Morgan County diver qualifies for state

Morgan County diver Caroline Jenkins has already qualified for the state meet early in the season.

A few weeks ago, the sophomore Lady ‘Dogs diver competed at the 10th annual Holiday Splash meet, hosted by Forsyth Central High School at the Cumminng Aquatic Center in Forsyth County.

Jenkins placed seventh out of 31 divers in Class A through 7A, earning a score that qualifies her for a second consecutive trip to the GHSA state diving championships at Westminster on Feb. 6, 2024.

Morgan County diving coach Heather Jenkins, who is Caroline’s mom, said the sport is very tough.

“Diving is definitely a very mental sport,” Jenkins told Lake Oconee News in February. “It’s a skill sport but a large component of that is being able to have mental toughness and not being able to get easily frustrated. It’s a lot of pressure. They’ve done an exceptional job of handling it all.”

Jenkins also competed at the Clarke-Oconee Invitational meet this past Saturday, which was held at the Gabrielson Natatorium, located at the University of Georgia’s Ramsey Student Center in Athens.

Jenkins represented Morgan County as its lone diver against competitors from North Oconee, Oconee County, Athens Academy, Prince Avenue Christian, South Forsyth, West Forsyth, and Lambert.

Jenkins placed fourth out of 18 divers, earning points that went toward the MCHS swim team’s overall points. She improved her score by 15 points from the last time she dove back at South Forsyth.

Last season, Jenkins qualified for the state diving meet as a freshman, placing fifth in Class A-AAA. She was accompanied by teammate Sidney Thurmond, who also qualified for the state meet.

Jenkins and Thurmond made history as they were the first two divers to compete for the Morgan County swim program. Having them both make the state meet was a huge breakthrough for the team.

According to Caroline’s mother, she has a background in tumbling and gymnastics, which helps in diving.

“Caroline has a background in cheer and tumbling, so it has helped her make the transition,” her mother said. “She was a softball player, but she missed the flipping and stunting of cheerleading. So, I said to her more than a year ago, ‘Let’s go take some diving lessons and see if that’s something you might enjoy’. She picked it up pretty quickly. We did a pretty good job with that this season.

“There was only one meet in which we were a little off, but that’s expected. Sometimes it’s not your day, but both of them handled it with tremendous grace under pressure,” she added. “It’s hard to stand up on a one-meter springboard in front of hundreds of people with it silent and all eyes on you.”

Jenkins will continue diving with the Morgan County swim team after the holiday break next year.