Verzyl Sweeps Springboard Events at Junior Pan American Games

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina diver Sophie Verzyl capped her summer of international competition with a sweep of the springboard events, winning both the 1-meter and 3-meter at the 2025 Junior Pan American Games in Asunción, Paraguay.

Verzyl opened the meet with a silver medal in the 3-meter synchro, pairing with TCU’s Anna Kwong to reach the podium after tallying a final score of 274.50. The duo had already found success earlier this summer, capturing gold twice in the same event at the USA Diving National Championships and American Cup.

The Columbia, S.C., native went on to claim the 1-meter title with a score of 270.40, edging Mexico’s Mia Cueva by seven points. The win secured Verzyl an automatic berth to the 2027 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru.

She impressed with scores above 50 points on four dives, highlighted by a reverse 2 ½ tuck that earned 61.50 points—the highest single-dive score of the entire field. Kwong was the only other competitor to reach the 60-point mark.

Verzyl completed her sweep with gold in the 3-meter, finishing with 322.85 points to edge Cueva again, this time by just 3.40. Trailing heading into the final round, Verzyl delivered a massive 73.10 on her front 2 ½ with two twists, the dive’s high degree of difficulty vaulting her into first place.

After also earning gold in the 3-meter at the USA Diving National Championships, Verzyl closes the summer with three total gold medals. She returns to Columbia this fall for her senior season as one of the SEC’s top divers, bringing with her two conference championship medals and a collection of weekly honors from last year.