelbach (Alexandria Dive Club) 563.43; 2. Maxwell Miller (Woodlands Diving Academy) & Jacob Jones (Woodlands Diving Academy) 558.96; 3. Nicholas Stone (City of Midland) & Trever Cheung (City of Midland) 538.56; 4. Dash Glasberg (Trojan Dive Club) & Joshua Thai (SoCal Divers) 537.33; 5. Jacob Fisher (Alexandria Dive Club) & Nicholas Harris (West Chester Diving) 525.24; 6. Matthew Bray (Dominion Dive Club) & Jacob Fisher (Alexandria Dive Club) 506.52; 7. Chase Marafioto (San Antonio Divers) & Hayden Elliott (San Antonio Divers) 486.51

13&U Girl’s Synchronized 1-meter Final

1. Elena Yeh (Arrow Dive Club) & Supisara Shauntel Lim (Stanford Diving) 528.30; 2. Dillan DeLugo (GC Diving) & Kamryn Wong (GC Diving) 496.02; 3. Chloe McKnight (City of Midland) & Sydney Joiner (San Antonio Divers) 477.00; 4. Grace Austin (City of Midland) & Averi McQuitty (City of Midland) 473.34; 5. Callie Borda (Montgomery Dive Club) & Michelle Mazzara (Montgomery Dive Club) 455.34; 6. Elina Natarajan (Upstate NY Diving) & Cailey Purswell (Alamo Area Aquatics Diving) 443.58; 7. Morgan Manley (Mile High Dive Club) & Geneva Pauly (Mile High Dive Club) 442.62; 8. Kaylee Bishop (Coral Springs Diving) & Campbell Long (Unattached) 438.60; 9. Averi McQuitty (City of Midland) & Chloe McKnight (City of Midland) 433.80; 10. Annie Bingle (Marlins Diving Club) & Veronica Fyfe (Marlins Diving Club) 431.58

News courtesy of USA Diving.