UCLA
NCAA Championships
Belanger, Polyakova Highlight UCLA's First Day at NCAAs
March 21, 2019 | Swimming & Diving
AUSTIN, Tex. - Seniors Maria Polyakova and Eloise Belanger each finished top-five in the 1-meter diving finals to highlight No. 25 UCLA's first day of action at the 2019 NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center.
Polyakova placed second in the finals with a score of 346.90, her second-best of the year. Belanger joined her in the top-five with a score of 320.80, establishing a new season-best. Both will receive CSCAA First Team All-America honors for 1M.
The finals results represented improvements for both from the prelims, as Polyakova was fourth and Belanger was eighth.
Polyakova was consistent throughout her finals list, scoring between 57.50 and 62.40 points on each of her six attempts. She scored her highest mark of the day on her penultimate dive, a forward 2 ยฝ somersault pike. A 59.80 on her final dive briefly put her in the lead before Minnesota's Sarah Bacon secured the 1M title with a final score of 363.20.
Here are highlights from Maria's 1-meter finals list today!
— UCLA Swim And Dive (@UCLASwimAndDive) March 22, 2019
With a score of 346.90, she finished second at the NCAA Championships. #GoBruins pic.twitter.com/zWLIygnmVS
Belanger meanwhile found herself near the back of the pack early on in the finals, but recorded scores of 52.50 or higher on each of her final four dives to creep up to fifth place. Her highest-scoring dive of the day was her third, a forward 2 ยฝ somersault pike that netted her 59.80 points. The top-five result netted her the third CSCAA All-America honor of her career in 1M.
And here are highlights from Elo's 1M list! #GoBruins pic.twitter.com/OoPcdx0q64
— UCLA Swim And Dive (@UCLASwimAndDive) March 22, 2019
UCLA's dynamic duo will look to get back at it tomorrow, as they are both slated to compete in the 3-meter championship as well. Polyakova won 3M at both the Pac-12 and Zone E Diving Championships earlier this season, while Belanger has a pair of top-10 national finishes in that event over her prior three trips to NCAAs.
Earlier in the day, UCLA had a swimmer or relay team compete in all six scheduled swim events.
Freshman Claire Grover had the best individual performance, placing 22nd in the prelims for the 50 free with a time of 22.25, her second-best of the year.
Junior Kenisha Liu (1:58.54 in the 200 IM) and senior Sandra Soe (4:44.57 in the 500 freestyle) each placed 44th in their respective events. Neither are done for the weekend, as Liu is set to race in the 200 free and 100 free later this week while Soe will take on the mile on Saturday.
UCLA had the No. 26 team in the 400 medley relay, as Emma Schanz, Grover, Liu, and Maisie Jameson completed the race in 3:35.96, just one-thousandth of a second behind UCLA's best time in that event this year.
The NCAA Championships continue on Friday, with Bruins competing in the 200 free (Liu), 100 breast (Grover), 100 backstroke (Mara Newman), and 3-meter diving (Belanger, Polyakova).
Players Mentioned
