The Fredonia junior broke the Olean pool, CCAA and Section VI records with 579.15 points for 11 dives to better her qualifying score for the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Championships next month.

For comparison, last year’s state champion Rachel Yang, then a junior from Section VIII Jericho, set a meet record with a score of 571.15.

Other state qualifiers yesterday were Frewsburg’s Elayna Pitts (472.20) and Fredonia’s Leah Marsh (441.45), who finished second and third, respectively.

“The girls did a great job tonight,” Fredonia/Dunkirk/Forestville/Pine Valley swim coach Allie Saye said. “Their diving coach, John Crawford, is in Italy so they’ve been practicing on their own while I’m working with the swimmers.

Frewsburg/Falconer’s Elayna Pitts enters the pool on one of her 11 dives during Thursday’s CCAA Championships at Olean Middle School. Pitts qualified for the NYSPHSAA Championships with a total of 472.20. P-J photo by Tim Frank

“Leah was nervous heading into tonight’s competition, as she still needed the state cut. Going into the last dive, she needed 43.65. She beat the stress and pulled off a 45.10. We are all very proud of her.”

As for Pucci-Schaefer?

“Hard to believe she’s only a junior and we get to watch her continue to grow in the sport for another year.”

Other results were Anelia Pitts, Frewsburg/Falconer, 390.50; Melody Hayes, Allegany-Limestone/Ellicottville, 312.95; Logan Potter, Allegany-Limestone/Ellicottville, 301.65; Ava Chapman, Frewsburg/Falconer, 274.15; Emelyn Campion, Frewsburg/Falconer, 269.10; Gabriella Bly, Salamanca, 264.25; and Rileigh Hutchison, Salamanca, 253.90.

The next diving event will be the Section VI Class A Championships next Thursday, followed by the Section VI Championships on Nov. 2 at SUNY Fredonia. The NYSPHSAA Championships will be held Nov. 16-18 at the Webster Aquatic Center.