Feb. 11, 2011

Women’s 3M Prelims Results | Men’s 1M Prelims Results

By Wes Todd
Assistant Media Relations Director

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – South Carolina senior Taryn Zack will compete in the 3-meter finals at the SEC Championships for the fourth straight year as she finished in fifth place in preliminaries Friday afternoon at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center Natatorium.

Zack posted a score of 324.55 in the preliminary round to earn her spot in tonight’s finals. The senior from Stony Plain, Alberta, Canada, has finished no lower than fifth in any of her previous three SEC Championship appearances on the 3-meter board. She was the runner-up as a sophomore in 2009, took fourth place last year and finished fifth as a freshman in 2008. Auburn’s Vennie Dantin was the top finisher in prelims with a 346.65.

“Taryn did a great job today,” Carolina diving coach Todd Sherritt said. “She needs to sharpen up a little bit for tonight, but we’re right where we want to be heading into the finals.

Courtney Forcucci made her SEC Championships debut with a 254.25 to finish in 18th place. Sophomore Chay Malvasio also competed at the SEC meet for the first time on Friday, posting a 240.30 to finish 20th.

On the men’s side, the Gamecocks were led by sophomore Rylan Ridenour, who finished 18th in the 1-meter preliminary with a 278.40. Sophomore Nikolas Sachs finished 22nd with a 252.75, and freshman Andrew Helmich took 26th place with a 215.35 in his SEC Championships debut.

The women’s 3-meter final begins at 6 p.m. Live video is available via GatorZone.com or by clicking the link at the top of this page.