SEC Swimming & Diving Championships: Day 1 Prelims - AuburnTigers.com

SEC Swimming & Diving Championships: Day 1 Prelims Dantin, Aguero, Santeiu, McKean advance to diving finals

Fraser McKean

Feb. 15, 2012

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LIVE BLOG - WEDNESDAY FINALS

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Four Auburn divers - two men and two women - advanced to the finals in their respective events as the Tigers opened the first day of competition at the 2012 SEC Swimming & Diving Championships, taking place at the University of Tennessee.

Senior Vennie Dantin set a new pool record at the four-year-old Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatics Center with a score of 320.90 in the women's 1-meter preliminary, earning the top seed in the final. Fellow senior Anna Aguero also advanced to the final with a score of 293.95 to finish in fifth place.

Freshmen Shanna Schuelein and Cinzia Calabretta also earned points for the Auburn effort in their first SEC Championship competition. Schuelein took 12th place with a 266.15, and Calabretta finished 16th with a score of 254.20.

"Vennie was rock-solid," Auburn head diving coach Jeff Shaffer said. "She was just a little off on her last two dives, but only four points off a season-best. She's in a good position to do a great job if she dives consistently tonight. I was really proud of Anna for making the finals, considering the fact that she's been a little bit banged-up. And the freshman girls did a good job; they were just one dive here and there from making finals, but they both scored."

In the men's 3-meter preliminaries, Santeiu posted a season-best 375.85 to finish in third place and advance to the finals in the event for the second straight year. Freshman Fraser McKean came up big in his first SEC Championship competition, earning a sixth-place finish and a spot in the finals with a 360.00. Adam Godzinski was 19th and Michael Beran was 26th.

"One of the things I told them last night is when you minimize your mistakes, you maximize your opportunity," Shaffer said. "And John was a perfect example of that; he was rock-solid today. And I couldn't be prouder of Fraser, finally stepping it up and hitting his two hardest dives."

The first night of finals gets underway with the women's 1-meter diving event at 6 p.m. ET (5 p.m. CT). The first two swimming events of the championship - the 200 medley relay and 800 freestyle relay - are also on tap, as is the men's 3-meter diving final. Live results and live video are available via UTSports.com, and fans can follow a live blog on AuburnTigers.com by clicking the link at the top of the page.

Auburn Swimming & Diving Results
2012 SEC Championships - Day 1 Preliminaries
Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatics Center - Knoxville, Tenn.
February 15, 2012

Women
1M Diving: 1. Vennie Dantin (320.90); 5. Anna Aguero (293.95); 12. Shanna Schuelein (266.15); 16. Cinzia Calabretta (254.20)

Men
3M Diving: 3. John Santeiu (375.85); 6. Fraser McKean (360.00); 19. Adam Godzinski (312.40); 26. Michael Beran (261.55)