March 9, 2012
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -
Illinois State divers Brittany Tazzioli and Wenting Zhang ended the two-day NCAA Diving Regional Friday on the three-meter board, marking the completion of their 2011-12 season. The duo qualified for the zone meet multiple times over the year, rightfully earning their extended season.
Sophomore Zhang finished 20th out of the 58 divers on the three-meter board, scoring a 273.55. Zhang missed qualifying for the finals in the event by a mere 1.7 points. Zhang is coming off a 24th-place finish Thursday on the one-meter board.
"Wenting had a great weekend," head diving coach Phil Hoffmann said. "She works very hard and is always trying to better herself. It was a great experience, and one of the top finishes from any ISU diver at the NCAA meet in a long time. I know we are going to see great things from her in the very near future."
For senior Tazzioli, the competition marks the end of a four-year Illinois State diving career. Graduating this May, the team captain qualified for a spot at the NCAA's, earning post-season competition for the last time as a Redbird.
Over the '11-12 season, the Libertyville, Ill., native has earned the Missouri Valley Conference Diver of the Week honor five times, as well as recording personal best scores on the one-meter and three-meter diving boards.
Hoffmann believes the competition this weekend ended Tazzioli's season on a high note.
"Brittany has had a fantastic career, and a fantastic senior year," Hoffmann said. "I could not ask for a better athlete to work with. Today was bittersweet, watching her dive for the last time as a Redbird, but I know there are only great things to come from her. She has been a great leader to this team, and we are all really going to miss her."
The meet marks the end of regular and post-season competition for the Redbird swimming and diving team. The rest of the team finished off the '11-12 season at the MVC Championships, where they placed second overall.
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