Already a three-time state qualifier, Franklin’s Camy Quiggins is looking to end her career with a second straight top-eight finish.
Rob Baker | For the Daily Journal
The approach was just like any of the thousands before it for Camy Quiggins — until it wasn’t.
Setting up for her fifth of 11 dives during Saturday’s Mid-State Conference meet, the Franklin senior felt her legs give out from under her just before takeoff, causing her to slip off the board and into the water.
The roots of that fall took hold years ago, before Quiggins even drew her first breath; she was born with a Chiari malformation, which pushes the brain into the spinal column and can cause major motor problems. Quiggins was not expected to be able to walk properly, much less dive at an elite level — but while she’s largely overcome the condition, it can still cause a weakening of the joints and lead to “drop attacks” like the one that unfolded at Mid-State (though that was the first time that it’s happened to her while competing).
While the incident likely cost Quiggins a conference title, it couldn’t make her quit. Despite some intense pain in her quadriceps that made it difficult to even walk up to the board, she finished out her last six rounds and still managed to finish second with a score of 372.63, less than 22 points behind Mooresville freshman Mackenzie Pierson.
Not bad for taking a zero on what is normally the highest scoring dive on her menu.
“That’s not going to happen again,” said Quiggins, who added that she plans to wear knee supports during the Grizzly Cubs’ remaining meets.
The fact that Quiggins finished out the competition wasn’t a surprise to her mother, Amy Beard, who doubles as the Franklin diving coach and might have been more proud of her daughter in that defeat than she has been after most victories.
“The amount of people that came up to her on Saturday after what happened, just saying how inspired they were that she was up there, is for sure something that she’ll just never forget,” Beard said. “Way more memorable than just going in and winning.”
Quiggins has spent much of her high school diving career ceding the spotlight to others, particularly two-time state champion Mia Prusiecki of Center Grove. The trio of Prusiecki, Quiggins and Indian Creek’s Ella Taylor has competed against one another for years while also forming close friendships. All three qualified for the state meet as freshmen, and all made it onto the podium last winter — Prusiecki winning her second state title, with Taylor finishing seventh and Quiggins eighth.
With Prusiecki skipping out on her senior season to enroll early at Ohio State, the crown is there for the taking, and Quiggins is on the short list of potential successors. So far, though, her senior season hasn’t gone as smoothly as envisioned. Even her career-best performance — a score of 438.65 at the Johnson County meet — wasn’t quite enough to complete a late charge and get past Taylor, who held on to win with a 445.15. Quiggins was favored to win at the conference meet, but her body had other ideas.
Those two agonizing losses have only steeled her resolve to finish out her high school career on top. Quiggins wants to win a sectional championship, finish as high up the state podium as she can and, if possible, take down Franklin’s 11-dive school record score of 486.20 — set in 2002 by her aunt, former Franklin and Ohio State standout Anesa Beard.
“Of course I would love to beat her record,” Quiggins said. “I think it’s attainable if I have a good meet. I haven’t had the best luck so far, but I’m hoping by sectionals I can just be fully healed and just go in and — I’m out for blood. I’m trying to have a good meet.”
Despite her family’s history in the sport, Quiggins didn’t just jump into diving right away. She tried swimming at a young age and “hated it,” then moved on to competitive cheer. After a couple of concussions prompted a change in sport, she jumped in with the Indiana International School of Diving under coach Dave McKown, who is now the head diving coach at the University of Connecticut.
Quiggins didn’t really want to dive at first, but her tune quickly changed.
“My mom forced me,” she said, “and I’m so glad she did.”
That mother’s push wound up fostering a love affair with diving. After her own practices have wrapped up, Quiggins can almost always still be found on the Franklin pool deck, helping her mom mentor young middle school and club divers. That was even the case earlier this week, when “practice” meant little more than sitting by the diving well with ice packs strapped to both of her legs.
When her high school career ends next month, Quiggins won’t be done with the sport; she’s signed a letter of intent to compete at the Division I level for Ohio University. But while she’s eager to begin that next chapter, she’s still got more to accomplish here — and the setbacks she’s faced have left her that much more equipped to scale the top of the mountain in her final meets as a Grizzly Cub.
“Adversity is just something that she knows all too well,” Beard said of her daughter, “and as a mom coach, I just could not be more proud of her for everything she’s fought through and accomplished already. …
“She’s had to just fight a little harder for everything, but it’s working out to her advantage.”
