Some 200 divers to compete in Moose Moss Invitational

Feb. 27—MOULTRIE — Some 200 young divers — including about 40 representing Moss Farms Diving — will be taking to the boards this week in the annual Moose Moss Invitational.

The meet is the second for many young divers on this year's road to a berth in the Junior National Championships that will be held July 24-Aug. 2 in Mission Viejo, Calif.

The field for the Moose Moss Invitational includes divers representing 16 clubs, primarily from Georgia and Florida.

Competition will begin on Thursday and run through Sunday.

Boys and girls in 11-and-under, 12-13, 14-15 and 16-18 age groups will compete on the 1-meter and 3-meter springboards and on platform.

There will be some synchronized 3-meter and platform events as well.

Among those who will be in town for the Moose Moss Invitational is Tyler Downs, a six-time Junior National champion who was a member of the 2021 Olympic team.

Downs currently dives at Purdue.

The Moose Moss event will help prepare Diving Tigers for four more highly competitive events this season.

The YMCA Nationals will be held March 30-April 2 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and then, on the first weekend of May, divers will return to Fort Lauderdale to compete in a USA Diving regional meet.

There divers will qualify for berths in Zone competition, which will be held in Orlando.

From Zones, qualifying divers will head to Mission Viejo, where Nationals will be hosted by the second-longest standing program in USA Diving.

Diving Tigers coach John Fox was quick to point out that the longest active USA Diving club is Moss Farms Diving, which was started in the mid-1960s.

Fox, who is in his eighth season at Moss Farms and fifth as head coach, said he believes he has an outstanding group of divers this year.

"We have some world-class divers on our roster," Fox said. "And we've got a world-class facility.

"We really do have a great group of kids, really supportive parents, excited coaches and this kind of facility. But that is what it takes."

And as a testament to program that Fox and assistants Tom Gimm and Parker Hardigree are leading, there are 13 former Diving Tigers competing at the college level.

One of them — Carson Tyler of Indiana — recently won Big 10 championships on the 1-meter springboard and on platform.

Another — Maggie Merriman of Purdue — won a silver medal at the Big 10 championships.

And Fox said two other Moss Farms alumni — Auburn's Hunter Kebler and Georgia's Nolan Lewis — also have a shot at making the NCAA championships.

"I think they could make a run," Fox said.

There could be several other future NCAA

championship contestants among those who will compete this spring and summer for the Diving Tigers.

Fox already took a group of top performers to the Coral Springs (Fla.) Winter Invitational on Feb. 10-12.

Moss Farms won the team championship in Coral Springs, with Diving Tiger boys coming in first and the girls placing second.

A number of Moss Farm divers turned in outstanding performances in Coral Springs, including ElliReese Niday, who just recently turned 11 years old.

Fox entered her in the 16-18 girls 3-meter competition and she placed second.

Diving in the 14-15 girls age group, she finished first on both 1-meter and platform.

Bo Bridges, who recently verbally committed to dive at the University of Georgia, won the 16-18 boys 3-meter event.

Luke Hernandez, a former platform specialist who, Fox said, has worked his way into becoming a more well-rounded diver, won the 16-18 boys 1-meter and platform events.

Amelia Gregory was first on 3-meter in 11-and-under girls and was second on both 1-meter and platform.

Ruth Anne McCranie, who has committed to dive at Purdue, was first on 1-meter in 16-18 girls and was second on 3-meter in the senior women's open event.

Fox also noted that Jewel Hart, who is in just her second year of competitive diving, was second in 16-18 girls on platform.

One Diving Tiger who will be unable to compete this season is Gibson Stuckey, who suffered a severe spinal cord injury when he was involved in an ATV wreck just days before he was to compete in last year's Junior Nationals.

"He's still part of our diving family," Fox said. "It's almost like we didn't lose him. He's just with us in a different way.

"He comes over and spends time with us."

Fox said he believes there still could be a future for Stuckey in diving.

"I'd like him to come over here and coach," Fox said. "He hasn't expressed an interest in that and he has still got so much to go through.

"But the day comes that he says he wants to be involved, the door will be wide open. He would be a stellar person to have on the pool deck with us."