University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Polyakova Named Pac-12 Conference Newcomer of the Year
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SAN FRANCISCO - Maria Polyakova has been named the Pac-12 Newcomer of the Year, as announced by the conference on Wednesday.
Polyakova is the fourth Bruin diver to be named league Newcomer of the Year, joining Brittany Renfrow (2004-05), Marisa Samaniego (2005-06) and Emma Ivory-Ganja (2011-12).
The freshman had an historic initial season in Westwood, culminating in a fourth-place finish in the 3-Meter at the NCAA Championships last month. She became the first Bruin to qualify for a championship final since 2013, posting the best showing ever for a UCLA diver at NCAA’s and the best Bruin finish at Championships since 2006. During that historic performance in the 3-Meter, Polyakova broke her own school record twice with a 380.60 in the preliminaries and a 392.00 in the championship. She was also 17th in the 1-Meter at NCAA’s.
Polyakova qualified for NCAA’s after notching a second-place finish in the 1-Meter and a third-place showing in the 3-Meter at the NCAA Zone Championships in March. In all, Polyakova had seven victories and broke the 300-point mark 18 times in her freshman campaign. Four of her six victories came in November, while in December, she was named Pac-12 Diver of the Month after her initial breaking of the 3-Meter school record at the UGA Fall Invitational on Dec. 5 (361.60).
Next up for Polyakova is her first-ever trip to the FINA World Series meet being held in her native country of Russia in the city of Kazan from April 24-26. The FINA World Series is the most prestigious and exclusive international event for divers. Polyakova placed second in the 3-Meter at the Russian National Championships in January to earn her invitation to the World Series.