By: Jim Fenton, The Enterprise
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. - The NCAA Division III Women's Swimming & Diving Championships have been held since 1982 and has never included a Bridgewater State University student-athlete.
That will change on Thursday morning when BSU junior Cailey Simard (Haverhill, Mass.) steps on the 1-meter diving board in Greensboro, N.C. as one of 29 participants in the event.
"I'm excited," said Simard, the owner of four Bears' diving records. "It feels awesome. I love to represent Bridgewater. My family went here, my mom and my aunt, so I think that's cool as well."
Simard will compete in the 1-meter trials at 10 a.m. on Thursday, looking to qualify for the finals at 6 o'clock that night.
She is also in the 3-meter diving competition on Saturday with the trials at 10 a.m. and the finals at 6 p.m.
Simard, along with Bears head coach Michael Caruso and diving coach Nicole Radanovics, a pair of Bridgewater State graduates, will be at the Greensboro Aquatic Center for the national championships.
BSU has sent one male diver to the NCAAs, Andy Fuccillo, who earned honorable mention All-America honors in 3-meter diving in 2003.
The Bears' men's team has sent several swimmers to the NCAAs, the last one being Richard Smith in 2018, but no woman has earned a spot in the nationals until Simard.
"I think it's a huge addition for our program, a big deal," said Caruso. "You have generational athletes who just make such a long-lasting impact on the program.
"We're already seeing it in recruiting on the diving side. It's a great thing for the program."
Simard, a three-time Little East Conference Diver of the Year, placed sixth at the NCAA Northeast/North Regionals in Springfield, Mass., in the 11-dive 1-meter event with a score of 415.35.
That was Simard's third straight appearance in the regionals, and this time she was able to move on to the nationals.
She is one of four divers from New England schools to reach the NCAAs this season.
"Definitely since I came to Bridgewater, it was a goal," said Simard. "Part of me felt I could do it this year, but I didn't want to get my hopes up. I think next year is when I thought I'd make it.
"I feel like I didn't really have expectations. I just wanted to see how it went. I didn't have my hopes up for anything."
Simard has finished first in nearly every 1-meter and 3-meter event since starting her BSU career in the 2022-23 season.
She owns the six and 11-dive school records in the 1-meter and 3-meter events and breaks the Little East record every year at the championship meet.
Caruso had a good feeling that Simard would be a sensational part of the Bears' program from the start.
"I felt like that since the first time I met her,'' said Caruso. "You just kind of know sometimes.
"I got to personally recruit her and took her around campus. You could just tell right there that she was excited, excited to bring that to wherever she was going to go.
"When we saw her dive the first time, we knew this was a special diver."
Simard continually gets better with each season at BSU, showing that improvement.
"We talk about it a lot, Nicole and I, about where I started and where I am," said Simard. "The first reason would definitely be my coaches and my teammates also. They've really helped me.
"Having supportive teammates and coaches made me more confident. We gained a few teammates this year and that helped all of us be better. We work off each other."
Caruso has been to the men's national championships with BSU swimmers, so he can let Simard know what to expect.
He wants Simard to enjoy the moment and add a valuable experience to her growing resume as a diver.
"This is my fifth time going as a coach, and I want Cailey and Nicole to experience all the firsts without giving them the notifications ahead of time," said Caruso.
"I want them to organically enjoy this trip. The one thing I told both of them was there are no expectations. We want her to do well. We don't want her to feel the pressure of the moment.
"She is still just a junior, so fingers crossed, everything goes well, and we anticipate she'll be right back in the mix, hopefully, next year.
"We want her to dive free. She's made it. She's there. She gets to perform on the biggest stages. Let her perform and let her get out there and do what she can do."
Simard is eager to dive in a new environment, surrounded with top-notch student-athletes from around the country.
"I think it's just going and having fun," said Simard. "The goal was to make it there. Now it's having fun, being relaxed, doing the same thing as a few weekends before (at the regionals).
"I think it's going to be serious, but I also think it's going to be exciting. I won't think about (where she'll place). I do better when I focus on myself and try to have fun and do the best that I can."