PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- After three incredible days, the 2025 NCAA Zone A Diving Championships have concluded at Sonny Werblin Recreation Center of Rutgers University.

The highlight of the meet came from Will Cooley, who on the final day qualified for the NCAA Championship with a fifth place finish in the platform diving event. 

Macy Pine and Joseph Nicol had the other top finishes for the women and men, respectively. 

A full recap from the meet can be found below. Results from the entire meet can be found HERE. 


DAY ONE
Nicol highlighted day one for the Lions. In a very deep field of 53 divers, Nicol qualified for his first NCAA Zone final in the 1m, and finished in 14th place with a score of 584.95. 

"Joe had an incredible day today and was dialed in on every dive," Head Diving Coach Scott Donie said. "This is a very high-quality field of excellent divers, and Joe really showed up. I couldn't be prouder. Now it's time to rest up and get ready for the 3m tomorrow."

Meanwhile, for the women, Pine led the way with a 40th place finish in the 3m prelims with a score of 245.70. Chloe Leung was right behind her, finishing 41st with a score of 239.65. 

"Both of the ladies competed very well," Donie siad. "It was particularly special to see Macy compete on the 3 meter one last time. This performance marks the end of a very successful season for Chloe. Macy will return for the 1 meter tomorrow."


DAY TWO
Nicol had another stellar performance today for Columbia. For the second straight year, he qualified for the NCAA Zone A final in the 3, taking 10th place with a score of 676.25.

"Joe was outstanding today," Donie said. "It's extraordinarily difficult to compete at such a high level at a meet like this. This is the type of experience that every coach dreams of for their athletes. The confidence he gained is something I know he will carry forward in to his senior year."

For the women, Pine finished up her illustrious four year career with the Lions on Tuesday. In her final event, she finished in 39th in the 1m prelims with a score of 232.85. 

"Pine took her final dive of her legendary career today," Donie said. "Our current 3m record holder competed well over the two days here at zones. It was very emotional and she got a loud response from the crowd before her final dive. It's impossible to calculate what she has meant to this program and to me personally."


DAY THREE
Cooley, provided the highlight of the week on the final day, finishing fifth overall in the platform diving event with a score of 597.40, which wAS good enough to qualify for the NCAA Championships in the event. 

"An absolutely stunning performance," Donie said. "Everything fell into place at exactly the right time. Will had lower degree of difficulty on his dive list than most everyone in the field. We decided to add higher degree of difficulty that we had just learned a few days earlier. In the final, he nailed it and that was the difference. It's a huge day for Columbia Swimming and Diving."


UP NEXT
Cooley, along with Joshua Corn, of men's swimming and diving punched their tickets to the NCAA Championships in Federal Way, Washington beginning on March 26. For more information, click HERE. 


KEEPING UP WITH THE LIONS
For the latest Columbia men's swimming and diving program, follow @CULionsMSD and @CULionsDiving on Instagram and Twitter, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.

For the latest on the Columbia women's swimming and diving program, follow @CULionsWSD and @CULionsDiving on Instagram and Twitter, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.