March 26, 2011
Dive-by-Dive Results | WATCH LIVE TONIGHT
MINNEAPOLIS - David Boudia, J.P. Perez and Danny Cox teamed up to make Purdue diving history Saturday afternoon after each competitor qualified for the platform diving finals at the NCAA Championships tonight.
Boudia won the preliminaries with a score of 466.85. Perez (381.80) was sixth and Cox (376.60) seventh. The top eight finishers qualified for the evening finals, which are set to begin at 9:20 p.m. (EDT). ESPN3.com will provide free live video webcast coverage of the event tonight.
Purdue diving coach Adam Soldati will also be featured in an interview on the ESPN3.com webcast during the coverage of the final night of the swimming and diving championships.
Never before in program history had three Purdue divers qualified for the finals of an event at the NCAA Championships. All three Boilers are guaranteed of earning All-American honors regardless of how they finish tonight.
Boudia is aiming to become the first diver in NCAA history to sweep the national championship titles from all three boards at the same meet. He won the 1-meter diving Thursday and 3-meter Friday. Boudia also claimed the platform championship as a freshman in 2009.
Cox and Perez have qualified for the finals of an event at the NCAA Championships for the first time in their careers. Both seniors had reached the consolation finals in previous years, including Perez finishing third (11th overall) in Friday's 3-meter consolation.
All three divers were among the top eight early in the competition. Cox clinched his spot with a score of 72.60 on his final dive, a back 1 ½ somersault 3 ½ twist free (5237 D). He scored a round-high 76.80 on his second dive of the list.
Perez was consistent through his six-dive list, posting scores above 60 on all but his final dive. He had earned an award of 72.00, his best of the prelims, on his fifth dive (a forward 3 ½ somersault pike, 107 B) to compensate for a lower score on his final plunge.
Boudia scored no lower than 61 on any of his six dives and earned awards above 80 on three of his dives. A score of 97.20 on his fifth dive, a back 3 ½ somersault pike (207 B), highlighted his list.
Purdue Competitors in Platform Diving at NCAA Championships
David Boudia, 466.85 prelims - Qualified first
J.P. Perez, 381.80 prelims - Qualified sixth
Danny Cox, 376.60 prelims - Qualified seventh