EVANS CITY — Diving just wasn't cutting it.

A longtime gymnast through the X-Cel program in Cranberry Township, Taylor Hockenberry gave up the sport in seventh grade.

“Then I missed flipping and perfecting things,” recalled Hockenberry, now a Mars High School senior. “I thought diving would be a good fit.

“I first tried it a little before my freshman year. I figured it would be easy, but it was much harder than I thought. At first, I didn't like it too much. Nothing compared to gymnastics.”

Hockenberry was a Level 7 state champion as a gymnast in grade school, after all.

But gymnastics were in her rear-view mirror. She stuck with diving.

“After a year, I developed a passion for it,” she said.

And she got good at it. Now she's great at it.

Next year, she will be attending the University of North Carolina, having verbally committed to the Tar Heels. North Carolina has developed into one of the top diving programs in the NCAA under coach and former United States Olympian Abel Sanchez.

“She's a smart girl and she made a smart choice,” Mars swimming coach Hans Bergh said. “Taylor is an elite diver and an excellent teammate. She is going to a highly reputable program.”

Hockenberry also considered Virginia Tech — where Mars graduate Maggie Gruber is a senior on the swim team — and Kentucky before deciding on North Carolina.

“It's the perfect fit for me academically and athletically,” Hockenberry said. “I like the team, the coach is great ... I feel like I can further develop my skills and flourish there.”

The daughter of David and Michele Hockenberry of Evans City, she is a two-time WPIAL and state champion in one-meter diving. Hockenberry set a WPIAL record score of 506.05 as a sophomore in 2015. She is also the 2015 and 2016 MAC diving champion and meet record holder.