Hattie Posts Nation-Best Score to Win Platform at Auburn Diving Invite

AUBURN, Ala. – Tennessee's Bryden Hattie put together the best performance of his career and posted the top score in the nation this season to win the platform event on day three of the Auburn Diving Invite on Monday.

In a NCAA Championship-caliber battle, Hattie came out victorious against LSU's Carson Paul (448.70) thanks to a 450.80 score, which ranks third in UT history. The two divers went back and forth throughout the event, but the difference was Hattie's consistency each round, garnering an 8.08 average dive score and notching 70 points or higher on all six dives. After nailing back-to-back 76-score rounds, Hattie took the lead behind an 80-point back 2 1/2 somersault 1 1/2 twist pike to seal the deal.

"It was a very high-level competition," diving coach Dave Parrington said. "There were nine excellent divers in the field, and this was just a one-list final. It really had a big final atmosphere to it. All of the women from the different teams were there, and it was a decent crowd and everyone was in to it. It had an excellent vibe going on that was very exciting. It was a great battle between Bryden and Carson. The other part to that battle is that both divers are from Victoria, British Columbia, and come from the same club, so neither of them wanted to be beat by the other. That added a whole other level of intensity. That was excellent to see Bryden come out on top. I'm really proud of how he dove. He dove well, but he wasn't super sharp. He smoked his first dive, but his second dive was nicely done but left it just a hair short. That leaves room to get even better. Overall, I'm very happy with his performance."

Rounding things out for the Vols, Jacob Reasor posted a 341.20 score to finish fifth, while Nick Stone (311.20) and Owen Redfearn (276.25) came in eighth and ninth, respectively. For the week, each of the four Vols recorded at least one personal best in an event.

"I'm really pleased with all of our guys," Parrington said. "It was pleasing to see Jake hit personal records on both springboards this weekend. He was solid today on platform as well. This was our first tower list outside of the friendly confines of Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center. The freshmen were a little inconsistent, but it was good to get competitive experience in an event like this. All three did some really good stuff on the springboards, and it was good to get prelims and finals for those events as well. We do a little bit of training while we are here, so there's probably a little bit of fatigue as well, but we were going against some quality competition. This will really benefit those guys. Bryden finished second in a really close competition on 3-meter. I'm really pleased with our overall performance on the men's side. We have gained a lot by being here and diving in some competitive events."

Tanesha Lucoe led the way for the Lady Vols on 3-meter, placing second overall with a 328.25 mark. Her performance was highlighted by three-straight 60-plus point dives that helped her rally from an early deficit. Madison Reese posted a career-high 320.15 score—nearly 60 points higher than her prelim score—to finish fifth overall. Grace Cable finished just behind her in sixth with a 319.30 effort.

Rounding things out were Emily Ann Wolfson in 10th (280.60), Kara Holt in 11th (269.35), Elle Renner in 14th (264.00) and Bailey Davenport in 15th (254.50).

The Auburn Diving Invite concludes Tuesday with the women's platform at noon. Up next, UT will head to Athens for the Georgia Diving Invitational on January 3-5.

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Hattie Posts Nation-Best Score to Win Platform at Auburn Diving Invite

Players Mentioned

Grace Cable

Bailey Davenport

Bryden Hattie

Kara Holt

Tanesha Lucoe

Jacob Reasor

Owen Redfearn

Maddie Reese

Elle Renner

Nick Stone

Emily Ann Wolfson

University of Tennessee Athletics