Immaculate Heart High School senior diver Olivia Rosendahl, who ranked first in the nation in her age group following her recent success at the USA Diving Junior National Championships, will next compete at the world level in two prestigious events.

Rosendahl will represent the United States at the 2014 FINA World Junior Diving Championship, Sept. 9-14, in Penza, Russia, where she will compete on the 1-meter and 3-meter springboard events in the 16-18 age group. She will also travel to Mexico City at the end of September to compete in the Synchronized Girls Platform at the 2014 Pan Am Olympic Festival in Mexico City.

At the USA Diving Junior National Championships (held Aug. 4-9 in Knoxville, Tenn.), Rosendahl’s string of achievements earned her the top overall score among the 95 young women in her age group.

The 17-year-old, who trains with the Trojan Dive Club in Los Angeles, won the junior national title in Synchronized Girls Platform with diving partner Rachel Rubadue from Columbus, Ohio. The pair also clinched the fifth spot in the Synchro 3M springboard. In single events, Rosendahl placed second in the nation on the 1M and 3M boards, and she came in fifth in the Platform event.

Competing at last week’s 2014 USA Diving AT&T National Diving Championships (also in Knoxville), Rosendahl and Rubadue finished second among college-age divers in the Synchronized Women’s Platform. Rosendahl also placed third in the nation on the 10M Platform at the Senior Nationals.

“Immaculate Heart congratulates Olivia on her outstanding performances at both the Junior and Senior Nationals. She is an amazing diver, and we are very proud of her accomplishments,” said Maureen Rodriguez, Immaculate Heart athletic director.

Rosendahl, a parishioner at St. Charles Borromeo Church in North Hollywood, has been a varsity diver for the past three years at Immaculate Heart, and she continues to outperform herself. Among the 97 divers in Divisions 1-4 at the CIF finals in May, she won first place and broke her old CIF-SS record (set as a freshman in 2012) with most points scored.

Bellarmine-Jefferson HS celebrate a new year of athletics

Bellarmine-Jefferson High School, having experienced many exciting changes in its athletic department this summer, will launch the 2014-2015 Guards Sports Program with a kick-off celebration Sept. 5, 6 p.m. at its Olive Avenue campus in Burbank.

With a new athletic director as well as several new coaches, Bell-Jeff is inviting students, parents and the community to meet them all as well as enjoy a BBQ dinner ($5). The new coaches include junior varsity football head coach Fred Martinez and assistant Brandon France, girls and boys volleyball coach Edwin Salazar, and girls basketball coach Claudia Vila.

“This event will be a great way for our students to get all the information they need on all of our sports teams in one place, especially those who play more than one sport,” said Martinez, the new athletic director and an alumnus of Bell-Jeff (1981) and nearby St. Francis Xavier School.

The Bell-Jeff Boosters also will be on hand to sell sweatshirts, T-shirts, hats and more.