Ithaca College Athletics

Christopher Griffin enters his 11th season as the Head Diving Coach and Aquatics Coordinator at Ithaca College for the 2025-26 season.

A three-time NCAA Division III Women’s Diving Coach of the Year (2018, 2024 and 2025), Chris guided Nickie Griesmer (17’ Undergrad, ’19 DPT) to a pair of national championships, winning both the 1-meter and 3-meter dive in 2018. Nickie Griesmer was Ithaca's first-ever diving national champion and the fourth female in swimming & diving program histroy. During that 2017-18 season, Griffin qualified four additional divers to the NCAA Championships (Anna Belson, Katie Helly, Linsey Suddaby, and Alyssa Wishart), marking the first time in the NCAA DIII Championship history that a program had sent five divers of a single sex.

During the 2021-22 season, Griffin guided Ava Lowell (’21 Undergrad, ’23 DPT) to a National Title on the 3-meter. The team additionally sent 6 divers to the NCAA Region 4 Championship meet, and once again matched the 2018 team, qualifying 5 women (Rachel Lange, Ava Lowell, Abby Marraccino, Karalyn Pawcio, and Eliana Wallock) to the NCAA DIII Championships.

The 2022-23 season saw the Bombers qualify four divers for the NCAA Division III Championships (Karalyn Pawcio, Abby Marraccino, Leah Levin and Rachel Lange). During the first day of competition at NCAA's, Ithaca saw a pair of divers crowned First Team All-Americans as Karalyn Pawcio finished second and Rachel Lange was eighth in 3-meter diving. Those performances were followed up by Leah Levin finishing third overall on the 1-meter diving boards as she was just over four points behind the winner Sydney Blestein (431.40), as the sophomore scored a 427.65. Finishing in fifth-place and also earning First Team All-America honors was Karalyn Pawcio.

Most recently, Griffin coached Kailee Payne to national titles on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards during the 2023–24 season. She went on to repeat as national champion in the 2024–25 season. Payne became the program’s sixth-ever individual national champion, winning the 3-meter event with a finals score of 509.50 and capturing the 1-meter title with a score of 515.15. Overall, the Bombers sent three divers—Kailee Payne, Abby Marraccino, and Angela Burke—to the national championships, with Marraccino earning a pair of Honorable Mention All-American honors.

At the 2025 NCAA Division III National Championships, Griffin was named CSCAA Women’s Diving Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season. He guided Payne to another 1-meter title with a finals score of 486.30. Payne capped off her collegiate career with a sensational 11-dive preliminary round on the 3-meter board, breaking the NCAA record with a score of 530.95. She continued her dominance in the finals, securing her fourth career national title with a score of 522.80. The Bombers qualified four divers for nationals—Payne, Angela Burke, Ethan Godfrey and Jenell Slesser—with Burke earning All-American honors for her 11th-place finish in the 3-meter consolation final as well as Ethan Godfrey who finished in 14th-place in the 1-meter consolation final.

Ithaca College Coaching Highlights       

• 3 National Champion (7 Performances)
• 1 National Record (Women's 3-meter)
• 16 divers earned NCAA All-America honors a total of 50 titles
• 15 NCAA Qualifiers (25 Total Performances)
• 28 NCAA Region 4 Qualifiers (71 Performances)
• 8 Liberty League Champions (18 Performances)
• 26 Liberty League Finalists (119 Performances)
• 8 Liberty League Diver of the Meet award winners
• 3 Liberty League Diver of the Year award winners (Award began in 2023)
• 1 UNYSCA Diver of the Meet award winner

3 Time NCAA Women’s Diving Coach of the Year
2018, 2024 and 2025

2 Time UNYSCA Diving Coach of the year *The award ended in 2017
Women (2) - 2016, 2017
 
Griffin began coaching in 2005, and has been the Head Diving Coach at Mexico, Vestal, Maine Endwell, Evolution Diving Club, and the Ithaca Diving Clinic. Under his tutelage, these teams have produced:

31 - NYS HS Championship Qualifiers
13 - NYS HS Championship Finalists
1 - NYS HS Champion

Griffin earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 2005, was a two-time SUNYAC finalist in both 1- and 3-meter diving as a Red Dragon. As a senior he served as a team captain and was the recipient of Cortland’s prestigious George Breen Award. 

7/15/2025