Canyons Divers Heading to State Championship Meet

College of the Canyons women's dive student-athlete Nicole Lerma spins mid-air above an outdoor pool, performing a twisting dive during a swim meet, with lane markers, teammates, and spectators in the background.
Results
April 15, 2026

Story and photo by Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director

CYPRESS — College of the Canyons will be represented on the boards at the 3C2A Swim & Dive State Championship meet after seeing its divers compete at the Western State Conference (WSC) & SoCal Regional Dive Championships on April 10.

COC sophomore Nicole Lerma moves on to compete in both the 1M & 3M events, while men's team diver Bretton Williams will serve as an alternate in the 1M event.

Lerma placed third in the WSC and fourth in the SoCal region in the 3M event with a score of 159.60. She trailed only conference champion Karla Perez (246.30) of Santa Monica College and Alexandria Williams (167.70) of Ventura College in the final conference standings.

The Saugus High School alum then totaled a score of 122.95 to place 10th overall in the 1M event to qualify as an alternate in that event. That also placed her sixth in the WSC standings.

Lerma is the first women's diver to advance to the 3C2A State Championships since 2015.

The top eight positions from both events automatically receive entry to the state championship meet with the No. 9 and 10 positions serving as alternates.

In the men's competition, Williams, in just his first year as a diver, placed ninth (139.30) in the 1M event to qualify as an alternate at the State Championship meet.

"It was quite a day for our divers," said COC swim & dive assistant coach Paul Smith. "Nicole dove beautifully and Bretton turned in his best performance of the season.  

"We wish them both the best of luck," added Smith, "as they move on to compete against the best divers in the state."

The 3C2A Swim & Dive Championships will be held April 30 to May 2 at Orange Coast College.

Williams will also compete as a swimmer during the three-day WSC Championships running April 16-18, at L.A. Valley College.

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on X, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.