Terp Gymnasts Face Rematch with George Washington

March 2, 2004

Currently 8-9 on the season, the Maryland gymnastics team looks to pull to an even .500 with a win at home over George Washington on March 3. The competition is set to begin at 7 p.m and is the first of three home meets that will close out the regular season for the Terps. With a season-high team score of 196.325 set at their last home meet, the Terps look forward to competing in the friendly confines of Comcast Center Gymnasium.

Tracking the Terps

Maryland enters Wednesday night's contest with an impressive regional qualifying average of 195.220 and a record of 3-1 at home. Ranked as high as No. 25 in the nation this year, the Terps have set their sights on a return to the Southeast Regional Championships and their first-ever NCAA Championships berth.

Leading the team toward accomplishing this feat is sophomore Rachel Martinez, who racked up her fifth all-around title of the season last Saturday at Rutgers with a 38.975. She took first on vault with a 9.850 and posted a 9.90 on bars and floor to take those event titles as well, but suffered her only fall of the season on the beam.

The Terps had uncharacteristic struggles at the Feb. 28 quad meet which also featured Temple and Bridgeport. They were forced to count a season-high four falls, but still managed a 193.925 - good for second behind Rutgers' 195.100.

Maryland won the vault competition with a team score of 48.000. Three Terps placed in the top three in the event, with Martinez taking the title. Freshman Rachel Colon followed in second with a 9.650, while sophomores Cameron Logan and Rebecca Ruppert were in a three-way tie with Rutgers' Nicole Bradder for third place with scores of 9.575.

Freshman Ashley LeVine had a breakout night, scoring a 9.80 in her first time competition on beam after showing exhibition routines in three meets this year. Also performing well on the event was senior Sarah Hoenig, who notched a 9.90 for her fifth beam title of the year.

The quad meet also gave junior Leah Brill a chance to make her mark. The 2002 EAGL Rookie of the Year tied her career-best on the beam and the bars with a 9.825.

George Washington Colonials

George Washington is led by head coach Margie Foster-Cunningham in her 19th year with the gymnastics team. The squad is 7-7 this season with an average team score of 194.039.

The Colonials are hot, coming off a season-high team score of 195.575 scored vs. NC State on Feb. 28. However, the score was not enough to upset the Wolfpack, who turned in a 196.500. The squad was led by a different gymnast on each event at NC State, showcasing the Colonials' versatility.

Highlighting the vault were sophomore Erin Aiken and freshman Jess Guilbert, who each scored a 9.80. Junior Stefanie Tocco earned a season-high uneven bars score of 9.850 to help the team score a 48.850 on the event.

George Washington had a solid outing on the balance beam, totaling a 49.125. Senior Lauren Bernstein shattered her career high with a 9.875 on the event, and Guilbert and Aiken posted scores of 9.850 and 9.825, respectively. Senior Lindsay Parks led the way on the floor with a score of 9.825 and Mann was close behind with a 9.800.

A Familiar Foe

This will be the second contest of the season between the Colonials and the Terps, with Maryland taking the win at George Washington on Feb. 11, 195.400-192.975. That meet brought the all-time series to 33-29 in the Terps' favor.

Maryland enjoyed a great meet versus the Colonials on Feb. 11, as a Terp placed first on every event and the squad scored higher than GW on every event but the balance beam. Two falls on the bars proved costly for the Colonials that afternoon, as they were unable to answer the strong Terrapin stand.

Martinez scored a 9.950 on vault to mark a new school record, taking first on the event. She and Hoenig each scored a 9.90 on the beam, sharing the title on the event. Placing first on floor was sophomore Ginny Scott with a 9.90.

Junior Mandy Pascual led the squad on the bars, finishing first with a score of 9.875. Martinez took second on bars with a 9.850, followed closely by sophomore Kristi Skowronski with a 9.825 to sweep the top three in the meet for the Terps.

Martinez's all-around score of 39.50 tied her season-high and marked her fourth all-around title of the season. Martinez has been ranked as high as No. 8 in the nation and has accumulated 13 event or all-around titles this season.

Coming in second all-around at the meet was George Washington's Erin Aiken with a 37.225. The Colonials scored high on beam, led by Meagan Wilson's 9.825. Also posting high scores on the event were Aiken, who took fifth with a 9.8 and Jess Guilbert in sixth with a 9.775.

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