Megan Topping/MDN Haley Conklin and her family after signing to Youngstown State’s Swim and Dive team on Tuesday, November 19, at Minot High School.

Haley Conklin of the Minot High Swim and Dive team signed with Youngstown State University’s swim and dive team on Tuesday, November 19 after dominating over the weekend at the 2024 NDHSAA Girls Swimming and Diving State Tournament.

Conklin who has been diving since she was in seventh grade talked about why she chose Youngstown State as her collegiate school,

“What I really liked about this school is the team aspect and how well everybody got along,” Conklin said. “I also like the coaches and the coaching staff, it was really easy to get along and seems like a good place.”

Not only did Conklin see herself succeeding athletically at Youngstown but academically as well,

“I want to go pre-dental, so they have that major, and you can’t find that everywhere, so that’s kind of a nice coincidence,” Conklin said.

Over the weekend at the state tournament, Conklin broke the state record set by her last year at the same meet for the state title in the 1-meter diving. Conklin posted a total score of 513.95 at the 2024 meet for the win, breaking the state record for the second time.

Conklin is excited to start competing at the collegiate level next year especially when it comes to opening the door to more opportunities.

“I’m definitely excited to be able to open the door to more of the three-meter stuff,” Conklin said. “In high school, you can only compete on the 1-meter, so just exploring my options, learning new dives and stuff like that.”

Conklin thanked her mom, dad, and siblings as well as her coaches and friends who have helped her through this process.