Courtesy: USA Diving
Sarah Bacon won the bronze medal in the women’s 3-meter event Sunday to end the World Aquatics Diving World Cup with two medals. Team USA had five other divers also competing in Sunday’s individual finals.
Bacon, who had already won silver in synchronized 3-meter with Kassidy Cook on Friday, scored 357.85 points in Sunday’s individual 3-meter final to take bronze in that event. Bacon scored no lower than 63 points on any of her five dives, with three of them scoring 72.85 or higher, including an opening-round inward 2 ½ pike that scored 78 points.
USA’s Hailey Hernandez also advanced to the 3-meter final and finished sixth with 315.25 points in another consistent performance. Hernandez scored 60 points or higher on all five dives, including a front 3 ½ tuck and a back 2 ½ tuck that each scored 64.40 points. China’s Chen Yiwen won gold with 404.70, and Canada’s Pamela Ware scored 365.40 points for silver.
The U.S. also had two divers in the men’s 10-meter final, with Brandon Loschiavo placing seventh and Zach Cooper finishing ninth. Loschiavo scored 439.55 points, while Cooper ended his list with 425.35. Loschiavo was in 10th place after two rounds but moved up one spot after his third-round reverse 3 ½ tuck scored 81.60 points. He closed out his list with 79.20 points on a back 2 ½ with 2 ½ twists to again jump in the standings. Cooper’s highest scoring dive was his front 4 ½ tuck, which received 86.95 points. China’s Yang Hao dominated the contest with 580.25 points for gold. Japan’s Rikuto Tamai was second at 513.45, and Canadian Nathan Zsombor-Murray took bronze at 507.80.
Nike Agunbiade represented the United States in the women’s 10-meter final and placed 11th with 275.65 points, led by 63 points on her front 3 ½ pike. China took the top two spots, with Quan Hongchan leading the way at 458.20 and Chen Yuxi winning silver at 438.80. Great Britain’s Andrea Spendolini Sirieix scored 357.80 points for bronze.
Tyler Downs rounded out the U.S. divers who qualified for the finals. Downs turned in 363.15 points to finish 12th in men’s 3-meter. He was in sixth place after four rounds, highlighted by 78.20 points on his front 2 ½ with two twists in the second round, but he missed his reverse 3 ½ tuck in round five to drop to 12th. China’s Wang Zongyuan dominated with 556.75 points to win gold, and Australia’s Shixin Li took silver at 465.25. Germany’s Moritz Wesemann scored 461.45 for bronze.
The U.S. finished eighth in Sunday’s mixed team event, which was won by China.
The U.S. divers will now prepare for the upcoming USA Diving National Championships, which will be held May 17-24 in Morgantown, West Virginia and will also serve as the trials for this summer’s World Aquatics Championships.
