By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher For most high school athletes, choosing a college is not an easy decision. Usually it comes down to where an athlete feels most comfortable. That was the case for Mainland Regional senior diver Jenna Santora, who said she had considered Allegheny College and Lafayette before ultimately deciding to further her education and diving career at Wagner College on Staten Island. She gathered with friends and family on Thursday afternoon in Mainland’s library for a letter-of-intent signing ceremony. “The campus is beautiful. It was really just how I felt on the recruiting trips. It’s hard to explain, it’s just the feeling you get when you go there, and the swimming team and diving coaches were all so nice,” Santora said. “Everyone was so welcoming.” Santora, a 17-year-old Somers Point resident, said she didn’t know what to expect from a college campus in New York City, and she was surprised it wasn’t all that different from the Atlantic County area where she has grown up and gone to high school. 
Jenna Santora, second from left, gathers with her family for a letter-of-intent signing ceremony to attend Wagner College next fall. Joining her at the Mainland Regional High School library are, from left, sister Carissa, mother Karen and father Gabe. (Glory Days Magazine photo/Dave O’Sullivan) “There are trees everywhere. I thought it was going to be very city-like because it is in New York. I was so surprised,” Santora said. “In the freshman dorm there is a huge window and you can see the whole skyline of Manhattan. It’s such a gorgeous place. I love it.” “I’m very happy with it. I’m from North Jersey and my kids seem to be going back up that way,” said Jenna’s father, Gabe, whose other daughter, Carissa, finished her college career this past spring at Rutgers after starting out at Virginia Tech. “It seems like a really nice school. We checked out a number of schools. Wagner was very generous and that helps.” Jenna will be attending Wagner on a scholarship for athletics as well as academics. She said it was a difficult choice between Wagner and Lafayette. “I loved Lafayette, but I just felt more at home with Wagner,” Jenna said. Wagner competes in the Northeast Conference and the Seahawks’ swimming and diving team currently has an 8-1 record, including five straight wins. Their only loss came against Rutgers. She said it also was important for her to get the decision out of the way so she could concentrate on the upcoming diving season – and going after Carissa’s school diving record as well as a state championship.
“I’m so relaxed now just to get it out of the way,” Jenna said. “Everyone is still stressed out and they are like, ‘oh, Jenna, I’m so jealous that you know where you are going.’ That’s really true. If I had waited until the spring I would have been so stressed out. I was stressed out in September until I finally committed.” Santora has been one of the best divers in the state throughout her high school career. As a sophomore she finished fourth overall at the NJSIAA individual championships and last year, as a junior, she posted a season-best score in the finals and finished second to Kristen Hayden of the Lewis School. “I’m hoping to beat one of my sister’s records at Mainland (this year). She’s a record holder and I got close last year. I think I can get it this year,” Jenna said. “Hopefully I can win states this year. A freshman beat me last year, but she deserved to win. She’s such a good diver. She’s better than a lot of college divers. If I can win states, that would be awesome. If not, I give her props. She’s an awesome diver.” “I think she made a great choice. She’s a really good diver and I was excited to hear that she found somewhere that she really likes,” said Mainland diving coach Tiffany Monroe. “She’s going to be Division I and be in with a lot of really good competitors. I think she will just get better and better.” Jenna said her parents were supportive, if not a little sad that their last child will soon be flying the coop. Jenna’s oldest brother, Gene, was a standout wrestler at Mainland and her other brother, Cory, 19, ran cross country for the Mustangs and currently attends Stockton College. “(My parents) were very excited. I think everyone is just kind of relieved that it’s finally over,” Jenna said. “I’m the last (in the family) so they’ve had to go through this process (four times). It’s kind of bittersweet. I will miss Mainland. I want to go away, but at the same time I will miss where I went to high school.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays.
