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Photo by Hans Hallgren

Genna Bradley

Steamboat Springs — Genna Bradley was so nervous at last year's state diving meet, she couldn't bear to watch the competition.

But when the little-known competitor from Steamboat Springs started to dive, she saw her name start to rise up the leader board.

At the end of the day, Bradley - who dives for Moffat County High School since there isn't a program in Steamboat - had made her way all the way up to seventh place.

"I was sufficiently nervous," Bradley said about last year's competition. "I was one of the few underclassmen. I didn't know who I was up against. I was a lot more nervous than I feel I'll be this year."

Certainly with her finish last year and performance so far this season, Bradley will be one of the divers to watch heading into Friday and Saturday's state meet at Mountain View High School in Loveland.

At the highly competitive JeffCo Meet earlier this year - a meet that serves almost as a quasi-state meet - Bradley finished second with an 11-dive total of 366 points.

"I think : what made her shine, is her consistency," coach Dave Fix said. "It's always important in diving to be consistent. If she can be, most kids can dive and do hard dives, then she should do well."

Although Bradley is only in her third year of diving, the junior has started to take her place among Colorado's elite. In addition to the JeffCo Meet, Bradley has won just about every other meet she's been to this season. On Saturday in Durango, Bradley also won her third straight regional diving title.

Although part of that is because the competition on the Western Slope isn't as good as it is on the Front Range, Fix said her performance at the JeffCo Meet made him think Bradley can compete with anyone. After the meet, however, Fix knew Bradley would have to increase her degree of difficulty to finish higher than she did at last year's state meet.

So for the past month, the two have been adding new dives. This process isn't always easy, as Bradley and Fix attest that attempting tougher dives can become frustrating with hard splashes.

But Bradley said she's confident now she'll be able to place higher than she ever has. She said she wants to improve on her career-best of 366 points. With the new dives in place, Fix thinks that's a distinct possibility.

"We have a harder dive than we had on the list. I know she'll be able to get pretty good scores on it," Fix said. "I could see her getting over 370 to 380. If she gets up to 400, I'd be elated. She does have the potential to do it."

Although Bradley is not trying to put too much pressure on herself, she said she would like to finish better than she did last year. For her, it's just a matter of putting all her dives together.

"I do feel confident because I've upped my (degree of difficulty) now. I have my secret weapon now," she said. "For state, I really just want to do my best and not make any stupid mistakes. If I know that I did my absolute best, then wherever that puts me will be fine."

- To reach Luke Graham, call 871-4229 or e-mail lgraham@steamboatpilot.com