Determined to succeed

When Lake Placid junior Edwin Velazquez puts his mind to it, anything is possible.

Velazquez, in only his second year of diving competition, placed second at the Class 1A-District meet with personal-best of 364.35 points, finished sixth at the 1A-Region 2 meet with 351.35 and capped an outstanding season with a 19th-place finish at the state finals in Orlando.

"Edwin has only been diving for two years and it's remarkable how quickly he has improved," said Lake Placid coach Thomas Creel. "He's very competitive and has a very determined and positive attitude about everything he does. He's a great student and excels at most everything he does."

Velazquez placed second at the Heartland Invitational and the Green Dragons diver, who finished 19th at the Class 1A state meet despite a sore ankle, looks forward to improving on his performance.

"I improved the degree of difficulty on my dives during the season," said Velazquez. "The harder the dives, the higher the points and that's what I needed to reach state. I made a mistake of playing basketball the week of the state finals and hurt my ankle and it affected my performance.

"I learned a lot at the state meet and I've got to tighten my dives up and improve my technique if I hope to dive in college."

For his quiet leadership and ability, Velazquez has been selected as the 2009 Highlands Today All-Heartland Boys Diver of the Year.

"I enjoy the thrill and the danger of diving," said Velazquez. "To be in the air twisting and have complete control of your body is an awesome feeling.

"My goal for next year is to complete harder dives and to finish in the top 10 at state."

THE TEAM

John Chittum, senior, Avon Park

Chittum, who was the 2008 All-Heartland Boys Diver of the Year, had a solid season for the Red Devils.

Chittum, who won the Heartland Invitational with 296.75 points, improved as the season progressed and finished fourth at the Class 1A-District 5 meet with 311 points qualifying for the regional competition.

Chittum, who competed in diving for three years and is also an outstanding wrestler, capped a remarkable high school career by finishing ninth at the Class 1A-Region 2 competition with 294.80 points.

"John is very strong and has a strong will when it comes to diving," said Avon Park coach Quinlan Wolfe. "He is a very determined individual and was focused on diving well. He's a hard worker and he made himself into a solid diver."

David Samperi, senior, Lake Placid

Samperi worked hard to improve his dives over the course of the season and the Green Dragons athlete capped his season by finishing sixth at the Class 1A-District 5 meet with 277.80 points.

Samperi, who is also a talented baseball player, displayed his versatility by learning how to perform more difficult dives to help improve his scores.

COACH OF THE YEAR

For guiding and helping the Lake Placid boys and girls diving team to a successful season, Green Dragon coach DJ Brouwer has been selected as the Highlands Today All-Heartland Diving Coach of the Year.