Southlake teen Hailey Hernandez advances to semifinal round in Tokyo Olympic diving
Southlake’s Hailey Hernandez, the youngest competitor in this year’s Women’s 3-meter springboard at the Tokyo Olympics, advanced to the semifinal round early Friday morning.
The 18-year-old, who graduated from Carroll High School in May, is in her first Olympic games after qualifying for one of just two spots on the Team U.S.A earlier this summer.
The semifinal round features the Top 18 divers, trimmed from 27 during the preliminary round. It’s scheduled for early Saturday morning. Hernandez finished sixth.
Hernandez was one of seven divers Friday to score more than 300 points in five dives.
She finished with a total of 309.55.
Hernandez, who will continue her career at the University of Texas, scored a 60.75 following her first dive, which put her into 17th place. She jumped up to seventh after her second dive scored a 67.20. She would stay in seventh place after her third dive.
She moved up to sixth place after her fourth dive scored her second highest of 63.
Hernandez won four district and regional championships, and four UIL Class 6A state titles while at Carroll. Outside of high school, she is a 10-time Junior National champion and two-time senior nation champion.
Fellow American Krysta Palmer finished in 15th place and also qualified for the semifinals.
This story was originally published July 30, 2021 at 4:30 AM.
