Ithaca’s Kailee Payne breaks diving records at IC

As the Ithaca College women’s diving team gets set for postseason action, one of their most local athletes closed out the regular season in memorable fashion.

On February 10, Ithaca native Kailee Payne broke the school’s six-dive record off the three-meter boards with a total score of 331.35 at the

Geneca Diving Invitational against hosts SUNY Geneseo. She didn’t even realize she made history until her parents alerted her of the milestone. That’s how locked in Payne is whenever she heads onto the diving board.

“I do not pay attention to scores at all because I don’t want to be caught up in the feeling of, ‘Where am I at?’” Payne said. “It’s really just going into the competition and seeing what happens. I don’t strive for a record or anything, but it just happens. Now that I have my name on that record board, it’s more so this accomplishment of progress, I’m able to realize how far I’ve come when I look back to either a year ago or five years ago. It’s a very surreal experience, and I’m so grateful for it.”

It’s been a record-breaking year even outside of the program’s history. At Geneseo, Payne also reset all four pool records: the six-dives off the one-meter and three-meter boards and the 11-dives off the one-meter and three-meter boards. Earlier this season, she also broke the pool record at RPI in the 11-dive off the one-meter boards.

The biggest catalyst for such an outstanding campaign has been more on the mental side than the physical side. Payne was open about her struggles with anxiety, getting to the point that she would be fearful to step on the board. When she decided to open up about it to her coach Chris Griffin and her teammates, it put her in a better mental state to thrive.

“Being vulnerable has helped me immensely and has allowed me to realize that I’m diving and I am doing this because I love it,” Payne said. “I’m doing it for three years because it’s so cool. I’m not doing it to prove a point. I’m doing it because it’s fun. In trying to change my mentality towards a lot of things that I do, it’s solely to be a little selfish and just remind myself why I’m doing this. It’s fun. I’m doing this because it’s fun, and I want to walk away from the sport confidently having that mentality.”

Payne is back on South Hill after beginning her collegiate career at Marshall University. While it was a successful two-year stint with the Division I program—including being named the Conference USA Freshmen Diver of the Year—she did not feel that the coaching staff practiced what they preached in terms of having a family-based environment.

“Coming to IC has absolutely opened up this feeling of [how] I’m seen as not only an athlete, but as a person,” Payne said. “I’m able to engage more in academics and socialize and I’m diving because it’s so cool. Unfortunately at Marshall, I just felt like it was a job. Here I’m given the opportunity again to fall in love with something that I once fell in love with nine years ago.”

Like in college, Payne’s high school diving career was also spent at two schools. After attending Owego Free Academy for her first two years, she then dove at Ithaca High School for her junior and senior years. In all, Payne was a three-time sectional champion in Class B and a two-time sectional champion in Class A. It was a rewarding experience for Payne with the Little Red as she learned how to be a leader and take responsibility into her own hands, especially as the only diver on the team her senior year.

“When I did transfer to Ithaca, I made a lot of new friends,” Payne said. “Ithaca’s diversity and inclusivity is what I felt immensely when I came into my junior year. While my senior year was tough for several reasons, I still was able to carry that in, so it helped push me through a lot. The community that I walked into was very different from where I was at in Owego, and I do not regret transferring at all in high school or in college.”

As the Bombers prepare to host the Liberty League Championships from February 21-24, Payne will keep the same mindset that’s helped her find so much success this season: go out there and have fun.

“I’m going to be dancing on the pool deck,” Payne said. “I’ll be singing with my teammates. I want to enjoy the experience that I have, because thinking that this is my second-to-last season of diving makes me want to tear up. I’m gonna let what happens happen. I’m not owed an outcome. I’m not owed success or victory, and I’m just gonna let it happen. It’s all about the progress that I’ve made, so [I’m] taking it one step at a time, for sure.”