WASHINGTON, Pa. — Spending a year away from diving didn’t bother Jennifer Suder at all.

The Seneca Valley graduate’s return to the sport bugged her competition, though.

Suder, a Washington & Jefferson College senior, recently won her third successive Presidents’ Athletic Conference 3-meter diving title and her first 1-meter championship. She was named PAC Women’s Diver of the Year for the third straight year as well.

“I knew that ability was in her,” W&J diving coach Vic Galati said. “Jennifer was heavily recruited out of high school. I was recruiting her back then myself.

“She decided not to pursue diving in college.”

But Galati never stopped pursuing her.

Suder opted to play golf as a W&J freshman and was a key cog behind the revitalization of that program.

“I thought about diving, too, but two sports and trying to adjust to college, I thought was a little too much,” Suder said. “And golf is my favorite sport.”

When golf season ended the spring of her freshman year, however, Galati was on the phone.

“He kept calling me, asking me to join the team,” Suder said. “I did miss it. My winter was kind of boring that first year.

“I don’t know if I would have come back without his encouragement, though. It would have been strange just showing up after not competing as a freshman.”

She more than made up for it.

Suder posted a score of 493.85 in winning the 3-meter PAC diving crown this year. She qualified for the Division III Regional Championships in the process.

Then she outdid herself in the 1-meter competition.

After placing second in 1-meter at the PAC Championships the previous two years, Suder produced a score of 470.80 this time, easily beating defending champion Alexis Rectenwald of Chatham, who finished second with a 446.

“Jennifer was determined to beat her out and she did,” Galati said. “Her performance was incredible.”

Suder’s 1-meter score broke the PAC meet, Longnecker Pool (Grove City College) and W&J school records.

“That was a good way to close out my PAC (diving) career,” Suder admitted.

Suder was a first alternate for Division III nationals last year. Galati hopes she breaks through this time around.

“Her form is awesome,” he said. “She is all about technique and form. Jennifer is always so consistent. Her concentration never wavers on any dive.

“The PAC is an 11-dive meet and you can’t afford to blow a dive — and she doesn’t.”

While Suder didn’t expect to win three straight conference titles, she did figure on returning to top form despite skipping that first year.

“I was a gymnast for a long time, so the mechanics of diving come naturally to me,” she said.

While her diving accomplishments have been impressive, Suder is more proud of her impact on the golf team. She tied for second in the PAC Women’s Tournament last fall and helped the Presidents win the PAC fall team championship by a whopping 63 strokes.

The overall conference champion is determined by combined results of the fall and spring PAC tournaments.

“W&J has never won the overall conference title in women’s golf,” Suder said. “Now we have an excellent shot at bringing that home.

“The way we’ve transformed the women’s golf program during the years I’ve been here ... yeah, I’m very proud to be a part of that.”

Sporting a 3.6 grade point average as a history/pre-law major, Suder will graduate this spring. She will leave her diving career behind when she does.

Her golfing will continue.

“Golf is something I’ll play for the rest of my life,” she said. “Diving is part of my college experience.

“But I’m happy I did it.”