State diving champ Marissa Roth of Signal Mountain ready for Gamecocks

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Arkansas-SEMO Live Blog

Signal Mountain High School senior Marissa Roth, who won her third consecutive state diving championship last weekend in the 1-meter event in Nashville, now is prepared to continue her career at the University of South Carolina.

She signed scholarship papers with the Southeastern Conference school last November, and at the time Gamecocks diving coach Todd Sherritt said, "She is not just the top female diver coming out of Tennessee but one of the top recruits in the country. She will immediately impact our program and bring points to the SEC and NCAA Championships."

Roth, one of only 100 All-American divers last year, has been diving competitively since sixth grade. After finishing second in the state meet as a freshman, she has won state titles every year since.

"She's a very focused and dedicated competitor," said Signal Mountain diving coach Debra Mynatt. "She knows what she wants and she works hard to reach her goal. She's always pushing for more practice time, always looking to get better, and I believe she will be an asset at the next level. She has a lot of potential."

Roth's most recent state score was 429.35, which is likely to qualify her as an All-American for a second straight season. She is a year-round diver who also competes in AAU meets.

"I look forward to seeing her diving go to a new level," Sherritt said last fall.