Rutgers University’s diving team, currently ranked sixth nationally, participated in the Navy Invitational at Lejeune Hall in Annapolis, Maryland this week. The event brought together divers from several universities including Navy, Villanova, George Washington, NC State and James Madison.
The Scarlet Knights had six divers competing and finished with strong results each day of the invitational. Sephora Ford led the team by winning both the 3-Meter and Platform events. Her performance on the platform earned her a score of 304.30, which is now the third best in Rutgers program history.
Katerina Hoffman also secured a first place finish in Friday’s 1-Meter Dive with a score of 297.80. Across all events, Rutgers achieved six podium finishes out of nine available spots: two firsts for Ford, one for Hoffman, two second places (Hoffman and Bailee Sturgill), and one third place (Madilyn Varnum).
On Thursday during the 3-Meter dive event, Rutgers swept the top four positions with Ford taking first at 316.60 points followed by Hoffman (307.50), Varnum (294.05), and Amelia Scott (280.10). In Friday’s 1-Meter Dive, five Scarlet Knights placed among the top eight competitors.
In Saturday’s Platform Dive event, Ford was Rutgers’ sole entrant but delivered a personal best that further elevated her standing within school records.
The next competition for Rutgers will be at the Minnesota Invitational scheduled for December 3-6 where the full team is expected to participate.
