FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (December 3, 2020) – Northern Arizona swimming and diving welcomes two divers, Makenna Sammons and Kendall Marquez, to their seven-peat WAC Conference winning championship program. The two newcomers will be part of the 2021 fall class, along with
10 swimmers who signed with the program on November 20.
Born and raised in Flagstaff, Marquez joins the Lumberjacks with experience diving for six years under head diving coach Nikki Huffman with the Northern Arizona Divers Club. At the 2020 Diving Nationals, she placed fourth on the 3-meter and sixth on the 1-meter. Marquez said that she is proud to be representing her home as part of the NAU team.
"I am excited to have Kendall join us," Huffman said. "She is a very strong and dedicated athlete. With no diving boards available to her in Flagstaff, she made the commitment to travel to Phoenix for diving time. This past August she finaled in the AAU nationals. I am very proud of her efforts and she will be a great addition to our NAU program."
Sammons was born in Kirov, Russia and grew up in San Diego, Calif. At La Jolla High School under coach Mike McQuade, she was No. 1 in 2018 and 2019 in the San Diego Division II. She was a CIF Champion in San Diego during her 2018 career, along with breaking all high school records and being named Most Valuable Diver. She was a CIF Champion again in 2019, along with being an AAU Diving All-American on both the 1-meter and 3-meter.
"[Makenna] did not have opportunities to dive in San Diego so she traveled to Mission Viejo for training," Huffman said. "She has been dedicated to her training and has been fortunate to work with some elite coaches at MV."
These two divers join the seven-time WAC Championship swimming and diving team, which includes senior diver Jenny Cheetham, who was named as a CSCAA All-American last season.
"Their work ethic, commitment, and resilience have really shown over the last several months," Huffman said. "We feel very fortunate that Makenna and Kendall will be joining the NAU family!"
