March 28, 1999

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - University of Maryland women's gymnastics head coach, Bob Nelligan, was named the East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) Coach of the Year, as voted on by the seven other coaches in the EAGL. It is the first award Nelligan has received in his 21-plus year career in gymnastics.

This season, Nelligan has guided the Terps to new heights. After not being selected to the pre-season top 25, Maryland finished the regular season ranked No. 13 in the nation and finished atop the EAGL standings for the first time in the four-year history of the league. The Terps are also headed to their second consecutive NCAA Southeast Region Championships on April 10 in Morgantown, W.Va. This is the ninth time that the Terps have qualified for the regional championships since joining the league in the 1984 season.

Maryland gymnasts broke records on an almost weekly basis this season and broke the all-time team high on four occasions. The last time was on March 13 when the Terps recorded a score of 195.575 against then No. 15 Florida, George Washington and Rhode Island. Maryland recorded a score of 195.175 or better in five of its twelve meets, after never recording a team score above of a 193.8 in the 23-year history of the program.

The Terps also had their best outing in an EAGL Championship on March 27. Maryland recorded a 195.475, the second-highest score in school history, to finish in second place at the fourth annual league championship. The Terps also recorded a school and EAGL Championship record beam score of 49.425, placing four of their six gymnasts in the top five overall.

Nelligan has compiled a lifetime record of 336-302-2 (.527 winning percentage) in his 21 years at Maryland and is one of only three head coaches who has been at Maryland for over 20 years.