Arceri Finishes 12th in State Diving Championships
Molly Arceri is moving in the right direction. The Huntington High School junior improved considerably on her performance last year in the State Swimming & Diving Championships, finishing 12th in New York in the 1-meter diving competition.
Arceri was the only diver from Suffolk to qualify for the state championships and she made the most of her opportunity. The teenager was 21st in the same event at last year's state meet and has worked hard ever since.
The Blue Devil junior headed to the Burt Flickenger Aquatic Center in Buffalo with a clear set of goals in mind, namely to improve on her 2009 performance, to qualify for each round and to place in the top 16 in the state.
"Her hard work throughout the season and her mature, focused attitude combined to allow her to succeed in reaching all of these goals," said Meg McConnell, Huntington's assistant coach who works with the team's divers.
The evening before the competition began, "Molly very quickly felt at ease on the board during the open warm-up, setting the tone for a good weekend," McConnell said. "Throughout all three rounds of the competition spread over Friday and Saturday, Molly continued to keep her focus on solid, clean dives yet again took time to cheer other divers from all over the state."
Needless to say, Huntington head coach Christopher Helmke is ecstatic with Arceri's All-State performance. He called her a "dedicated athlete" and her teammates would readily agree.
Arceri's final score of 418.3 is her second highest ever for an 11-dive high school competition. She is waiting to learn whether her efforts were good enough for All-American recognition. Her state qualifying meet and state championship scores have been submitted to the National Interscholastic Swim Coaches Assn. who will make the final decision.
"She has succeeded in achieving her goals for the season and her sights are already set on returning to the state meet next November to place even higher," McConnell said