On Friday, Oct. 7, sophomore diver Davis Hutchinson competed on the diving board for the St. Bonaventure University men’s swimming and diving team.

A seemingly ordinary day, but five months prior, there was a question of if he would ever be able to climb to the top of a diving board again.

The morning of January 5 was like any other for Hutchinson. 

He arrived to the pool around 6:00 a.m., not knowing that his life was about to change. 

“I had morning dry land session and I was on the trampoline performing a front double, which is two front flips in the air, the goal is to land your butt, back, or feet,” he said. “However, I lost air awareness, which tells you where you are facing in the air, and I over rotated to my head and ended up landing on my face. I immediately went to the hospital where I was put in a neck brace for four-and-a-half months.”

“While we do compete in the water, much of our training is done on trampolines, mats, and even a diving board onto a portable crashmat," said Bona's head diving coach John Sirmon, who joined the program this past summer. "I've been coaching for over a decade and Davis' injury was by far the most traumatic of any of my divers, past or present. A spinal injury has always been my biggest fear in coaching. It is a life-changing injury for the athlete even if they make a full recovery.” 

“I used to coach Davis in North Carolina from 2016-2019 before I moved to Louisiana. His mom actually reached out after he broke his neck and I did what I could to encourage him over texts and whatnot,” Sirmon stated. “Davis coming back to diving, especially at this level, has been one of the most impressive things I've seen from an athlete and I'm grateful to be a part of it and coaching him again.”

Everyday life for Hutchinson became very different as every task he performed was a challenge, including the slightest movements. 

“I was unable to lift things over five pounds and I wasn’t actually allowed to walk around campus for most of the winter months, fearing that any slight slip on ice could cause major harm,” Hutchinson said. “If I were to fall or hit my head, then I could have potentially been paralyzed or even died.”

The second-year diver discussed the extent of his injury from a medical standpoint. 

“My injury was very aggressive and dangerous; I suffered a hairline and teardrop fracture of my C5 and C6 vertebrae,” Hutchinson said. “I completely blew out the tendons around my neck and the spacers between my vertebrae. Luckily, I was able to avoid surgery solely on the fact that I am an athlete and am in good shape. If I had been 10 years older or 15 pounds heavier, I would have been having a different conversation with the doctor.”

Hutchinson knew his mindset had to remain positive, but at points he struggled with his mental health. 

“My mindset was to just get through it. It was difficult to miss practices, team hangouts, and basically put my college experience on hold as my entire second semester of my freshman year was taken from me,” Hutchinson said. “Once the A-10 Championships rolled around, I went into a depression watching my teammates leave for four days for the biggest meet of the year. I wasn’t able to be there to cheer them on and it led to me barely eating and just sleeping for four straight days.”

A native of Huntersville, N.C., Hutchinson explained his journey to joining St. Bonaventure as a diver. 

“I was in sixth grade and the dive team (at his school) had just been formed. I showed up to tryouts and you made the team based on if you were present or not. A year later I dove year-round and joined a club team,” Hutchinson said. “I realized my freshman year of high school that there was a chance I could get a scholarship and dive at the collegiate level.”

Hutchinson has deep family ties to St. Bonaventure, which is the reason why he selected to travel to Western New York for college. 

“Family ties to Bona’s go deep for me. My mom went here for her bachelor’s degree and my uncle was a member of the St. Bonaventure ROTC,” Hutchinson said. “My uncle ended up becoming an ROTC recruiter here after spending time in the army.”

Although his injury was scary and he struggled with his mental health, Hutchinson never doubted that he would return to competition. 

“I had full movement of my extremities within hours of my injury. It was just a matter until I was back on the diving board,” he said. “The doctor told me I wouldn’t be diving for at least a year and at the latest two years to never again. I was able to get back in the water within five months and started competing nine months later.”

For the rehab process and to keep a positive mindset during all the tough times throughout the injury Hutchinson relied on a great support system. “My main support system through this time in my life were my team and my friends. Without them having my back through it all I would not have gotten back to where I am today.”

The Bona men began their season at the Colgate Invitational in October. Hutchinson was set to compete for the first time since suffering his neck injury and had an array of emotions running through him. 

“Colgate was so much fun, being able to compete again with my teammates was surreal,” he said. “It was made more special because I was able to compete against my friend who dives for UMass, Sean O’Dell. Sean and I used to dive for the same club back home and were essentially together every day for four years. To not only see him, but compete against him for my first meet back was truly incredible.”

Hutchinson has never strayed away from the goals he set at the start of his collegiate career. “I want to be the best diver I can be, but more importantly, I want to help those around me reach their goals.”

In the first two meets of the season Hutchison notched a top-five finish with his highest result, second-place, coming in the 1-meter dive at the Cleveland State tri-meet.

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