Three ASU seniors are headed to the NCAA championships for one last time.
Constantin Blaha, Cameron Bradshaw and Elina Eggers all earned top-three finishes in at least one event in the NCAA Zone E Championships in Colorado Springs, Colo., to punch their ticket to nationals.
This will be Blaha and Eggers’s third consecutive trip to the NCAAs, while Bradshaw qualified for the second straight time in his career.
Eggers picked up her first qualifier on Thursday in the women’s 1-meter springboard, placing third with a score of 586.60. Blaha also qualified on the first day of the meet in the men’s 3-meter, scoring 812.95.
Bradshaw’s qualifier came on Friday, when the senior finished third in the men’s 1-meter with a score of 746.60.
Eggers then went on to pick up her second and final qualifier on Saturday, winning the women’s platform event with a score of 598.50. Eggers was awarded the gold medal and Pac-12 title in the same event at the conference championships two weeks ago.
Consisting of 77 athletes from the Pac-12, Mountain West and WAC conferences, The Zone E meet did not offer much parity. Only seven other divers in the entire meet earned the rest of the 14 possible qualifiers. ASU will be the most represented Zone E team coming into the NCAA championships.
Freshman Kevin Olson was the only Sun Devil who did not earn a qualifier. Olson’s highest finish came in the men’s 3-meter finals, where he placed 15th. While dive coach Mark Bradshaw’s freshmen usually do not make it to nationals, the 15-year ASU coach has been impressed with his development all season long.
“Kevin’s improvement is just a sign of him getting more reps in practice, and he’s improved because of that,” Mark Bradshaw said. “He started off the season out of shape, but we’ve got to where he’s in shape now. Qualifying for (the) Zone Es was a huge step for him.”
Eggers will join the No. 21 ASU women’s swim team in Auburn, Ala., in the NCAA Women’s Championships beginning March 15. Blaha and Bradshaw are the only athletes representing the Sun Devils in the NCAA Men’s Championships.
Reach the reporter at jnacion@asu.edu
