The Florida women’s diving team finished the Auburn Invitational strong on Wednesday, as the youth of the team proved most valuable for the Gators en route to a first-place finish.
Freshman Lauren Snider stood out in the platform event to lead the women on Day 3.
Snider finished fifth behind a score of 211.0 and helped the women capture a first-place finish overall with 184 points. The team dominated the competition, outlasting the second-place South Carolina Gamecocks (108) by 76 points.
Diving coach Bryan Gillooly was impressed with the team's performance due to a key diver being unable to compete in the invitational.
"The women's team was really solid in the absence of Brooke (Madden) as she was dealing with a nagging injury," Gillooly said in a release. "Lauren Snider is just starting to put things together on platform and will be really good in the future."
Four other women managed to crack the top 10. Sophomore Emma Whitner finished her week with a sixth-place finish on platform thanks to a score of 203.35.
Senior Teya Syskakis (190.50) claimed seventh, freshman Elizabeth Perez (165.40) collected a ninth-place finish and junior Boni Trinter finished in 10th place with a career-high 161.65 points.
Lyle Hayes-Macaluso led the men after a career-best performance on platform.
The Fort Lauderdale, Florida, native took fourth place on Day 3, scoring 327.55.
Junior Alex Farrow (243.05) and freshman Nick Lydon (240.80) finished back-to-back on Wednesday, adding two top-10 finishes after placing eighth and ninth, respectively.
Freshman Santiago Morales narrowly missed out on a top-10 result, finishing in 11th place after a score of 206.10.
The men's team finished the invitational in fourth place with 93 points, just a point behind South Carolina for third.
UF will compete next at home on Jan. 4 and 5, where it will host the Kentucky Wildcats and Ohio State Buckeyes.
Follow Evan Lepak on Twitter @evanmplepak or contact him at elepak@alligator.org.
The UF women's diving team took first place at the Auburn Invitational with a total score of 184 points, 76 more than second-place South Carolina.
