ATLANTA – Purdue's Maggie Merriman competed for a national title in 10-meter diving for the second year in a row, claiming All-America honors with her fifth-place finish in championship final on Saturday night at the NCAA Championships.
Merriman finished top five at NCAAs for the second year in a row. She was also an All-American as a sophomore in 2020 when the CSCAA elected to recognize the nation's top performers in the wake of the cancelation of the
Merriman accounted for 14 points with her All-American performance, helping the Purdue women finish in 30th place in the team scoring at the national championship meet.
The Purdue women have had an All-American diver in 17 of the last 18 years dating back to 2004. Excluding the unique circumstances of the 2020 campaign, Merriman is Purdue's fourth female diver to be a full-fledged (top-8 finish) All-American in the same event in consecutive seasons. She joined Carrie McCambridge (1-meter and platform, 2005-06), Michelle Cabassol (3-meter, 2013-14) and Lexi Vincent (platform, 2017-18) as the Boilermakers to accomplish the feat.
Maycey Vieta, Sophie McAfee and Jenna Sonnenberg also competed for Purdue at the national championship meet. The Boilermakers had three of the top 25 finishers on the platform. On 3-meter Friday, Purdue had a pair of top-30 finishers. McAfee was one of 20 divers at the meet to compete in all three events, doing so as a freshman.
Merriman finished strong in the championship final, with her top scores (68.80, 62.40) coming into the final two rounds. She ripped her armstand in round 4 for a list-high score. That helped her climb the leaderboard into fifth place after a slow start. She finished with a list score of 286.20 in the final.
Merriman's consistency was on display in the prelim when she posted a list score of 298.55 to finish fifth among a field of 46 divers. She did not miss a dive while posting five consecutive scores between 56 and 67.20.
Merriman finished fourth on 10-meter at the USA Diving Winter Nationals in December, earning the right to represent the U.S. in the event at the FINA World Championships in May. She also has three career top-three finishes on the tower at the Big Ten Championships.
McAfee, Sonnenberg and Vieta are all slated to return for the 2022-23 season. Merriman also has the option to return for a fifth year if she exercises an eligibility extension related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PURDUE WOMEN AT 2022 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
Platform
• Maggie Merriman, 298.55 (Prelim Score) – Finished 5th in Championship Final; All-American
• Maycey Vieta, 258.20 – Finished 20th Prelims
• Sophie McAfee, 250.50 – Finished 25th in Prelims
3-Meter
• Sophie McAfee, 294.85 – Finished 26th in Prelims
• Jenna Sonnenberg, 290.15 – Finished 30th in Prelims
1-Meter
• Sophie McAfee, 260.50 – Finished 34th in Prelims
Merriman finished top five at NCAAs for the second year in a row. She was also an All-American as a sophomore in 2020 when the CSCAA elected to recognize the nation's top performers in the wake of the cancelation of the
Merriman accounted for 14 points with her All-American performance, helping the Purdue women finish in 30th place in the team scoring at the national championship meet.
The Purdue women have had an All-American diver in 17 of the last 18 years dating back to 2004. Excluding the unique circumstances of the 2020 campaign, Merriman is Purdue's fourth female diver to be a full-fledged (top-8 finish) All-American in the same event in consecutive seasons. She joined Carrie McCambridge (1-meter and platform, 2005-06), Michelle Cabassol (3-meter, 2013-14) and Lexi Vincent (platform, 2017-18) as the Boilermakers to accomplish the feat.
Maycey Vieta, Sophie McAfee and Jenna Sonnenberg also competed for Purdue at the national championship meet. The Boilermakers had three of the top 25 finishers on the platform. On 3-meter Friday, Purdue had a pair of top-30 finishers. McAfee was one of 20 divers at the meet to compete in all three events, doing so as a freshman.
Merriman finished strong in the championship final, with her top scores (68.80, 62.40) coming into the final two rounds. She ripped her armstand in round 4 for a list-high score. That helped her climb the leaderboard into fifth place after a slow start. She finished with a list score of 286.20 in the final.
Merriman's consistency was on display in the prelim when she posted a list score of 298.55 to finish fifth among a field of 46 divers. She did not miss a dive while posting five consecutive scores between 56 and 67.20.
Merriman finished fourth on 10-meter at the USA Diving Winter Nationals in December, earning the right to represent the U.S. in the event at the FINA World Championships in May. She also has three career top-three finishes on the tower at the Big Ten Championships.
McAfee, Sonnenberg and Vieta are all slated to return for the 2022-23 season. Merriman also has the option to return for a fifth year if she exercises an eligibility extension related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PURDUE WOMEN AT 2022 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
Platform
• Maggie Merriman, 298.55 (Prelim Score) – Finished 5th in Championship Final; All-American
• Maycey Vieta, 258.20 – Finished 20th Prelims
• Sophie McAfee, 250.50 – Finished 25th in Prelims
3-Meter
• Sophie McAfee, 294.85 – Finished 26th in Prelims
• Jenna Sonnenberg, 290.15 – Finished 30th in Prelims
1-Meter
• Sophie McAfee, 260.50 – Finished 34th in Prelims