Feb. 9, 2004
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
The second installment in a whirlwind tour of three meets in seven days, the Maryland gymnastics team will face local rival George Washington on Wednesday in Washington, D.C. Following that, the team returns home to College Park on Saturday, Feb. 14, to face its toughest challenge yet in No. 9 Iowa. The Terps are coming off a strong showing at the Feb. 7 Governor's Cup in Towson, where the young squad placed second.
TERRAPIN NOTABLES
Recapping the Governor's Cup
With their second-place finish at the Governor's Cup, the Terrapins pulled to an even 5-5 on the season and combined for their second-highest score of the year. Finishing behind only North Carolina, the team bested NC State and Towson with a team score of 195.350.
Sophomore Rachel Martinez grabbed her third all-around title of the year at the Governor's Cup, sharing the honor with UNC's Olivia Trusty. Her 39.500 marked a season-high and ties for the seventh-highest all-around mark in school history.
Competing well on the vault once again, the Terps combined for a score of 48.925, which led the meet and ties for the fifth-best total in program history.
Sophomore Rebecca Ruppert set a new career-high of 9.8 on the vault, tying for eighth place with senior Rachel Sibert. Taking first on the event was Martinez with a season-high 9.9. Achieving a second 9.9 for the day, Martinez tied for second on the floor exercise.
The Terps set the meet's best total on the uneven bars, notching a 48.925 that was led by a 9.850 from Martinez. Sophomore Kristi Skowronski and junior Mandy Pascual added to the total, each with a 9.80.
Also posting high scores of 9.850 at the meet were Martinez and freshman Rachel Colon on the beam, and sophomore Ginny Scott on the floor.
MEET THE OPPONENTS
George Washington Colonials
7 p.m., Feb. 11, 2004
Washington, D.C.
George Washington is led by head coach Margie Cunningham now in her 19th season with the team. Headlining for the Colonials are seniors Rachel Mann and Lindsay Parks, as well as junior Meagan Wilson.
The Colonials are 6-2 to start the year after competing in three meets. The team is hot off a come-from-behind victory against William & Mary on Feb. 8, which they took 194.100-193.150.
Helping the Colonials claim victory was a season-high balance beam score of 49.400, where each performer set a new career high. Wilson and Parks both posted 9.9's on the event, followed closely by senior Lauren Bernstein with a 9.875.
Sophomore Erin Aiken also put in a strong performance, taking third on vault and bars, while Wilson finished second on beam and third on bars. Parks also garnered top-two finishes, on vault and beam.
The Terps met George Washington three times last season, finishing 2-1 against the Colonials on the year. Their latest meeting was a mid-March shootout at George Washington where both teams scored season-high totals. However, Maryland's 196.650 bested George Washington's 195.475, bringing the all-time series record to 32-29 in the Terps' favor.
No. 9 Iowa Hawkeyes
7 p.m., Feb. 14, 2004
College Park, Md.
The Iowa GymHawks enter their Valentine's Day match-up with the Terps at No. 9 in the national rankings. The team is led by head coach Mike Lorenzen, a Maryland graduate, in his fifth year with Iowa.
The GymHawks average a solid 196.300 team score, with a season-high of 196.750 that marks the second-best total in team history. They are led by senior Alexis Maday, who ranks sixth in the nation in all-around with a 39.544 average. She is also ranked seventh in the country on the uneven bars, boasting an average score of 9.9.
Senior Stephanie Gran is also performing well for the GymHawks, currently sitting at No. 8 in the all-around and No. 7 on vault. As a team, Iowa is very strong on the vault, with a season-high of 49.525 that is good enough for seventh in the nation.
Iowa is coming off a loss to No. 4 Utah on Feb. 7, where the team combined for a score of 195.90. Maday tied for first on floor with a 9.925 and took third on vault and beam. On vault, Gran took first with a 9.975, followed closely by sophomore Kortny Williamson, whose 9.95 put her in third place and marked a new career-high.
The Terps are 1-1 all-time against Iowa and last met the GymHawks at the 2001 Southeast Regional Championships, where Maryland prevailed, 195.850-193.775.
