2025 SEC Championships: Women’s Diving Preview

2025 SEC Championships

• Dates: Tuesday, February 18–Saturday, February 22
• Location: Gabrielsen Natatorium, Athens, GA
• Defending Champions: Florida women (2x); Florida men (12x)
• Live Results
• Live Video: SEC Network+
• Championship Central
• Psych Sheets
• Fan Guide
• Teams: Alabama, Arkansas (women), Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas*, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt (women)

With the NCAA Swimming and Diving championship season upon us, athletes around the country are preparing to put their best foot forward in an effort to stand atop the podium. 2025 is the first year we see conference realignment take full effect, and these conference championship meets are now harder and more competitive than ever. The addition of Texas this year is sure to bolster the level of competition in this conference. Diving is already notoriously difficult to predict, but the hope is that this article will give viewers a few key standouts to look out for and a good idea of what to expect this week.

Women’s 1 Meter Picks

1. Hailey Hernandez – Texas
2. Sophie Verzyl – South Carolina
3. Montserrat Lavenant – LSU
4. Camyla Monroy – Florida
5. Helle Tuxen – LSU
6. Caroline Kupka – Texas
7. Maria Sanchez-Moreno – Arkansas
8. Avery Giese – Kentucky

Other Contenders: Bayleigh Cranford (Texas), Alejandra Estudillo (Texas), Mayson Richards (Texas A&M), Malea Martinez (Arkansas)

Women’s one-meter is arguably the diving event where “risk vs reward” comes into play most. This is the event with the highest difficulty score discrepancies between those who play it safe and those who go for broke. Ultimately, in my prediction, I chose Hailey Hernandez as my champion over others who boast an overall higher difficulty. It is Hernandez’s consistency and continued ability to perform in clutch situations that guided my decision. However, if any of the other competitors can hit their difficult dives when it matters most, expect the fight for the top spot to be fierce.

Women’s 3 Meter Picks

1. Sophie Verzyl – South Carolina
2. Alejandra Estudillo – Texas
3. Montserrat Lavenant – LSU
4. Camyla Monroy – Florida
5. Maria Sanchez-Moreno – Arkansas
6. Bayleigh Cranford – Texas
7. Hailey Hernandez – Texas
8. Helle Tuxen – LSU

Other Contenders: Taylor Fox (Texas), Kyleigh Kidd (Auburn), Caroline Kupka (Texas), Else Praasterink (Texas A&M)

It’s hard to ignore Sophie Verzyl’s impressive improvement curve over the past couple of years. After taking an Olympic redshirt last season, Verzyl is looking better than ever and primed to earn her first SEC title. However, the Mexican quartet of Estudillo, Lavenant, Monroy, and Sanchez-Moreno are not just going to let Verzyl take it. This is going to be a tight competition, but if Verzyl can execute her difficult dives in the final, I believe it’s her title to lose.

Women’s Platform Picks

1. Alejandra Estudillo – Texas
2. Maria Sanchez-Moreno – Arkansas
3. Bayleigh Cranford – Texas
4. Else Praasterink – Texas A&M
5. Montserrat Lavenant – LSU
6. Taylor Fox – Texas
7. Camyla Monroy – Florida
8. Sarah Carruthers – Texas

Other Contenders: Maggie Buckley (LSU), Abigail Farrar (Auburn), Casey Greenberg (Florida), Emily Hallifax (Auburn)

In a competition field as stacked as this one, it’s rather unconventional to predict two freshmen to take the top spots. However, these two athletes have proven in previous competitions that they are top-tier platform divers. They’ll face stiff competition from the 2023 SEC platform champion in Lavenant and the 2024 SEC platform champion in Monroy. To add to the depth of this already impressive field, the 2024 ACC gold and silver medalists in Bayleigh Cranford (previously with NC State) and Else Praasterink (previously with Louisville) will also be competing for the SEC title this season. Even through all this noise, I expect to see these two freshman phenoms rise to the occasion and establish themselves as the ones to beat come March.