Serpico, currently Dartmouth's Athlete of the Week, won all four of her events against Boston University and the University of Vermont this weekend. The diving squad (0-6, 0-3 Ivy), led by Serpico's victories, was a bright spot amidst the Big Green's two losses.
"It's definitely an honor," Serpico said. "I had a pretty good weekend so I'm really proud, but I have a lot of work to do this weekend in order to help our team succeed."
She earned first-place finishes in the three-meter and one-meter dives in bot meets, but was not the only Dartmouth diver to have a strong showing. Kate O'Brien '13 came in second right behind Serpico all weekend, while Kathleen Brady '10 also secured third place in both dives against the Catamounts on Saturday.
"I think I had a career day on Sunday," Serpico said. "That isn't to say I can repeat what I did, but I hit all my dives the way I wanted to which was why I had the success I did. The competition wasn't as strong as at Ivy League meets, but they definitely help us see where we stand at this point in the season."
Diving teammate Chris Plante '12 said that Serpico's accomplishments inspire the her teammates to perform better during competitions.
"We are all really proud of Erica for being named Athlete of the Week," Plante said. "She works so hard, in and out of the water. She's extremely talented and her success helps motivate us all to push ourselves in order to achieve what she has."
Aside from winning each of her four events, Serpico also broke a 12-year-old Karl Michael Pool record in the one-meter dive, with a score of 269.69 on Sunday against the Terriers.
"I was really happy when I learned that I broke that record," Serpico said. "I've been several points away from it a couple of times, so to finally break it feels great. However, the new record I just set can be broken again. There are a couple divers on this team who can definitely do it."
Serpico's teammates, however, recognize her hard work and the difficulty of setting new pool records.
"Having Erica break that record just goes to show how much work and effort she puts in during practices and at the meets," Plante said.
Serpico attributes her success to the training trip that the team recently took to Puerto Rico over winter break.
"It was much more rigorous than regular practices because we had morning practices which was a change of pace," Serpico said. "We also had two-a-days, which helped with our endurance and stamina."
The diving team has fared much better this season than in the past, which Serpico attributed to improved recruitment, including the addition of O'Brien.
Although Dartmouth is currently winless in six matchups, Serpico said that she is focusing on personally improving and helping the team place higher in future meets.
"I think my goal for this season is to place much higher in Ivies than I did last year," Serpico said. "The competition was really tough, but I'm going to go in this year with the mentality that I will do the best I can, just like I did against BU."
Dartmouth returns to the pool against Yale University and the University of Pennsylvania Saturday in Philadelphia.
"The team is looking to build some consistency in the upcoming meets before the Ivy Championships," Serpico said. "As long as everyone focuses and gives their best during every meet, we'll have a good shot in Ivies."
