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Friday, 24 August 2012 15:43
Dive Osceola has 3 members at top of novice rankings
By Rick Pedone
Sports Editor
Just one year into their competitive diving careers, three Osceola County athletes already are ranked No. 1 nationally in their respective age groups.
Osceola High student Josue Herrera, 17, and St. Cloud residents Lexi Waechter, 14, and her 9-year-old brother, Skylar Waechter, are atop the recent DiveMeets national rankings of AAU novice division divers.
They and about 20 more athletes compete for Coach Ron Minor’s Dive Osceola team at the Osceola Y.
Minor, formerly with the Kissimmee Swimming Association, moved to the Y last spring and said the talented trio of divers has one thing in common.
“Every one of them has a gymnastics background, and I think that’s helped them adapt and thrive in diving,” Minor, a former competitive diver, said.
He said all three divers are serious about the sport.
“They are all hard working athletes. These three are all business when they are at the pool, and at competitions they are in their zone,” he said.
The divers practice two hours daily, five times a week, Minor said.
If the workload is too much, the divers aren’t telling.
“The thing I enjoy about it is that I am doing something that not too many people can do. I like to acquire new skills,” Herrera said.
Last year, as a beginner, Herrera reached the regionals for Osceola High.
“That was remarkable,” Minor said.
OHS swimming coach Krystle Singleton said she recruited Herrera to the team by constantly posting “Hey! Join the dive team!” in his journal.
“I probably annoyed him to death,” she said. “Between him and Jordan (Parrish) and a few newcomers, our diving team is looking very strong.”
Minor and Dive Osceola assistant coach Jane Adams will coach the OHS divers this season.
Skylar Waechter, one of the younger members of the diving team, said his favorite dive is a front one and a half.
“I like to flip,” he said.
He remembers his first attempt to dive.
“I did three pencils (feet-first dives),” he said. “But, I can’t do pencils anymore.”
His first acrobatic dives were tucks, he said.
“Now, I just do them to warm up. I do a ton of flips,” he said.
Lexi Waechter still competes in gymnastics but said she is leaning toward diving as her favorite sport. She got interested when friends finally persuaded her to give it a try.
“I’ve been doing gymnastics since I was 4, so 10 years,” she said. “I like diving a lot more. For one thing, it’s a lot less painful.”
The divers execute off the 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards at the Osceola Y. They soon will gain more experience on the platform, 10-meters high.
Herrera said he prefers diving from 3 meters.
“You don’t have to twist as fast,” he said.
All three said they would like to continue through the ranks and eventually earn a college scholarship.
“Maybe the Olympics one day,” Herrera said.
Minor said those ambitions will take many years to realize.
“It’s very difficult to get a college diving scholarship, but these three have that potential,” he said.
Minor expects the divers to graduate from the novice to the more competitive J.O. (Junior Olympic) division soon.
“They already are working hard, but when they move to the J.O. division, they’ll be working harder,” he said. “They’ll also be competing at more meets. Every month there is at least one meet, but when they graduate to J.O.s, there are three meets in July alone.”
At a competition at the Y last weekend, all three divers excelled.
Herrera won 1-meter novice (255.20 points) and Group A 1-meter boys age 16-18 with 376.70 points.
Lexi Waechter won the girls (age 14-15) 1-meter novice competition with 200.65 points.
Skylar Waechter won boys age 10-11 1-meter novice (138.75) and Group D boys 1-meter age 1-under (135.95) titles.
Dive Osceola won both the boys and girls championships.
Several high school and college divers are working out with Dive Osceola this summer, Minor said.
Daytona State diver Zeke Amos, fifth in the National Junior College dive standings last season, is working in Kissimmee while the college finds a new coach.
Former Harmony High diving standout Larry McVicker, a multiple state qualifier, also is working with the team.
“We have about 21 students now of all ages, from 5 to 20,” Minor said. “Our goal is to build the program and introduce more students to the sport. We believe that we can sustain a very strong program with the talent we have here.”
Seven divers have qualified for the 2013 nationals based on current AAU qualifying scores, Minor said. They are Julie Hicks (107.45), Jessica Eby (270.50), Jordan Parrish (336.10), Logan Clinton (379.40), Amos (393.05), Herrera (376.70) and Skylar Waechter (139.75).
 

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