ASU swim and dive sophomore Tadas Duskinas and freshman sensation David Hoffer had positive outings at the men’s NCAA Championships in Iowa City, Iowa, almost making the cut for the final round in their respective events.
However, this was a feat in itself considering the two Sun Devils are underclassmen with experience to gain.
Duskinas, the only men’s swimmer representing ASU at NCAAs, competed in the 100 butterfly, 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle events.
Duskinas barely missed the cut for the final round in the 100 butterfly, clocking in at 46.41 for 20th place. In the 50 freestyle, he placed 38th overall with a time of 19.87, which was his personal best for the year.
However, he placed 47th out of 49 swimmers in the 100 freestyle with a time of 44.25.
Hoffer and junior Hunter Atha represented ASU on the diving board—ASU diving has been arguably the most consistent aspect of the team this season, producing experienced and young talent alike.
Hoffer, although a 3-meter specialist, also competed in the 1-meter dive at NCAAs.
The back-to-back Pac-12 Diver of the Month for December and January missed the 16-man cut for the final round, placing 17th in the 3-meter prelims. He scored a 373.10 over his six dives, but fortunately, he is off to a great start considering his success as a freshman—a year most swimmers and divers use to acclimate to the higher competition level.
In the 1-meter, he scored a 278.80, placing 44th out of 48 total divers—however, the event was a day before the 3-meter and served as a warm-up for Hoffer’s signature event.
In his signature event, the platform dive, Atha placed 33rd out of 43 divers with a score of 305.50 in the preliminary round of the event.
The men’s NCAA Championships put an end to a year where ASU swim and dive’s young talent was put on display. Although its record and Pac-12 Championships placement wasn’t great, the Sun Devils appear to have a bright future as only two seniors out of 11 qualified members competed in NCAA championships.
ASU will now look to the offseason for improvement and added experience as some members will be participating internationally for their respective countries.
Reach the reporter at Justin.Toscano@asu.edu or follow @justintoscano3 on Twitter.
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