Tori Lamp stands with dad in qualifying for Olympic Trials

Tennessee diver Tori Lamp may not have been on the medal stand's top landing Sunday, but she still reached a lofty spot — qualifying for the Olympic Trials.

Her fifth-place finish in the finals of the 10-meter platform at the USA Diving Winter National Championships at Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center easily qualified her.

As a result, she was feeling pretty happy.

"I'm just really excited," the redshirt sophomore from Knoxville said. "My father (former UT athlete Danny Lamp) participated in the Olympic Trials in track and field. To have that opportunity just like he did was really important to me, and I also now have a chance to make the team."

Her 15-dive total of 991.10 points put her behind winner Haley Ishimatsu (1,068), former Ohio State diver Katherine Bell (1,046), former Miami diver Brittany Viola (1,017.75) and 17-year-old Jessica Parratto (1,015.45).

Lamp had been in position to finish possibly higher, but she did not do quite as well on her third dive as she wanted.

"I missed my inwards again," she said. "It's becoming a trend, I think. But I hit it this morning (in the semifinals), so that was really good."

Ishimatsu competed in both the individual platform and synchronized platform at the 2008 Olympics and feels she is in good position to try to make another run at qualifying for the 2012 Games.

A former gymnast who took up diving after her older sister became involved, Ishimatsu, 19, attended Duke for a year but is taking some time off to train. She plans to enroll later at Southern Cal.

Although the American divers were shut out of the medals in 2008, she feels the United States is poised to make a better showing next year.

"We got very close last time and I think this time we have the potential to get on the medal stand," she said.

Among the other UT competitors, Ryan Helms finished seventh in the quarterfinals of the 3-meter springboard and advanced to today's semifinals. Former Vol Michael Wright finished 14th and also advanced.

In the other final Sunday, Summer Allman of Lansing, Mich., won the women's 1-meter.