Fox Chapel Area diving coach Vernon Yenick succinctly summed up how he feels about this year’s team: He expects it to be “super strong.”
“I feel like this is going to be a great year,” he said.
There are many reasons coach Yenick, who is in his 16th year as coach, feels that way, not the least of which is junior Jackson Hagler, who qualified for the PIAA diving championships as a freshman and sophomore, finishing in eighth place last season.
“He’s got a lot going for him,” coach Yenick said of Jackson. “This year, he’s got a shot at the top five. As far as the WPIAL, I would say he’s definitely top three and hopefully, he’s going to be one or two. Jackson is doing really well. He’s learned a lot of new dives, a lot of new difficult dives, and he’s performing them pretty well.”
Other members of the team expected to be contributors are juniors Ainsley Anderson and Ellie Dering, each of whom qualified for last season’s WPIAL diving championship.
“I expect they’ll qualify this year and hopefully reach the final,” coach Yenick said.
Yenick also expects fine seasons from juniors Noelle Dick and Devon McDonald.
“There’s some dives that all of the girls need to learn to get to the next level,” the coach said. “But they’re all very supportive of each other and definitely able to do them. It’s just getting them to do them. Once you realize you can do that, it’s such a boost to your confidence in every single way.”
There also is a new member of the team for whom coach Yenick has high hopes: freshman Finn Kress, who has a lot of experience as a gymnast.
“He has a lot of great skills, so it’s really simple to teach him,” he said. “He catches on pretty quickly. When a gymnast goes from gymnastics to diving, it’s a pretty big change in the sense that the skill set is similar, yet very different in the way you go about executing it. I’m really excited about Finn. He’s got a lot of talent, so we’ll see how that works out. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be great.”
Teams the Foxes will be facing this season include Mt. Lebanon, North Allegheny, Penn Hills, and Upper St. Clair.
For the Foxes to have a successful season, coach Yenick feels they need to be consistent.
“The only way you get to the next level is with a consistent list of dives,” he said. “Consistency is what we’re looking for. We look for all of my kids to be confident in every dive that they do. I always tell kids to leave their brains at home. If they let their brain get in the way, they’re going to stand on the board for 30 minutes.”