Young Pine-Richland divers flash potential during growth process

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, December 21, 2018 | 9:48 PM

Pine-Richland diving coach Maria Misenhelter is trying to put together a group of divers that can compete in challenging WPIAL Section 2-AAA and maybe even produce a couple of district championship qualifiers.

This season, however, Misenhelter mostly has an untested group.

Six of the eight divers for the Rams are freshmen. With a little seasoning, though, she said the group could show its promise.

“The exciting part is that you’re starting with a fresh canvas. The nice part is that you get to coach the fundamentals and see how they build upon that,” Misenhelter said.

“We want to stress the basics and try to catch anything that could turn into a bad habit. Once we get past the first month of the season, at some point, it’ll start to click with them. They’ll have that moment where they begin to understand the coaching and the finer points that will help them get their scores up.”

The most experienced diver is Lilly Settembrino, the lone sophomore on the girls side. Settembrino, whose older sister, Abby, also dove for Misenhelter, flashed plenty of potential last season. She qualified for the WPIAL diving championships but missed the title meet because of a previous commitment to a national cheerleading competition.

“She muscles the board, just like her sister did, but she has a lot of talent and can do very well for us,” Misenhelter said.

“We’re just trying to get her some control. That’s the one thing more then anything else. We need to tighten up her technique and control, that’s all. She’s a good twister. I do expect really good things for her this year, as well as moving forward.”

Three freshmen, Erica Hudock, Madison Alexander and Lucia Pambianco, make up the remainder of the girls team. Hudock and Alexander have previous experience with gymnastics — an important precursor to diving success. Pambianco might not have an acrobatic background, but Misenhelter said she is adept at taking and applying changes to her technique.

On the boys side, sophomore Jacob Baldault serves as the elder statesmen. Another trio of freshmen, Daniel Steger, Briar Wentling and Dylan McCabe, rounds out the group.

While they all have plenty to learn, Misenhelter said McCabe is displaying promise as he grows into the sport.

“He’s got the right body type for diving. He’s got the right attitude, and he takes direction really well,” she said of McCabe.

“He’s a swimmer too, and kudos to him, because he goes through swim practice and, without a break, he goes right into diving practice. That’s a dedicated kid.”

Kevin Lohman is a freelance writer.

Tags: Pine-Richland