Lamp Takes Platform Crown

By Todd Mounce, Media Relations Graduate Assistant
Tennessee redshirt sophomore diver Tori Lamp bettered her runner-up performance on the 3-meter boards with a victory on the platform on the final day of the Georgia Diving Invitational held at Gabrielsen Natatorium in Athens, Ga.
“It was a very good competition between the top three divers,” Tennessee head diving coach Dave Parrington said. “Tori, despite not doing a lot of training the last week because of being under the weather was able to step up and come from behind on her final dive. She was about seven points back heading into her final dive and won the contest with an 83 point effort. That was a very good way to finish the meet.”
The Knoxville native tallied a five-round score of 315.05 to earn the top spot on the towers by over 15 points, as the next closest competitor finished with a mark of 299.70. Her event score was a Lady Vol record, shattering her previous best tally of 293.85 that she set this season at the Tennessee Invitational.
In December, Lamp punched her ticket to the U.S. Olympic Trials in the event after placing in the top 12 at the USA Diving Winter Nationals, notching fifth at meet that was held at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center. The Olympic Trials will be held in Seattle in June.
Senior Gabrielle Trudeau finished two spots behind Lamp, accumulating a third-place score of 216.15. Over the three-day invite, she also finished second on the 1-meter boards and fourth in the 3-meter competition.
“Gaby was very steady, as she was for most of the week in all of her events,” Parrington said. “Overall for the whole weekend, I’m pleased with our productivity here and we certainly learned some things that will help us as we get ready for the championship season.”
Lamp, Trudeau and the rest of the Lady Vol swimming and diving team will return to Athens on Jan. 21, when the Orange and White square off against the Lady Bulldogs in a dual meet that is scheduled for 2 p.m.