"We thought we'd do pretty good, but I didn't dream we'd do this good our first time out," Colwill said. "It was such a fun feeling. I've been in synchro before, but never at this level."
Colwill and Tarantino beat 2006 World Cup silver medalists Troy Dumais (Ventura, Calif.) and Mitch Richeson (Greenwood, Ind.), who scored 378.84 points. David Boudia (Noblesville, Ind.) and Thomas Finchum (Indianapolis) were third at 376.38.
"It's unbelievable. It's been awhile since I've been on the first-place podium at nationals," said Tarantino, who won the 2005 national championship on 1-meter. "We didn't just dive OK. We did great."
In women's 10-meter synchro, 14-year-olds Ishimatsu and Dunnichay scored 326.10 points to win their first senior national championship. Laura Wilkinson (Spring, Texas) and Jessica Livingston (The Woodlands, Texas), won silver with 302.22 points, and Kaylea Arnett (Spring, Texas) and Michelle Cabassol (Montgomery, Texas) won bronze at 263.28.
"It's really cool that we're senior national champions. When I first started diving, I never thought I would get here this quickly," Ishimatsu said.
Dunnichay and Ishimatsu were in second place through the first three rounds but overtook Wilkinson and Livingston after the fourth round, although they did not know where they stood.
"We don't like to look at the scores. We can't control the judges, so we just do the best we can, and we did that," Dunnichay said. "It feels good."
Thursday's competition also included semifinals for women's 10-meter and men's 3-meter. Wilkinson will head into the finals as the top seed after winning the semis with 333.20 points. Dunnichay was fourth with 272.95 points, and Ishimatsu was fifth at 255.85. Chen Ni, a Chinese diver living in the United States for the year, was second at 301.80, and Cassandra Cardinell (Loudonville, N.Y) was third with 285.60 points.
Tarantino topped the list of divers advancing to the men's 3-meter finals. He was the only diver to score more than 400 points and finished at 418.65. Diving in his home pool, Matt Cooper (Bethesda, Md.) finished second at 388.00, and Brandon Watson (Riverton, Utah) was third with 382.75 points. Troy Dumais (Austin, Texas) took fourth with 356.85 points, and Zachary Schultz (Chicago, Ill.) was fifth at 354.95.
The women's 10-meter and men's 3-meter finals will be held Saturday, April 21, starting at 2 p.m.
REMAINING EVENTS:
- Fri., April 20:
- 11 a.m. - men's 10M semis
- 1:15 p.m. - men's 10M synchro semis
- 3 p.m. - women's 3M semis
- 5:15 p.m. - women's 3M synchro semis
- 7 p.m. -men's 10M synchro finals, followed by women's 3M synchro finals
- Sat., April 21: 2 p.m. - men's 3M final, followed by women's 10M final
- Sun., April 22: 1 p.m. - women's 3M final, followed by men's 10M final
Speedo USA Diving Spring National Championships Results TOP 10 - April 19, 2007
Women's Platform Semifinals1. Laura Wilkinson, The Woodlands Diving Academy, 333.20;2. Chen Ni, Unattached, 301.80;3. Cassandra Cardinell, Indiana University, 285.60; 4. Mary Dunnichay, Unattached, 272.95; 5. Haley Ishimatsu, National Training Center, 255.85; 6. Aleia Monden, Florida State University, 245.30; 7. Jessica Livingston, University of Texas, 241.70; 8. Heather Bounds, University of Miami, 241.10; 9. Kimberly Popp, Unattached, 240.30; 10. Tess Schofield, UCLA Diving, 238.20.
Men's 3-meter Semifinals
1. Jevon Tarantino, Ft Lauderdale Diving Team, 418.65; 2. Matthew Cooper, Montgomery Dive Club, 388.00; 3. Brandon Watson, Unattached, 382.75; 4. Troy Dumais, Longhorn Aquatics, 356.85; 5. Zachary Schultz, Boilermaker Diving Academy, 354.95;6. Chris Colwill, Unattached, 352.45; 7. Mitch Richeson, U.S. Elite Diving Academy, 348.05;8. Kristian Ipsen, Diablo Divers, 343.45; 9. Jesse Rappaport, Indiana Diving, 341.90; 10. Thomas Finchum, Unattached, 339.40.
Synchronized Women's Platform Final
1. Haley Ishimatsu, Unattached, Mary Beth Dunnichay, Unattached, 326.10; 2. Jessica Livingston, The Woodlands Diving Academy, Laura Wilkinson, The Woodlands Diving Academy, 302.22; 3. Michelle Cabassol, The Woodlands Diving Academy, Kaylea Arnett, The Woodlands Diving Academy, 263.28; 4. Heather Bounds, University of Miami, Cassandra Cardinell, Indiana University, 246.90.
Synchronized Men's 3-meter Final
1. Jevon Tarantino, Ft Lauderdale Diving Team, Chris Colwill, unattached, 436.83; 2. Troy Dumais, Longhorn Aquatics, Mitch Richeson, U.S. Elite Diving Academy, 378.84; 3. David Boudia, Unattached, Thomas Finchum, Unattached, 376.38; 4. Brandon Watson, Unattached, Derek Starks, University of Miami, 370.29; 5. Burkley Showe, Unattached, 354.21, Justin Wilcock, Unattached, 354.21; 6. Sean Moore, Mile High Dive Club, Andrew Brown, Mile High Dive Club, 347.01; 7. Zachary Schultz, Boilermaker Diving Academy Steven Lobue, Boilermaker Diving Academy, 335.79; 8. David Colturi, Legacy Diving Assoc., Aaron Feight, Altitude Divers, 328.47; 9. Mike Wong, Pacific Diving Academy, Rex Hughes, Pacific Diving Academy, 292.08; 10. Taylor Roberts, Indiana Diving, Jesse Rappaport, Indiana Diving, 290.22.
About USA Diving: Featuring America’s best divers, USA Diving is the national governing body for the sport of diving. Headquartered in Indianapolis, USA Diving offers diversified programs geared toward the broadest number of diving enthusiasts, from the novice to the world champion. USA Diving conducts approximately 40 regional and national events annually and is responsible for training and selecting teams that represent the United States at international events such as the Olympic Games, World Championships and World Cup. For additional information please visit www.usadiving.org.
