Dumais and Richeson scored 422.52 points to win their first international title together, and Ishimatsu scored 364.60 points for her first individual international medal.

Dumais and Richeson held off Cubans Erick Fornaris and Jorge Betancourt, who led after the fourth of six rounds but had some slight misses in the later rounds to finish second with 407.10 points. Canadians Alexandre Despatie and Arturo Miranda were third at 401.49.

“We’ve been training well all week, and we went in ready to go,” Richeson said. “After that first dive, we went on auto pilot and just went at it.”

Dumais and Richeson, the first team to dive, led by 2.73 points heading into the final round and hit their reverse 2 ½ with 1 ½ twists for 87.15 points – their best score of the afternoon. They then waited to see if their scores would hold up. Fornaris and Betancourt scored 74.46 points on their last dive, giving the gold to Team USA.

“Honestly, I think it was probably more nerve-wracking for the ones diving after us. We set the bar high and didn’t miss a dive,” said Dumais, who won a bronze on this event with his brother Justin in 2003. “Mitch did a heck of a job. I saw the look in his eyes, and I knew he was going to do what he was capable of doing.”

The 14-year-old Ishimatsu was all smiles as she walked away from the medal stand. She was fifth in Wednesday’s preliminary sessions, but missed her inward three and a half, so she knew there was room to improve in the finals.

“The pressure’s off once I know I’m in the finals. Once the prelims are over, I relax and just have fun,” Ishimatsu said.

Mexico’s Paola Espinosa, ranked ninth in the world on 10-meter, took the gold with 380.95 points. Ishimatsu was leading heading into the last round, when both she and Espinosa performed a back 2 ½ with 1 ½ twists. Espinosa received marks of 8s and 9s, while Ishimatsu received 6.5s and 7s, allowing Espinosa to walk away with the gold.

“I’m just happy I made it to the finals. It’s the first time in awhile. To get the silver medal is really exciting. I can’t even explain it,” Ishimatsu said.

Brazil’s Juliana Veloso was third at 356.25. Mary Beth Dunnichay (Elwood, Ind.) made her international debut in an international event and placed seventh with 309.60 points.

Competition continues Thursday with Dumais and Richeson diving in the men’s 3-meter contest and Ishimatsu and Dunnichay teaming up in the women’s 10-meter synchro.

- USA Diving -

Featuring America’s best divers, USA Diving is the national governing body for the sport of diving. Headquartered in Indianapolis, USA Diving offers diversified programs geared toward the broadest number of diving enthusiasts, from the novice to the world champion. USA Diving conducts approximately 40 regional and national events annually and is responsible for training and selecting teams that represent the United States at international events such as the Olympic Games, World Championships and World Cup. For more information, visit www.usadiving.org.