An ASU diver at a meet against Stanford on Jan. 24, 2015 at the Mona Plummer Complex in Tempe. (Ben Moffat/ The State Press)Coming off its best weekend of the season where it continued its usual dominance, the ASU diving team is sending five divers to the U.S. Air Force Academy Diving Invitational in Colorado Springs, Colorado, this weekend — David Hoffer, Hailey Casper, Mara Aiacoboae, Hunter Atha and Heikki Makikiallio.
Hoffer, a freshman and one of the team’s most consistent performers, set a personal and season team-best in the 1-meter dive against Cal with a score of 393.30. He is set to compete in the 1-meter, 3-meter and platform diving events.
He followed it up the next day with another first place score of 353.18 in the 3-meter dive against Stanford.
Casper excelled against Cal with wins in both the 3-meter and 1-meter dives with scores of 349.05 and 313.80, respectively. Although she did not score as well in the 1-meter, she still netted a 302.30, which was good enough for first place in her last home meet as a Sun Devil.
A week after competing in her first 3-meter dive of the season, Casper will look to continue her success in the event at the USAFA Invitational.
She said the invitational will help the divers get ready for the NCAA Zone E Championships at the end of the season.
“We are accustomed to the dual meets that have more events, so the diving events come and go very quickly,” she said. “This weekend will give us a chance to compete in a meet with a championship-like atmosphere.”
Casper also said the diving team is like a family.
“It starts with coach (Mark) Bradshaw, who is part of the family too,” she said. “We support each other and are always pushing each other to be better.”
While most are focusing on Hoffer and Casper, Aiacoboae is quietly contributing to the team's fantastic season. On senior day against Stanford, she gave ASU nine points with a first-place finish in the 3-meter dive, scoring a 320.25 and winning by over 20 points.
Aiacoboae will compete in the 3-meter and platform dives this weekend, looking to improve on her previous scores.
Casper said she is excited about the freshmen and is looking forward to seeing what they accomplish in the future.
“David and Mara are great at putting their heads down and working, and also dealing with adversity,” she said. “Expect big things from them in the upcoming weeks.”
Atha, a junior transfer from Wisconsin, finished second behind Hoffer in the 3-meter dive against Stanford with a score of 317.55. He will be competing in the platform dive this weekend and is looking to make a statement toward the end of his first season as a Sun Devil.
Makikiallio, a freshman who has not received much attention because of the immense success of the rest of ASU’s divers this year, will also be looking to perform well in his only event at the invitational, the platform dive.
However, he has had previous success in the platform dive — he became the first Finnish diver to score over a 500 on the boy’s platform dive at the 2013 European Championships, and he is also the 2012 Nordic champion in the men’s platform.
ASU will look to sustain this season’s success in Colorado Springs, Colorado, at the USAFA Invitational Friday and Saturday.
“It’s a long season and this invite is the beginning of the end,” Casper said. “It’s a mental game — we need to stay positive and keep supporting each other.”
Reach the reporter at Justin.Toscano@asu.edu or on Twitter @justintoscano3
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