Class AA medal winners at Tuesday's District 11 Boys' Diving Championships at Parkland High School were, from left: Allentown Central Catholic's Luke Anderson, fourth; Northwestern Lehigh's Hayden Slaski, second; Pottsville's Adam Klinger, champion; and Northwestern Lehigh's Harper Slaski, third (Photo by Leroy Boyer).

Klinger handles pressure, repeats as District 11 champion

ALLENTOWN — Adam Klinger felt the pressure.

Early struggles put him behind … his top challenger was on top of his game … he was inconsistent with his approaches on the board.

The weight of repeating as the District 11 Class AA boys’ diving champion was getting heavier every time the Pottsville senior stepped onto the board.

Instead of letting those mental demons take over, Klinger dug in.

Three straight strong dives thrust him into the lead and a strong final dive clinched it during Tuesday’s competition at Parkland High School.

Klinger finished with 520.50 points, capturing a second straight District 11 gold medal by less than 10 points over Northwestern Lehigh’s Hayden Slaski.

“It’s a superb feeling,” Klinger said as he carried the District 11 championship placard around the pool. “This meet was definitely a lot more stressful.

“I had some of the worst hurdles of my life, a couple times in a row. I was definitely sweating my competition Hayden. He definitely dove at the top of his game today, if not even better. He had me sweating.

“I was able to perform under pressure and pull through in the end. I’m grateful for that, grateful that I made it through. Happy to be a champion again.”

The District 11 Class AA meet, being held at Parkland for the first time after being held for more than two decades at Emmaus, featured six boys. Klinger was second in the diving order behind teammate Spencer Prestileo, followed by Luke Anderson of Allentown Central Catholic, Harper and Hayden Slaski of Northwestern Lehigh, and Pottsville’s Colin Kline.

Hayden Slaski set the tone early, scoring 100.55 points over his first two dives. He led by 13.40 points after four rounds before Klinger started to mount his comeback.

The Seton Hall signee delivered his best dive of the competition in Round 5, scoring 58.80 points on Dive 403B, an inward 1.5 somersault from the pike position (degree of difficulty 2.4). That dive allowed Klinger to trail by less than a point — 231.85 to 231.25 — at the first intermission after five dives.

“My fifth dive, my inward 1.5, that’s a money dive for me,” Klinger said. “That’s usually automatic.”

Klinger took control by outscoring Slaski on three straight dives in rounds 7-9. He scored 50.70 on his seventh dive, a forward 2.5 somersault from the pike position (2.6 difficulty); totaled 44.20 on a reverse dive from the pike position (1.7 difficulty); then collected 52.80 points on his ninth dive, a reverse 1.5 somersault from the pike position (2.4 difficulty).

The flurry gave Klinger a 24.75-point lead with two dives left. Slaski finished strong, recording dives of 56.40 and 58.65 over the final two rounds.

Klinger’s final dive, a reverse 1.5 somersault with 1.5 twists from the free position (2.6 difficulty), scored 55.90 and wrapped up the title.

“My 2.5 was probably the worst 2.5 I’ve done all year, but that was part of that hurdle issue I had today,” Klinger said. “I had a really good save in the air and got that around. My final dive, again the hurdle was not that great but I somehow pulled it around, not sure how.

“That’s the perk of performing under pressure … you kind of force yourself to do things. I’m glad I was able to pull through.”

Klinger said his biggest issue Tuesday was his hurdles — the part of the approach on the diving board just prior to take-off. He said he was inconsistent, which works on a diver both mentally and physically.

“I do a different hurdle from a lot of people … I hop in the air,” Klinger said. “When you do that, it can get inconsistent at times. Especially if you’re in a really important meet, if you mess up one hurdle, you’re going to be more cautious. When you’re more cautious, you tend to mess up more.

“You have to land on the perfect spot on the board and you have to have enough confidence that you’re going to land on that part of the board.”

Hayden Slaski placed second with 510.90 points, with Harper Slaski taking third at 390.95. Anderson earned the fourth-place medal with 313.85 points, followed by Kline (299.05) and Prestileo (277.00).

Klinger and Hayden Slaski automatically qualify for the PIAA Diving Championships at Bucknell University’s Kinney Natatorium, although Harper Slaski could earn a berth if a diver from another district backs out. Tamaqua’s Vinny Valentine qualified for states in that same scenario last season.

Bethlehem Freedom’s Cody Smith won the nine-diver Class 3A competition with a District 11 and pool-record 598.75 points. Parkland’s Charlie Epstein was second with a school-record 531.45 points, with Parkland’s C.J. Denton (463.65) taking third and Parkland’s Ari Levin (442) placing fourth.

The District 11 Girls’ Diving Championships will be held Wednesday, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at Parkland. The Blue Mountain quartet of defending champion Hailey Scheuer, Shyanna White, Molly Stone and Ana Oettl; North Schuylkill’s Annabelle Bennett; and Pottsville’s Lila Evans will represent the Schuylkill League in the seven-girl Class AA competition.

For Klinger, Tuesday’s struggles will provide more motivation to fine tune his craft for states. Over his four-year career, Klinger claimed two silver and two gold medals at districts, then placed 16th, 14th and third at states.

His goal is to get back on the podium again at Bucknell.

“I want to do the best I can at states,” Klinger said. “The goal this year is to get third or second … by some miracle maybe first, but third or second is my goal.”