The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Campbell wins three-meter synchro title at USA Diving Senior Nationals
05.17.2018 | Men's Swimming and Diving
Texas All-America sophomore Grayson Campbell joins UNC diver Greg Duncan to win U.S. national title.
COURTESY OF USA DIVING
DALLAS- National titles were rewarded to Texas All-America sophomore Grayson Campbell (Vienna, Va./Austin, Texas) and Greg Duncan (Oakton, Va./Chapel Hill, N.C.) for synchronized men's 3-meter after taking the lead in the fifth round and finishing the finals with 383.19 points Thursday at the USA Diving Senior National Championships.
Campbell and Duncan edged Olympic silver medalists Sam Dorman (Tempe, Ariz./Miami, Fla.) and Michael Hixon (Amherst, Mass./Bloomington, Ind.) by 8.4 points to claim the national title. Trailing by 28.44 points with two rounds to go, Campbell and Duncan performed a reverse 1 ½ somersault with 3 ½ twists for 79.8 points.
Dorman and Hixon followed up with an inward 3 ½ tuck, which resulted in 46.92 points due to the pair's mistakes. That miss moved Campbell and Duncan to the top of the standings, and they capitalized on their lead with a front 2 ½ somersault 2 twist pike for 82.62 points in the final round. Dorman and Hixon finished with a 78.66-point front 4 ½ tuck as the pair fell short of victory.
"Going out there and doing what we wanted to do. When we're competing against them, we're not really thinking of them as Olympic silver medalists. They're just your competitors. When you're out there competing, whether it's a local meet, a national championship or an international meet, it's the same mindset. We were out there seeing them like anyone else. Once the event starts and the whistle blows, everyone starts from zero and you're trying to score the points where you can. Everyone starts on an even playing field," Campbell said when asked about beating the Olympic silver medalist duo.
The 2018 USA Diving Senior National Championships is part of the 2018 Team USA Summer Champions Series, presented by Xfinity. The champions series showcases numerous Olympic sports throughout the season, highlighting the year-round quest of Team USA athletes to compete at the Olympic Games.
Players Mentioned
