ASU swim and dive's overall record left a bit to be desired, but its young talent provides a point of optimism for the future, making the firing of Dorsey Tierney-Walker an opportunity for a fresh start.
The men (3-9) and women (4-7) were both injury-riddled at the beginning of the season, but the women rattled off four straight during a hot stretch in December and January.
ASU struggled against the Pac-12 Conference, which has national powerhouses like USC, Cal, Stanford and Arizona. The women's win against Utah was ASU's only conference win this season.
However, young talent produced impressive results throughout the year.
Sophomore Tadas Duskinas set a school record with his time of 46.10 in the 100 butterfly at Pac-12 Championships, which qualified him for NCAAs.
Before that, ASU's team-leader in the event was freshman Patrick Park, whose time of 48.59 was ranked in the men's Pac-12 Top 25 for the event. With a year of experience under his belt, Park should be a force to be reckoned with in the future.
Although he does not directly coach them, ASU head diving coach Mark Bradshaw is a big supporter of the men's team.
"I'm a support system for them," he said. "This was probably the best group we've had since the program was self-funded with the obvious recruiting obstacles. It's been the best overall group in that time."
On the women's side, sophomore Jorie Caneta was a reliable breaststroker, winning the 200 breaststroke against a nationally-recognized Stanford program.
In addition, sophomore Ingibjorg Jonsdottir was part of the women's 200 freestyle relay team that plunged into second place in the ASU record books. She also swam her way to the fifth best 50 freestyle time in school history at Pac-12s.
Bradshaw said the women also have an optimistic future.
"The women overcame injuries, which is always tough to do," he said. "I have no doubt that with this group, we'll be set moving forward."
ASU diving was arguably the most consistent aspect of this year's team, eventually sending four divers to NCAA Championships.
Bradshaw said the diving team had a pretty good year considering the inexperience across the board.
"We were a young group and out of everyone competing, I had two seniors," he said. "The rest of the divers had never experienced qualifiers and big meets like NCAA Championships, so getting them some experience in there was big for us."
This season marked the last for senior diver Hailey Casper, one of the program's most beloved members.
Casper's career at ASU was characterized by her resilience, which paid off more than ever during her senior year.
This season, she returned to the 3-meter dive after injury in January and never looked back. She eventually placed second in the event at the National Canadian Diving Championships before winning it at the Zone E Championships.
Bradshaw praised Casper's leadership ability and said it is exactly what one would expect from a fifth-year senior.
"With her injury, she had a rough road back this season," he said. "She's been there and done that and did a great job of setting the example for the other divers."
Now that the season is over, she is looking ahead to the upcoming summer's international competition.
Freshman sensation David Hoffer won back-to-back Pac-12 Diver of the Month awards in December and January, which became the 15th and 16th times an ASU diver has won the award, the most in Pac-12 history.
Hoffer barely missed the 16-man cut for the final round of the 3-meter at NCAA Championships, placing 17th in the preliminary round.
Mara Aiacoboae, the other freshman standout, picked up a head of steam toward the end of the season, mostly because the end-of-season meets have her signature event, the platform dive.
Aiacoboae performed when it mattered, earning second place in the final round of the platform dive at the Zone E Diving Championships and fourth place in the event final at NCAA Championships.
With Casper leaving, Bradshaw said Hoffer, Aiacoboae, junior Hunter Atha and freshman Heikki Makikallio will be assuming leadership roles next year because of their experience gained this season.
"They're all at the same experience level," he said. "I will be looking for them to take what they experienced this season and set the tone for the fall because they know what it's all about now."
ASU Athletic Director Ray Anderson is holding a national search for a new head coach after informing Tierney-Walker she would not return for the 2015-16 season.
Reach the reporter at Justin.Toscano@asu.edu or follow @justintoscano3 on Twitter.
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