The BG diving team made its debut in the swim and dive Orange and Brown scrimmage Friday afternoon.
Split into two teams, the Falcons experienced real-time racing scenarios where all athletes participated. The Orange team edged the Brown team by a score of 127.50 to 112.50.
Freshman diver Devan Hennig won the 1-meter dive in three rounds. Head coach Petra Martin looks forward to having diving this year.
“With the divers, yesterday was their opportunity to show us a little bit of what they have been doing,” Martin said. “Having them with us is just awesome. It feels like we’re a complete team and we’re looking forward to more good stuff from them.”
As the younger athletes get their first collegiate racing underway, Martin sees the work of the swimmers paying off.
“I think they have done a pretty good job,” Martin said. “Obviously we’ve still got a lot to do, but they are very open. This group is very coachable, so I don’t think it will take very long for them to kind of digest all of the things we are asking them to do.”
Sophomore swimmer Victoria Griffin won four events, while freshman Estela Davis took three events. Last season, Griffin dominated in the freestyle events, and this year is starting off about the same. Griffin won the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle while anchoring the 400 freestyle relay. With regular meets coming soon, Martin is aware of the areas where improvement is needed. She said the Orange and Brown meet is good because it allows the team to race like they would in regular meets, but they can be told specifically what to work on.
“Our times were pretty good for this time of the year,” Martin said. “It’s very still early for us. Pretty much every person on the team got at least a couple pointers on what they can do better and how they can do it better.”
The first regular meet opens up Mid-American Conference play against Ball State. Before that, at the Tom Stubbs Relays, the Falcons will see other MAC teams in Akron and Toledo. Martin said she appreciates the chance to have the meets like the Orange and Brown and Tom Stubbs Relays where she can see the progress of the team.
“It’s important for us to start test all of the things we are working on under kind of a higher-pressure situation,” Martin said. “It’s another way to kind of break into the season and keep testing some of the things we are asking them to do under racing conditions.”
The next meet for the Falcons is Friday, Oct. 3, and Saturday, Oct. 4. The Tom Stubbs Relays is on Friday while the Jean Campbell Alumni Meet is the following day.
