Three Bay County divers reach grand stage as state finals qualifiers

It's 1-2-3 jump on the Bay County diving scene.

Three divers from three different schools earned a trip to the high school girls swimming and diving state championships with their regional performances Thursday.

Bay City Western's Ripley Andrus and Bay City Central's Sarai Winchell are heading to the Division 2 finals at Oakland University while John Glenn's Kate Cataline ventures to Division 3 action at Eastern Michigan University on Nov. 22-23.

It's the first time that three Bay County divers qualified for the state finals since 2008.

Just a sophomore, Andrus is already a two-time state qualifier for the Warriors. She soared to a fifth-place finish in the regional at Fenton, posting an 11-dive score of 318.40.

"Ripley is the kind of athlete every coach wants to work with," Western coach Bridget Gross said. "Not only does she shine on the board but she is also becoming an amazing sprinter - even surprising herself. When Ripley puts her mind to something, there is no stopping her."

Winchell, a senior who previously competed during the boys season, gets to close out her career on the grand stage after earning her first state finals bid. She posted a score of 287.30 at the regional, good for 11th place. The Top 12 placers advanced.

"Sarai didn't really expect to make it to the state meet, but she consistently hit her dives and kept moving up each round," Central coach Dave Staudacher said. "She showed what she was capable of and pulled it off at the right time."

Cataline garnered her first state finals berth during regional competition at St. Johns. She posted a ninth-place finish with a score of 256.90 to move on. Glenn's Annabelle Werner reached the semifinal round regionals before finishing 17th.

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