GREENSBORO, N.C. – Illinois State senior diver Wenting Zhang earned All-America status for the second year in a row after taking seventh place in the 1-meter diving event at the NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships Thursday night at Greensboro Aquatic Center.
Zhang turned in a score of 311.25 in the preliminary round to qualify for Thursday night's A Final, which included only the top eight competitors from the original field of 45. The Redbird senior then posted a score of 314.10 in finals to finish in seventh place.
Zhang, a two-time All-American at the 2014 NCAA Championships, said she was pleased with her performance on the first day of the 2015 NCAA Championships. Zhang will compete in the 3-meter competition Friday.
"I am so happy to become an All-American for the third time. I am unbelievably happy and honored to represent Illinois State University," Zhang said. "I am very excited to complete my diving career tomorrow at the NCAA Championships."
Thursday's performance came one year after Zhang finished sixth in the 3-meter event and 15th in the 1-meter event at the 2014 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships. Zhang was an honorable mention All-American in 1-meter diving and an All-American in 3-meter diving last year.
"What a fantastic start to the NCAA Championships. I could not have been prouder of her performance today," said head diving coach Phil Hoffmann. "To finish as the seventh-best one-meter diver in the entire country is an amazing accomplishment. It is a very strong competition and she showed she is one of the very best in the country."
Zhang will compete in the 3-meter event Friday. Preliminaries begin at 12:45 p.m. CT. Live video coverage of the event will be available at ESPN3.com.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
