AU ROUNDUP: Marx wins at Tennessee meet

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Auburn junior Kelly Marx finished in fourth place in the men’s 1-meter competition at the Tennessee Diving Invitational on Saturday, leading a group of eight Tigers competing in the three-day event.

Marx took fourth place in the men’s 1-meter springboard with a score of 331.80, topping his preliminary score of 328.70. Alabama’s Aaron Fleshner won the event with a score of 371.40.

Also making the finals was Dan Mazzaferro, finishing ninth with a score of 293.50. Mazzaferro earned his way into the finals after finishing third in the prelims with a score of 341.45.

Also competing in the event were senior Scott Morgan (23rd, 250.00) and freshman Adam Godzinski (29th, 238.05).

Although none made it to finals, two of Auburn’s freshmen came close to advancing in the women’s 3-meter springboard. Vanessa Dantin led the way by finishing 14th in prelims with a score of 253.95, while teammate Anna Aguero finished right behind her in 15th with a score of 252.35.

Also diving were fellow freshmen Laura Mulqueen (38th, 200.65) and Mary Catherine Cochran (39th, 198.20).

Drexel’s Kate Hynes won the event, taking first place with a score of 316.55.

The meet continues today with the men’s 3-meter and women’s 1-meter. It wraps up Monday with the platform events.

Gymnastics opens season on the road
The No. 15 Auburn gymnastics team begins the 2009 campaign today on the road against defending Midwest Independent Conference champion Illinois-Chicago at 2 p.m. in the UIC Physical Education Building in Chicago.

“Apart from the early season injuries to [freshmen] Kareen Kaveh and Justine Foster, we are as healthy as can be expected to start the season,” head gymnastics coach Jeff Thompson said. “Everyone looks great and our freshmen can’t wait to get started.”

For the third time in program history, the Tigers are starting the season against Illinois-Chicago. Auburn won both previous season openers in 1998 and 2002. Today’s meet marks the eighth time that the two schools have met, with the Tigers owning a 6-1 record against the Flames. The last meeting came on March 11, 2007, in Chicago, with Auburn winning, 195.800-193.750.

“Chicago is a great place for us to start,” Thompson said. “We’ll be in a venue in which most of our team has already competed in a few years ago. We are expecting to see a bunch of orange and blue in the stands, too, as many parents, friends and alumni are making the trip.”

The Tigers return nine letterwinners from a squad that posted an 11-15 record in 2008. Leading the way will be a trio of seniors in A.J. Mills, Lindsey Puckett and Claire Seiffert. Puckett was named the 2008 co-Southeastern Conference Gymnast of the Year as a junior.

Underclassmen are abundant with a pair of junior all-arounders, four seasoned sophomores and seven freshmen to round out the roster.