LEXINGTON, Ky. – Highlighted by Ben Bramley's runner-up finish on the tower, the Purdue divers were again 3-for-3 in securing NCAA Championships qualifying spots on day 2 of the NCAA Zone C Diving Championships.
Bramley became the fourth Boilermaker to qualify for the national championship meet later this month. He was a championship finalist on the tower at NCAAs as a freshman in 2019 and was honored as an All-American again last season after the shutdown.
Emily Bretscher and Brandon Loschiavo added their premier events to their schedules at the NCAA Championships. Bretscher placed fifth on 3-meter, her sixth top-five showing at Big Tens or Zones dating back to the 2020 Big Ten Championships. Loschiavo was sixth on the tower and will compete in the event at NCAAs for the fourth time in his career. Both Boilermakers only needed to finish top 12 Monday after auto-qualifying among the top seven in Sunday's events.
Greg Duncan, Bramley, Bretscher and Loschiavo have now combined for six event berths at the NCAA Championships. Purdue has an opportunity to go 6-for-6 and 10-for-10 if Maggie Merriman, Maycey Vieta, Bretscher and Duncan can qualify in their events Tuesday. The final day of the Zone C Championships features the men on 1-meter and the women on platform.
Bramley moved up from fifth to second place on the leaderboard from the prelim to the final. He only needed to finish top 10 Monday to auto-qualify and enjoyed a 73-point cushion on 11th place. The three-time Big Ten medalist on the tower has opted to concentrate on the platform competition after also being a consolation finalist on both springboards at Big Tens. Bramley posted the top-scoring dive (72) among the field in round 1 of the final. The awards on four of his first five dives in the prelim all ranked among the top three in the field, allowing him to overcome missed dives in round 3 of the prelim and round 5 of the final.
Loschiavo improved on his prelim score by 32.3 points in the final. His scores in rounds 2 (79.20) and 4 (70.40) were both the top-scoring efforts among the field. His armstand in round 2 of the prelim (79.2) also generated the top score of the round. Just as he did in the prelim at Big Tens, he was able to close both lists Monday with an effortless 1.6 degree of difficulty dive because he was in a comfortable position on the leaderboard.
Bretscher's consistency was again her calling card as she executed her lists in such a way that she was never in danger of falling outside the top 12. The women's 3-meter event began with a field of 27 divers.
Tuesday's action begins at 10:30 a.m. ET and will again be streamed live on Vimeo.
PURDUE AT ZONE C CHAMPIONSHIPS – MONDAY'S EVENTS
Women's 3-Meter
Emily Bretscher, 608.75 (308.30 Prelim, 300.45 Final) – Finished 5th; NCAAs Qualifier
Men's Platform
Ben Bramley, 724.75 (363.95 Prelim, 360.8 Final) – Finished 2nd; NCAAs Qualifier
Brandon Loschiavo, 708.60 (338.15 Prelim, 370.45 Final) -- Finished 6th; NCAAs Qualifier
AUTOMATIC QUALIFYING SPOTS TO NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS FROM ZONE C
Top 12 in an event also qualify for NCAAs if he or she has already auto-qualified
1-Meter - Women: 7 // Men: 7
3-Meter - Women: 6 // Men: 7
Platform - Women: 10 // Men: 10
PURDUE'S TUESDAY SCHEDULE AT ZONES
Women's Platform: Emily Bretscher, Maggie Merriman, Maycey Vieta
Men's 1-Meter: Greg Duncan
Bramley became the fourth Boilermaker to qualify for the national championship meet later this month. He was a championship finalist on the tower at NCAAs as a freshman in 2019 and was honored as an All-American again last season after the shutdown.
Emily Bretscher and Brandon Loschiavo added their premier events to their schedules at the NCAA Championships. Bretscher placed fifth on 3-meter, her sixth top-five showing at Big Tens or Zones dating back to the 2020 Big Ten Championships. Loschiavo was sixth on the tower and will compete in the event at NCAAs for the fourth time in his career. Both Boilermakers only needed to finish top 12 Monday after auto-qualifying among the top seven in Sunday's events.
Greg Duncan, Bramley, Bretscher and Loschiavo have now combined for six event berths at the NCAA Championships. Purdue has an opportunity to go 6-for-6 and 10-for-10 if Maggie Merriman, Maycey Vieta, Bretscher and Duncan can qualify in their events Tuesday. The final day of the Zone C Championships features the men on 1-meter and the women on platform.
Bramley moved up from fifth to second place on the leaderboard from the prelim to the final. He only needed to finish top 10 Monday to auto-qualify and enjoyed a 73-point cushion on 11th place. The three-time Big Ten medalist on the tower has opted to concentrate on the platform competition after also being a consolation finalist on both springboards at Big Tens. Bramley posted the top-scoring dive (72) among the field in round 1 of the final. The awards on four of his first five dives in the prelim all ranked among the top three in the field, allowing him to overcome missed dives in round 3 of the prelim and round 5 of the final.
Loschiavo improved on his prelim score by 32.3 points in the final. His scores in rounds 2 (79.20) and 4 (70.40) were both the top-scoring efforts among the field. His armstand in round 2 of the prelim (79.2) also generated the top score of the round. Just as he did in the prelim at Big Tens, he was able to close both lists Monday with an effortless 1.6 degree of difficulty dive because he was in a comfortable position on the leaderboard.
Bretscher's consistency was again her calling card as she executed her lists in such a way that she was never in danger of falling outside the top 12. The women's 3-meter event began with a field of 27 divers.
Tuesday's action begins at 10:30 a.m. ET and will again be streamed live on Vimeo.
PURDUE AT ZONE C CHAMPIONSHIPS – MONDAY'S EVENTS
Women's 3-Meter
Emily Bretscher, 608.75 (308.30 Prelim, 300.45 Final) – Finished 5th; NCAAs Qualifier
Men's Platform
Ben Bramley, 724.75 (363.95 Prelim, 360.8 Final) – Finished 2nd; NCAAs Qualifier
Brandon Loschiavo, 708.60 (338.15 Prelim, 370.45 Final) -- Finished 6th; NCAAs Qualifier
AUTOMATIC QUALIFYING SPOTS TO NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS FROM ZONE C
Top 12 in an event also qualify for NCAAs if he or she has already auto-qualified
1-Meter - Women: 7 // Men: 7
3-Meter - Women: 6 // Men: 7
Platform - Women: 10 // Men: 10
PURDUE'S TUESDAY SCHEDULE AT ZONES
Women's Platform: Emily Bretscher, Maggie Merriman, Maycey Vieta
Men's 1-Meter: Greg Duncan