Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Divers Impressive at Diving National Championships
8/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
Aug. 4, 2006
INDIANAPOLIS - Rising Indiana junior Christina Loukas and 2005 Hoosier graduate Cassandra Cardinell are leading their respective events heading into the finals of the 2006 Kaiser Permanente National Championships, which are being contested at the Indiana University Natatorium on the campus of IUPUI.
In the preliminary/quarterfinal round of the three-meter dive on Aug. 3, Loukas finished second with a score of 268.50, advancing to the semifinals. There, Loukas turned in a score of 277.65 to top the field. The Riverwoods, Ill., native will contend for the national title on Saturday, Aug. 5.
Rising Indiana senior Lindsay Weigle also participated in the three-meter, turning in a score of 204.25 in the preliminary round to finish 22nd.
Four current or former Hoosiers competed in the platform dive on Aug. 2, with Cardinell leading the way with a second-place finish in the preliminary/quarterfinals with a score of 317.15. She topped that with a 338.55 effort to claim the top spot in the semifinals, advancing to the finals on Aug. 4.
Weigle also advanced to the semifinal and final rounds, turning in a score of 230.35 in the first round, good for 12th place, and following that up with a 10th-place score of 237.45 in the semis. Weigle will also compete in Friday's finals.
Also competing in the platform prelims were rising senior Heather Chapman and rising junior Jade Summerlin. Chapman finished 21st with a score of 205.60, while Summerlin was 24th with her 178.80 effort.
Loukas was Indiana's lone representative in the one-meter, which was contested on Aug. 2. After posting the top scores in both the preliminary/quarterfinal (263.60) and semifinal (272.95) rounds, Loukas slipped to sixth in the final with a score of (230.05).
The National Championships resume on Aug. 4, with the platform finals slated for a 6:45 p.m. start and the syncro platform finals set for an 8:35 start.
