Terp Gymnasts to Tackle NCAA Southeast Regionals

March 31, 2004

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The young but talented Terp gymnastics squad will tackle the NCAA Southeast Regionals on Saturday, April 3, with hopes of qualifying for the NCAA Championships. If the underdog Terps accomplish this feat, they would be the first team to do so in Maryland gymnastics history. The regional meet, held in Raleigh, N.C., features several roadblocks for the team including No. 1 UCLA and No. 12 North Carolina.

Also competing in the Southeast Regional will be No. 13 Nebraska, No. 21 West Virginia and host NC State at No. 22, making it the toughest of the nation's six regional championships. The Terps, ranked 31st, round out the six-team field at the Southeast meet. Only the top two teams at each regional competition will receive automatic bids to the NCAA Championships in Los Angeles, Calif., April 15-17.

California Dreaming

From the very beginning of the season, the Terps have been "California Dreaming", evidenced by what is hung in their practice gym-a giant roadmap of the season's meets that leads the way to the NCAA Championships in Los Angeles. With the dedication and pure talent this year's squad possesses, the dream is closer to reality than ever before.

In order to finish first or second at the Regional meet, the Terps would have to knock off an unprecedented four top-25 teams. The team upset two top-25 squads at the 2003 regionals to finish fourth, led by freshman all-arounder Rachel Martinez, who was selected as an NCAA Championships alternate. Now a sophomore, Martinez still shines as the Terps' leader, and is ranked fourth all-around in the region.

Bringing optimism to the Terps is their tendency to rise to the occasion against the nation's top teams. At home in a loss to then-No. 9 Iowa, the team scored what was then a season-high 196.325, bolstered by a school-record vault score of 49.025. Additionally, all six of the team's floor competitors earned a 9.80 or above to combine for a 49.35 that marked the fourth-best in school history.

The Terps eclipsed those high marks hosting then-No. 5 Stanford, scoring a school record 197.375 in the narrow loss. The squad set a new program vaulting record, tied the bars record and Martinez recorded a season-high 39.60 all-around score to tie for first place.

At this Saturday's regional meet, the two highest all-around finishers not on a NCAA Championship-bound team will advance to the national finals. Martinez, who finished tied for second at the EAGL Championships on March 20, has a legitimate chance to earn a berth for herself. Event winners at Regionals not already on an advancing team can also move on to the national championships, and senior Sarah Hoenig is another Terp to watch. The three-event specialist excels on the balance beam and placed eighth at last year's Regional Championships.

Recapping the 2003 NCAA Regionals

The Terps took fourth place at the 2003 Southeast Regional Championships in Athens, Ga., upsetting two top-25 teams in then-No. 16 Ohio State and then-No. 24 NC State. Martinez finished sixth all-around and missed an automatic NCAA Championships berth by one tenth of a point, but was selected as an alternate following the competition.

Leading the way alongside Martinez at the 2003 Regionals was Sarah Hoenig, then a junior, who placed eighth on beam with a 9.850. Also in the top 10 was Rachel Sibert, scoring a 9.775 to tie for ninth on vault. Mandy Pascual tied for 13th on bars and Hoenig finished 14th on the floor.

A youthful but talented team at last year's regional meet, the Terps had four freshmen compete in the floor exercise, four on the balance beam, three on the uneven bars, and two on the vault. The host Georgia Bulldogs, ranked No. 4 in the nation, won the meet with a score of 197.125.

Familiar Foes

Maryland has competed multiple times against the four EAGL teams appearing at the Southeast Regionals, most recently at the conference championships in Pittsburgh, Pa., on March 20. The Terps, who were forced to count one fall in the meet, finished with a 196.025 for fifth place. West Virginia won the competition with a meet-record team score of 197.050, followed by North Carolina and NC State in second and third, respectively.

The Terps combined for the second-best bars score in program history at the conference championships, totaling a 49.300 that tied NC State for the meet-best. Maryland also excelled on the balance beam, notching a 48.925 that was the highest total of the night.

Individual top finishers at the EAGL showdown were sophomores Martinez and Kristi Skowronski and senior Sarah Hoenig. Martinez tied for second in the all-around (39.550) and on floor (9.95), while Skowronski's 9.90 on bars tied her for second on the event. Hoenig tied for third place on the beam with a 9.875.

Maryland is 0-2 against West Virginia this year, 0-3 against North Carolina and is 1-2 against NC State. However, these teams have yet to see the very best of the Terrapins, as the squad had to count at least one fall in each of the losses.

TEAM CAPSULES

No. 1 seed UCLA
The team: Ranked No. 1 in the nation, the UCLA Bruins are the defending national champions and have four NCAA Championships under their belts. They have won 14 regional titles, including five consecutive. Additionally, a Bruin has won the all-around at their regional in each of the last five years. This year, the team boasts a regional qualifying score (RQS) of 198.055 and a record of 15-5.

Team leaders: The Bruins are paced by Jeanette Antolin and sophomore Kate Richardson, who are ranked No. 1 and 2 in the nation in all-around, with RQS's of 39.795 and 39.740, respectively. They also have two former U.S. Olympians on the roster in the form of Jamie Dantzscher and Kristen Maloney, who were on the 2000 squad.

No. 2 Seed North Carolina
The team: The Tar Heels sit at No. 12 in the nation with a RQS of 196.990. They have a high score of 197.350 and are 22-4 on the season. North Carolina's strength is the floor exercise, where the squad is ranked No. 1 in the nation. The Tar Heels finished third at the 2003 regional championships, just missing an NCAA Championships berth.

Team leaders: EAGL Gymnast of the Year Courtney Bumpers leads the Tar Heels, and is ranked No. 1 on the floor exercise with a RQS of 10.00. She edged Martinez and West Virginia's Janae Cox by 0.025 to take first all-around at the conference championships. Other athletes to watch are junior Olivia Trusty and freshman Christine Robella, who each had three first team all-conference nods.

No. 3 Seed Nebraska
The team: The Huskers are ranked 13th in the nation after a fourth-place finish at the Big 12 Championships with a score of 196.175. Their best event is the vault, where they are ranked 10th in the country with a 49.345 RQS.

Team leaders: Senior Libby Landgraf headlines the Huskers this season and finished fourth all-around at the Big 12 Championships. Freshman Kristi Esposito has also made an impact on the team and took first on bars with a 9.90 at the conference finale. Fellow freshman Michelle Zabawa has taken multiple event titles this year and is another gymnast to look out for.

No. 4 Seed West Virginia
The team: Sitting at No. 21 in the nation, the Mountaineers are the newly crowned EAGL Champions. They set a school-record 197.400 earlier this year against Pittsburgh and James Madison. West Virginia excels on vault, where it is ranked 13th in the country.

Team leaders: EAGL Rookie of the Year Janae Cox has often been atop the results lists for West Virginia this season and is ranked 17th in the nation in all-around. Senior Jessica Bartgis is another solid all-arounder for the Mountaineers, and shared the EAGL vault title with Cox with a score of 9.95.

No. 5 Seed NC State
The team: This is the Wolfpack's first-ever time hosting the NCAA Regional Championships, but the team has qualified for the meet in 12 of the last 13 years. NC State is ranked No. 22 this season and finished third at the EAGL Championships. The team has a RQS of 196.515 and set a season-high of 197.125.

Team leaders: Seniors Cori Goldstein and Leah Sabo, along with sophomore Kylah Bachman make up the core of the Wolfpack squad. Bachman finished sixth all-around at the EAGL Championships. Senior Marlyn Madey also frequently adds to the team score, making for a squad marked by multiple individual standouts.

No. 6 Seed Maryland
The team: Maryland, ranked 31st in the country, finished fifth at the EAGL Championships. The squad has shown an ability to rise to the occasion against highly ranked teams and looks to better its fourth-place showing at last year's regionals to achieve its first NCAA Championships berth. The team boasts a high score of 197.375 and a RQS of 195.780.

Team leaders: Sophomore Rachel Martinez leads the Terps as their sole all-arounder. She is ranked 20th in the nation all-around and was a unanimous selection to first team all-conference honors in the all-around. Like NC State, Maryland has a bevy of event specialists to count on, including senior Sarah Hoenig, junior Mandy Pascual, sophomore Ginny Scott and freshmen Marisa St. Louis and Rachel Colon.

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