Walker, and a unified women’s swim team, prep for husker invite

The grace of gymnasts and body control of divers are unmistakable.

Kaitlan Walker embodies both of these strengths from her background in both sports. The freshman from Albuquerque, N.M., a former gymnast, captured two titles in her last dual with South Dakota.

Walker made a relatively recent entry into the world of diving. The career gymnast decided to quit the sport during her freshman year of high school, but quickly moved onto the platform.

"Literally, the week after I quit gymnastics, I started diving." Walker said. "I got bored at home and couldn't stand not doing something."

The restless nature that pushed Walker into diving soon paid dividends, as she became one of the New Mexico's best young divers.

In her junior year of high school, just her second year of diving, Walker won her first state championship. She followed it up with another title her senior year on her way to her second consecutive Female Athlete of the Year award at Eldorado High School.

Walker, who was named an All-American diver that season as well, placed seventh in the one-meter dive and fourth in the three-meter event at the 2009 AAU National Championships.

"She's a very talented diver and has great basics," said NU diving coach Natasha Chikina. "She's a beautiful diver, so she has all the tools to become a great diver."

Early in her career as a Cornhusker, Walker already has claimed the two event championships two weeks ago against South Dakota – the Huskers' best dives this season. She also earned second- and third-place finishes from her first collegiate dual with Illinois a month ago.

One of the keys to her early success in the program is her gymnastics background. She spent 11 years competing in all four events: floor exercise, vault, uneven bars and balance beam. Walker's well-rounded athletic experience has been crucial to her triumphs.

"She definitely has some advantages, like flipping-wise," Chikina said, "but she has some disadvantages coming from gymnastics, like going headfirst from the springboard."

Walker and her teammates are preparing for the Husker Invitational, in which UNO, Rice and South Dakota State come to the Devaney Center. The meet starts Thursday and runs through Sunday.

Walker cites the chemistry between the Husker swimming and diving squads as a key to their future successes. That bond was one of the main reasons she made the long trip from Albuquerque to Lincoln because it was something she saw as lacking in many other programs.

"I just loved the team and fit in really well," Walker said. "I think the swimming and diving teams are pretty unified, and at other schools it's different."

johnschreier@dailynebraskan.com