April 12, 2003
Complete Results
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Athens, Ga. - A young but rising University of Maryland gymnastics team remained steadfast throughout the NCAA Southeast Regional here Saturday night and went on to register a fourth-place finish in the six-team event, bypassing a pair of Top 25 teams in the process.
The Terps, ranked 31st nationally with a team comprised primarily of underclassmen, posted a score of 193.825. Host Georgia, ranked fourth nationally, captured the team title with a score of 197.125 in front of 5,623 fans at Stegeman Coliseum. Chelsa Byrd of Georgia won the all-around with a 39.625. Florida finished second with a score of 194.950. North Carolina (194.900) placed third, followed by Maryland (193.825), Ohio State (193.650) and NC State (193.575).
The top two teams from each of the six NCAA regionals advance to the NCAA Championships in two weeks at the University of Nebraska.
Seeded sixth entering the regional, Maryland was led by freshman Rachel Martinez, who just missed earning a berth in the NCAA Championships in the all-around. Martinez, the EAGL all-around champion two weeks ago, totaled a 38.900 in the all-around to finish sixth, one-tenth of a point from an NCAA Championships berth. Fellow Terp freshman Kristi Skowronski finished 15th in the all-around with a score of 38.150.
Maryland's Rachel Sibert tied for ninth in the vault (9.775), Mandy Pascual led the way with a tie for 13th in the uneven bars (9.700), and Sarah Hoenig tied for eighth in the balance beam (9.850) and also tied for 14th in the floor excercise (9.775).
In finishing fourth, Maryland outpointed a pair of Top 25 teams -- No. 16 Ohio State and No. 24 NC State. The young Terps showed resolve throughout the event, particularly after being the recipients of some very tight scoring in their opening rotation, the uneven bars.
Maryland loses just two seniors from its 15-woman roster -- Stacey Celenski, who missed the regionals after suffering an injury in the team's final home meet last month, and Catherine Gardner, who closed her Terrapin career with an impressive 9.750 in her leadoff role on the balance beam, helping the Terps to their best cumulative team score of the night.
The Terps had four freshmen compete in the floor excercise, four on the balance beam, three on the uneven bars, and two on the vault.
Georgia entered the final rotation with a substantial lead and increased its margin after posting a 49.425 on the balance beam. The Gym Dogs were led by Cassie Bair, Kinsey Rowe, and Sierra Sapunar, who all tallied 9.9s to earn first-place honors in the event. Michelle Emmons contributed a 9.875 and Chelsa Byrd scored a 9.85 to round out the top-five scores.
