Connor Compton qualified for the NCAA Division III National Championships after finishing 2nd at the NCAA Regionals.
Alfred State College first year diver Connor Compton (Rexford, NY/Niskayuna – Heavy Equipment Operations) earned a spot a the NCAA Division III National Championships with a 2nd place finish in the 3m diving competition at the NCAA Regionals held at Ithaca College.
Compton scored 521.45 points in the 11-dive competition. He finished behind Judson Kyle from Carnegie Mellon who won the event with 557.45 points. There were 17 total divers and the top five finishers advanced to the NCAA Championships in Greensboro, NC (March 15-18).
Compton just missed qualifying for the Nationals in the 1m board with a 6th pace finish. He scored 480.25 points, just .30 from 5th place.
Compton is the first member of the swimming and diving program that will compete at the NCAA National Championships.
Just last weekend, Compton won both the 1m and 3m competitions at the Allegheny Empire Championships. He was named both the AMCC Diver of the Year and the Newcomer of the Year.
In other action at Ithaca this weekend, Sean Malenfant (Averill Park, NY – Masonry) and Zachary Levey (Horseheads, NY – Radiologic Technology) led the wrestling team at the NCAA Regionals. Malenfant finished 5th in the 184 lb. weight class and Levey finished 7th at 133.
Malenfant won 7-3 over Konrad Parker (Ithaca) in his opening match but lost a tight 5-3 match to Justin Hopman (Centenary) in the quarterfinals. He advanced to the all-region round with an 8-6 victory over Will Davis (Elizabethtown). In his first match on Saturday, he pinned Brian Torres (Cortland) in 4:42 but in the consolation semifinals he was tripped up 7-1 by Jack Ryan (Oneonta). In the 5th place match, Malenfant pinned Hopson in 8:25.
Levey was 3-2 in the two-day competition. He pinned Derek Bernardino (St. John Fisher) in 4:13, fell 3-2 to Anthony Romero (Oneonta). He bounced back with an 18-2 tech fall victory over George Rivera (New Jersey City) to ensure a top eight finish. He fell 7-0 to Daniel Haws (Centenary) in the consolation third round but then earned a major decision over Bernardino 13-1 in the 7th place match.
As a team, the Pioneers finished 16th overall.
