Courtesy of UR Athletics
Senior Elliott Lasher of men’s swimming and diving had an unprecedented performance this weekend. Lasher, also UAA Athlete of the Week, posted national qualifying marks on both the one- and three-meter boards, breaking three school records along the way. Scott Richardson originally set the three-meter, 11-dive record in 1988, which Lasher broke by 12.2 points. The other records were Lasher’s own from earlier in his UR career.
What is your major?
Mechanical engineering.
How did you get involved in diving?
Having been a swimmer my entire life, I joined the swim team at my high school. Our pool was always frigid, and the divers had a large tub of hot water. Within a week, I asked my head coach to try diving.
How long have you been diving?
Eight years.
Do you have a favorite dive?
Inward one-and-a-half pike — a very consistent dive for me.
Do you prefer the one-meter diving event or the three-meter?
I’m better at the three-meter event, by far. However, diving one-meter is a much more relaxed board for me as all the dives I do are easy in comparison to the high board.
Do you have any pre-meet or pre-dive superstitions?
Pre-dive: I try to find a balance of being dry but not too dry. If I’m dripping too much water, I could slip out of some of the harder dives. If I’m too dry, the same thing could happen.
When in the meet did you realize that you had a chance of breaking a school record?
In the 11-dive Ithaca Invitational, my coach called me over before my last two dives to let me know how I was doing. I needed at least 70 more points to break the record, and I ended up breaking it by 13 points.
Did you think these records were attainable?
The first two records seemed breakable. As I improved over the next year, I re-broke these records several times. A month ago, I thought getting the third record was nearly impossible.
How does it feel to have three out of the four men’s diving records at UR?
It feels unreal. I’ve put in a lot of effort diving for UR. To have my work rewarded by means of the school record is such an honor.
Are your eyes set on the fourth record for the upcoming UAA Championship meet at the University of Chicago?
Since one meter isn’t my strongest board, I don’t have a goal to break it. If it happens, I’ll be speechless.
Now that you have these school records, what are your individual goals for the remainder of the season?
I hope to get as consistent as I can before the UAA championship meet. With the quality of the competition, I hope to make it to finals and place as well as I can. I’ll continue to train after the meet to prepare for the NCAA Division III Regional meet.
And your hopes for the team as you progress through championship season?
Because the UAA is such a fierce competition, I really hope to see everyone do their personal best. It would be awesome to see a couple more NCAA cuts.
Woodworth is a member of the class of 2015.
