Liberty to Send 3 Divers to NCAA Zone Championships
3/8/2026 10:30:00 AM | Women's Swimming & Diving
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty swimming & diving team will be represented by three divers in the 2026 NCAA Zone A Diving Championships, held Monday through Wednesday at Lejeune Hall in Annapolis, Md.
Junior Shannon Icard will compete on one-meter springboard, Monday. Icard will contest three-meter springboard on Tuesday along with junior Kayla Walsh and freshman Mercy Goodnight. On Wednesday, Icard will compete on platform.
Liberty's divers will be competing to earn spots in the 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championships, which will be held in Atlanta, Ga., March 18-21.
The NCAA Zone Championships will begin on Monday with women's one-meter springboard and will continue on Tuesday with three-meter springboard. Platform will be contested on Wednesday. Monday's one-meter prelims will be at 10:30 a.m. (prelim A) and 3:15 p.m. (prelim B), with the one-meter final scheduled for 6:15 p.m. On Tuesday, three-meter prelims will be held at 10:30 a.m. (prelim A) and 2:45 p.m. (prelim B), with the three-meter final at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday's platform prelims are scheduled at 11 a.m., with the final immediately following.
How to Follow the Lady Flames
Live results will be available through DiveMeets.com. Live video will be available on Navy's athletics Facebook page.
What's at Stake
Zone A will receive six qualifications to the NCAA Championships in one-meter, five on three-meter and six on platform, based off of last year's performance by Zone A divers at nationals.
The top 18 divers from morning prelims will qualify for evening finals, with all scores carrying over. Each of those 18 divers will complete their full allotment of dives in the evening, and the top combined scores from morning and evening will advance to nationals.
There will be 93 entrants in one-meter diving, 70 in three-meter and 19 on platform.
Last year's top two finishers from Zone in one-meter, Virginia's Elizabeth Kaye and Rutgers' Holly Prasanto, have graduated. Those who placed third through sixth respectively, all return, in Bailee Sturgill and Katerina Hoffman of Rutgers, Yale's Lily Horenkamp and Harvard's Nina Janmyr. The sixth place finisher on one-meter at the 2025 Zone A Championship scored 571.25.
Rutgers' Katerina Hoffman returns as the defending Zone A champion on three-meter, while Sephora Ford of Rutgers is back after finishing third last year. Bailee Sturgill and Princeton's Charlotte Martinkus also return as top-five finishers from 2025. It took 626.80 to qualify for nationals on three-meter from Zone A in 2025.
Last year's top qualifier on platform from Zone A was Bailee Sturgill of Rutgers with 510.30 points. Katerina Hoffman of Rutgers was sixth on platform, scoring 491.05.
How They Qualified
Icard will be making her third career appearance at NCAA Zone Championships, and this is the eight straight year that Liberty will be represented at Zones. Walsh will also appear at Zones for the third year in a row, as she made the Zone B Championships each of the last two seasons while competing for Auburn. Icard earned finals appearances on both three-meter and platform.
Icard, the Most Outstanding Female Diver of the 2025 ASUN Championships, finished fifth on platform and sixth on one-meter at the 2026 American Conference Championship. She earned Zone-qualifying scores on all three boards at the TYR '85 Invite. The junior's top one-meter scoring (267.15) came at UNC Asheville on Jan. 16, while she scored season bests on both three-meter (282.40) and platform (242.45) at the American Championship.
Goodnight has had a standout freshman season. She was named the American Conference Freshman Diving Athlete of the Week on Nov. 25. That came after punching her ticket to Zones on three-meter with 294.40 at the TYR '85 Invite. Her 294.40 score was the best three-meter finish for a Liberty diver this season. Goodnight competed in two B Finals at the conference meet.
Walsh had a breakout meet at the 2026 American Conference Championship, placing fourth on platform and five on three-meter. She earned her spot at Zones in three-meter by scoring 293.90 in the A Final. Her score one three-meter that evening was the second best by a Lady Flame so far this season. She joined Icard as Liberty divers to compete in two A Finals at the American Championship this year.
Liberty's divers are attempting to qualify for the 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championships, held March 18-21 in Atlanta, Ga.
Junior Shannon Icard will compete on one-meter springboard, Monday. Icard will contest three-meter springboard on Tuesday along with junior Kayla Walsh and freshman Mercy Goodnight. On Wednesday, Icard will compete on platform.
Liberty's divers will be competing to earn spots in the 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championships, which will be held in Atlanta, Ga., March 18-21.
The NCAA Zone Championships will begin on Monday with women's one-meter springboard and will continue on Tuesday with three-meter springboard. Platform will be contested on Wednesday. Monday's one-meter prelims will be at 10:30 a.m. (prelim A) and 3:15 p.m. (prelim B), with the one-meter final scheduled for 6:15 p.m. On Tuesday, three-meter prelims will be held at 10:30 a.m. (prelim A) and 2:45 p.m. (prelim B), with the three-meter final at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday's platform prelims are scheduled at 11 a.m., with the final immediately following.
How to Follow the Lady Flames
Live results will be available through DiveMeets.com. Live video will be available on Navy's athletics Facebook page.
What's at Stake
Zone A will receive six qualifications to the NCAA Championships in one-meter, five on three-meter and six on platform, based off of last year's performance by Zone A divers at nationals.
The top 18 divers from morning prelims will qualify for evening finals, with all scores carrying over. Each of those 18 divers will complete their full allotment of dives in the evening, and the top combined scores from morning and evening will advance to nationals.
There will be 93 entrants in one-meter diving, 70 in three-meter and 19 on platform.
Last year's top two finishers from Zone in one-meter, Virginia's Elizabeth Kaye and Rutgers' Holly Prasanto, have graduated. Those who placed third through sixth respectively, all return, in Bailee Sturgill and Katerina Hoffman of Rutgers, Yale's Lily Horenkamp and Harvard's Nina Janmyr. The sixth place finisher on one-meter at the 2025 Zone A Championship scored 571.25.
Rutgers' Katerina Hoffman returns as the defending Zone A champion on three-meter, while Sephora Ford of Rutgers is back after finishing third last year. Bailee Sturgill and Princeton's Charlotte Martinkus also return as top-five finishers from 2025. It took 626.80 to qualify for nationals on three-meter from Zone A in 2025.
Last year's top qualifier on platform from Zone A was Bailee Sturgill of Rutgers with 510.30 points. Katerina Hoffman of Rutgers was sixth on platform, scoring 491.05.
How They Qualified
Icard will be making her third career appearance at NCAA Zone Championships, and this is the eight straight year that Liberty will be represented at Zones. Walsh will also appear at Zones for the third year in a row, as she made the Zone B Championships each of the last two seasons while competing for Auburn. Icard earned finals appearances on both three-meter and platform.
Icard, the Most Outstanding Female Diver of the 2025 ASUN Championships, finished fifth on platform and sixth on one-meter at the 2026 American Conference Championship. She earned Zone-qualifying scores on all three boards at the TYR '85 Invite. The junior's top one-meter scoring (267.15) came at UNC Asheville on Jan. 16, while she scored season bests on both three-meter (282.40) and platform (242.45) at the American Championship.
Goodnight has had a standout freshman season. She was named the American Conference Freshman Diving Athlete of the Week on Nov. 25. That came after punching her ticket to Zones on three-meter with 294.40 at the TYR '85 Invite. Her 294.40 score was the best three-meter finish for a Liberty diver this season. Goodnight competed in two B Finals at the conference meet.
Walsh had a breakout meet at the 2026 American Conference Championship, placing fourth on platform and five on three-meter. She earned her spot at Zones in three-meter by scoring 293.90 in the A Final. Her score one three-meter that evening was the second best by a Lady Flame so far this season. She joined Icard as Liberty divers to compete in two A Finals at the American Championship this year.
Liberty's divers are attempting to qualify for the 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming & Diving Championships, held March 18-21 in Atlanta, Ga.
Players Mentioned
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