Michigan divers begin quest for NCAA Championships berth

Luckily for Brett Wilmot, divers aren't large, heavyset athletes.

Wilmot might collapse under pressure if they were, because he all but carries Michigan's entire diving squad on his back, meet after meet and week after week.

The junior from Wayne, Penn., shoulders the Wolverines' load again at the Diving Zone Meet in Miami, Ohio. The meet began yesterday and continues through Saturday.

But this is no ordinary meet. This might as well be the official trials for NCAA Championships, because only the top six men's finishers and the top seven women's finishers move on to the season's climax in two weeks in Auburn, Ala.

Wilmot clearly has the best shot at qualifying for the meet in Auburn. An honorable mention All-American a year ago on the 10-meter platform, he was the only Wolverine who competed in the national championships last year.

FILE PHOTO The Michigan men's and women's diving teams traveled to Oxford to compete in the Diving Zone Meet. The top six men and the top seven women will qualify for the NCAA Championships.

And he made the most of the opportunity.

Wilmot finished 16th on the platform - his best event - and also placed 31st on the one-meter springboard and 18th on the three-meter springboard.

Michigan's most valuable diver is also coming off a strong performance at the Big Ten Championships two weeks ago in Minneapolis. Wilmot cracked the top five in all three events and finished second on the platform, though it was only an exhibition event at the Big Ten meet.

"I'm going into the Diving Zone Meet with a lot of confidence coming off a good Big Ten meet," Wilmot said. "Especially since I made it to NCAAs last year.

"I was injured early in the season, so it got off to a slow start. But I've been pretty consistent lately."

Wilmot's second-place finish on the platform at Big Tens this year was somewhat of a surprise, especially since he won the event at last year's Diving Zone Meet and automatically qualified for all three events at NCAAs.

"The only good platform divers are in the Big Ten, and I got second at Big Tens," he said. "But the guy who won is definitely beatable."

Even if Wilmot doesn't bring home the 10-meter crown this weekend, he still has an excellent shot at Auburn because the top two finishers on the platform will advance.

The outlook for the other Michigan divers is not as optimistic, however. No other Wolverines made the national championship cuts last year, and no one else placed in the top six in any event at the Big Ten Championships.

"Of all my divers, Brett has the best chance of qualifying," Michigan diving coach Dick Kimball said. "But this weekend is really going to be a difficult meet, because only 35 divers in all go to nationals.

No women's divers have an easy road to Auburn ahead of them. But a couple of them have outside shots.

"Jill Unikel has the best chance of our women," Kimball said. "She's got a shot at the tower event because she's got the most experience."

Unikel finished 13th on the 3-meter springboard and 17th on the one-meter event in Minneapolis. But, like Wilmot, her strength is in the higher dives.

The chances of any men's divers complementing Wilmot and making the top six are slim. But sophomore Josh Trexler has a slim hope.

"Josh has a shot on the platform," Wilmot said. "We all had a pretty good practice last Thursday and that lifted our spirits."

Even if no one besides Wilmot secures a spot in the NCAA Championships, plenty of value can come out of the Diving Zone Meet.

"It's a great experience because you see what's out there," Wilmot said. "Teams like Notre Dame and Toledo offer a lot of depth, and we as a team have to sift through it. But someone like Amanda Crews is only a freshman going in. She'll see what she has to shoot for next year."

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