Waxman, Grant Snag Top 15 Spots on Third Day of Texas Diving Invitational

AUSTIN, Texas – Holly Waxman and Kathryn Grant both earned spots inside the top 15 in the 1m while Ben Smyth registered his team's best mark in the 3m as the University of Utah diving team competed on day three of the Texas Diving Invitational, which was held on Friday inside the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center.
 
"Today was similar to yesterday," said diving coach Richard Marschner. "It's a little frustrating because we know we can be better and that we can be good, but what we're interested in is becoming great. Oftentimes, that means results may suffer during the process of becoming great, but we aren't going to compromise our long-term goals for short-term success. The goals we have require greatness and I'm proud of our team for keeping that focus."
 
For Waxman, her hard work in the 1m paid off in form of a score of 265.95, marking the fifth time in five competitions she's surpassed the NCAA qualifying standard in that event and landing her in 12th. Just a few spots behind her teammate was Grant in 15th, as she piled up 261.20 points.
 
Smyth's point total of 317.05 dropped him into 17th in the men's 3m, while the Utes' second-best score belonged to Jenner Pennock, who finished with 288.65 points to place 21st and Luke McDivitt finished the day in 23rd.
 
"Ben had a really nice 3m list," said Marschner, "and we tried a brand-new dive for his final round and it caused his overall score to suffer, but that dive will be there for him in February and March because of the experience we got with it here."
 
Looking Ahead
Saturday is the final day of the Texas Diving Invitational and it begin with the women's platform at 9:30 a.m. MT.
 
Follow the Utes!
For fans of the Utah men's/women's swimming and diving programs, follow the Utes on Twitter (@UTAHswimdive), Instagram (@utahswimdive) and Facebook (@UtahUtesSwimDive).