U.S. Diving Meet : Louganis Is Beaten Second Time

Kent Ferguson dealt teammate Greg Louganis another disappointment, and Megan Neyer won her 13th national title in Friday night’s three-meter springboard finals of the 1987 U.S. Diving Indoor Championships.

In winning the men’s three-meter crown, Ferguson wrested away another title that had been held by Louganis for six of the past seven years.

It was the second disappointment in as many nights for Louganis, who finished second to Doug Shaffer in Thursday’s one-meter finals.

Ferguson’s victory came on the last dive, as did Neyer’s win over Kelly McCormick.

Ferguson, 24, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, scored 660.84 points to 644.31 points for Louganis, 27, of Malibu. Louganis was a double gold medalist in the 1984 Olympics and has won 41 U.S. diving titles.

Neyer, 24, of Ashland, Ky., had 494.40 points to 491.10 for McCormick, 27, of Anaheim, Calif.

Ferguson, Louganis, Shaffer and Neyer all compete for the Mission Bay Makos of Boca Raton, Fla., while McCormick represents McDonald’s Divers out of Columbus, Ohio.

Louganis was ahead by 10 points in the men’s three-meter until his 11th and last dive--a reverse 3 1/2 tuck with a 3.5 degree of difficulty.

“I was a little back on the end of the board on my takeoff,” Louganis said. “I got the spin going, but I kicked out too late and over-rotated.”