NCAA Women’s Championships: Stanford Freshman Ellie Cole Sets NCAA Record on Platform
Ellie Cole’s first NCAAs as a member of Stanford is going to be hard to top.
The Australian Olympian scored 399.80 points, topping the NCAA record from 2013 and beating the field by more than 50 points, a huge boost to Stanford’s pursuit of second place overall.
Cole led at every stage of the day. She went into the fifth and final dive of the night at Georgia Tech’s McAuley Aquatic Center needing just 28 points to win. She blasted her 5253B for 84.80 points, taking her near 400. It downs the meet record of 396.75 set in 2013 by USC’s Haley Ishimatsu.
“I was definitely a little bit nervous going into it, because I knew I could do really well, and I wanted to go out and show what I could do and perform at my best,” Cole said. “I told myself, just have fun with it. I really want to enjoy the competition, enjoy the atmosphere. It’s my first time here experiencing this, so I just really wanted to have fun with it. And I think I did that.”
The points put Stanford up by two points heading into the concluding 400 freestyle relay. Stanford also got six points from Emilie Moore in 11th.
Cole’s contributions to Stanford ultimately edging Texas by four points for second place in the team standings certainly didn’t go unnoticed by the swimmers.
“We definitely needed that,” triple champion Torri Huske said. “Ellie was so good this meet. It was insane.”
“Even though it’s such different sports, it feeds into our energy so much,” said 200 IM/200 breast champ Lucy Bell. “And every single dive that Ellie did, we could hear it from the ready room for the relay, and just the sound that, that her impact made, it was so cool.”
Cole said she felt that in reverse.
“The one key thing about Stanford is our unity,” she said. “The team it’s just like family. It’s so special to be able to share these moments with them. And at training, we’re all having fun. We have jam out sessions in the locker room. It’s just one big family. And I think that’s something that differs Stanford from a lot of schools.”
Second was Daryn Wright of Purdue in 343.45. Wright was fourth last year and fifth in 2024.
Florida State’s Kayleigh Clark moved up one place in the final three dives to third in 333.30. Viviana Del Angel of Minnesota medaled for the fourth straight year, finishing fourth with a score of 325.40. She won this event in 2024 and was third last year and in 2023.
Texas’ Bayleigh Cranford, in addition to aiding her team’s chase for a runner-up trophy, is the only diver to medal in all three heights. Third on 1-meter and sixth on 3-meter, she was fifth on platform in 312.75.
North Carolina’s Sofia Knight was sixth, Mia Prusiecki of Ohio State seventh and Camyla Monroy of Florida eighth.
Event 18 Women Platform Diving
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Meet: M 399.80 3/21/2026 Ellie Cole, Stanford
Name Year School Prelims Finals Points
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=== Championship Final ===
1 Cole, Ellie FR Stanford 366.90 399.80M 20
2 Wright, Daryn SR Purdue 305.40 343.45 17
3 Clark, Kayleigh SR FSU 324.00 333.30 16
4 Del Angel, Viviana SR Minnesota 326.10 325.40 15
5 Cranford, Bayleigh JR Texas 341.50 312.75 14
6 Knight, Sofia SO UNC 301.40 290.00 13
7 Prusiecki, Mia SO OSU 294.75 286.95 12
8 Monroy, Camyla JR Florida 299.30 223.90 11
