ANNAPOLIS, Md. (Mar. 11, 2005)- Senior Alison Riccobono (Ypsilanti, Mich.) won her first ever Zone A Diving Championship on Friday when she scored 198.50 in the 3-meter finals to jump two spots and finish first with a total score of 491.15.

With the title, Riccobono automatically qualifies for next week's NCAA Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, which will be held Mar. 17-19 in West Lafayette, Ind. Riccobono is the first Penn State diver, and 15th student-athlete overall to qualify for the NCAA Championships.

Also for the Nittany Lions, senior Corey Pagnotta (Westport, Conn.) finished 33rd on the 3-meter board with 187.10.

Junior Adam Pierce (Conroe, Texas) and senior Marc Gastaldo (Winslow, Maine) finished fifth and sixth, respectively, in the men's 1-meter diving competition. Pierce finished with 582.60, while Gastaldo totaled 573.00.

Pittsburgh's Denis Nemtsanov won the men's 1-meter competition with 655.60.

The Zone A Diving Championships will continue at 11 a.m. Saturday when the men's 3-meter, and the women's 1-meter, get started. Platform diving for both men and women will begin at 4 p.m.