Feb. 20, 2004
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - Sophomore diver Carrie McCambridge captured her second springboard title in as many nights, winning the 3-meter competition with a final score of 544.35 Friday at the Big Ten Championships.
McCambridge won the 1-meter title Thursday night with a 321.80 and will compete off the platform Saturday, in an attempt to sweep all three diving events.
Head coach Cathy Wright-Eger credits McCambridge's attitude as being a difference maker.
"I've never seen an athlete at Purdue who possesses this much confidence," said Wright-Eger, who has experienced 17 postseasons as Boilermaker head coach. "She is an absolutely amazing talent and just dominated her competition tonight."
McCambridge's closest competitor was Ohio State's Julie Broms, who posted a mark of 530.65. Purdue also received points from freshman Amanda Miller, who registered a 13th-place score of 414.80.
McCambridge trailed Broms after Friday's prelim session, but went on to dominate the semifinal and final rounds. She is the first Purdue swimmer or diver to win two events at one championship meet since 1980 when Sally Johnson won the 200 and 400 individual medleys.
In the pool, Purdue began its night shift with a solid seventh-place outing in the 400 medley relay. The team, which was comprised of Katherine Telfer, Erica Chandler, Christine Leupold and Susan Hentschel, recorded a season-best time of 3:47.18. Chandler, Leupold and Hentschel clocked lifetime-best splits in this race, with Chandler posting a 1:04.73 in the breaststroke, Leupold a 55.26 in the butterfly and Hentschel a 49.63 in the freestyle.
Chandler and Leupold moved on to score more points in the 200 freestyle. Chandler placed seventh with a time of 1:48.62 and Leupold touched the wall 13th at 1:49.88.
Rookie Jennifer Merte improved two places in the 400 individual medley. During prelims, Merte placed 16th with a 4:27.08, but jumped to 14th in the finals with a 4:25.56.
"We dropped from fifth to sixth place today, so we just have to come back tomorrow and not give up," said Wright-Eger. "I'm very pleased with where we are in the standings, considering all the new people who are competing in their very first championship meet. In a conference this tough, it would be awesome for us to finish in fifth place."
Purdue's point total of 225 is 62 points behind fifth-place Minnesota. Indiana, Michigan, Penn State and Wisconsin comprise the top four.
Purdue begins its final day of competition Saturday with the running of the 1,650 free, 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, 200 fly, the 400 free relay and the platform diving competitions.
Saturday's preliminary sessions begin at 11 a.m. CST; live results can be accessed through www.bigten.org.