Gymnasts of the Week Feb. 18-24, 2013 Awards are given by conference offices Big Ten Conference Co-Gymnasts of the Week Katie Zurales, Michigan Posted two first-place finishes and a second-place effort in No. 3 Michigan s quad meet victory last weekend Placed first on the vault (9.925) and balance beam (9.925) and second on bars (9.850) Emily Wong, Nebraska Finished first in the all-around (39.600) and placed in the top two in every event in No. 9 Nebraska s dual meet win over Iowa State Placed first in the floor exercise (9.925) and on the bars (9.925), tied for first on the balance beam (9.900) and placed second on the vault (9.850) Earned her fourth all-around title in seven meets for the Huskers this season Event Sarah Miller, Ohio State Tied a career high on the vault (9.950) en route to the event title in No. 20 Ohio State s dual meet victory over No. 18 Illinois last weekend Also placed first on the balance beam (9.925) and tied for first in the floor exercise (9.875) Freshman of the Week Lindsay Mable, Minnesota Won the all-around title (39.400) in No. 12 Minnesota s meet with Iowa and tied for second in the all-around (38.900) against Iowa State last weekend Posted five first-place finishes and nine top-three efforts Placed first on the balance beam (9.850) against the Hawkeyes and on the balance beam (9.900), floor exercise (9.900) and vault (9.875) against the Cyclones Tied for second on the vault (9.875) and floor exercise (9.875) and third on bars (9.800) against Iowa Big 12 Conference Brie Olson, Oklahoma Olson totaled the highest all-around score of any gymnast in the nation this season and tied an Oklahoma program record with a 39.700 against No. 5 UCLA. The senior scored career highs on beam (9.9) and floor (9.95), and tied for the vault title against the Bruins on the way to her third individual all-around title this season. The senior bested the country's current top-ranked allarounder for the win. Olson is now ranked No. 4 in the nation in the all-around. Maile'ana Kanewa, Oklahoma In her first collegiate routine after recovering from wrist surgery, Kanewa scored a 9.925 on vault to tie for the event title and give the Sooners an early boost on their way to defeating No. 5 UCLA. Kanewa's score helped OU to its highest team vault score in 10 years with a 49.525.
Newcomer of the Week Keeley Kmieciak, Oklahoma Kmieciak smashed an OU freshman record and earned the highest all-around score of any freshman in the country with a 39.650 against No. 5 UCLA. Kmieciak set personal bests in the allaround and all four events, with each score coming in at 9.9 or above. East Atlantic Gymnastics League Kayla Gray, New Hampshire Gray, a sophomore, set career highs on vault (9.725), floor exercise (9.875) and all-around (39.250), matched her personal best uneven-bar score (9.800) and registered a team-leading mark on balance beam (9.850) to lead the Wildcats to third place Sunday afternoon at West Virginia's Wendy M. Roach Invitational Quad-Meet. Ally Krikorian, Maryland Krikorian shined in her two events Friday for the Terrapins, putting up a 9.900 on vault and achieving a 9.925 on floor exercise, to help lead Maryland to an overall team score of 195.600. Lindsay Offutt, Pittsburgh The White Lake, Mich., native scored the best score of her collegiate career on the balance beam with a 9.90, which took second overall in the meet against Maryland and led all Pitt scorers. Additionally, Offutt scored the fourth-best mark on the floor exercise with a 9.825. She averages a 9.855 on the event this season, which ranks her second in the league. Her night was rounded out with an uneven bars performance in which she scored a 9.60. Eastern College Athletic Conference Division I Michelle Shnayder, Brown Shnayder won the all-around at the Ivy Championship this past weekend, leading her team to the team title, the second in program history. She did so with career-highs on vault and in the allaround. She also earned a season-high on bars. Shnayder earned 1st Team All-Ivy on vault and in the all-around, and 2nd Team All-Ivy on beam and floor. Alexandra Chretien, Brown Alexandra earned a personal best 9.75 in one of the biggest meets of the year for the Bears. She was up first on the event and earned the Brown's top score. Chretien earned 1st Team All-Ivy in her very first Ivy Championship. Her performance was key in clenching Brown's second Ivy Championship. Chretien was composed beyond her years, competing like a veteran. Lexi Schupp, Cornell Schupp scored her career-high on bars this week and won the Ivy League Championship with a score of 9.825. She was the only ECAC specialist to win an event at this year's championship. Lexi also scored a 9.525 on vault in just her second meet on that event this season.
Coaches Choice Nicole Abdo, Brown Abdo has been an incredible and dedicated performer for Brown the past four years. She is respectful and hard-working every day, leading by example in every way. She is an inspiration to everyone in the gym. Abdo has serious, chronic back pain, but does what she can to produce great results for the team, never wanting individual recognition. She often can't train all her events every practice due to the pain, but makes sure she is ready to perform in each competition, wherever the team needs her. It was so rewarding to see Abdo not only help the Bears win the Ivy Championship, but also receive the individual recognition she so deserves. She earned second place on floor with a career-high 9.8. She also earned 2nd Team All-Ivy on bars and beam. Her dedication and selflessness are immeasurable. Eastern College Athletic Conference Division II Kaley LaFleur, West Chester LaFleur placed first in the all-around competition with her season best score. She also placed first on the balance beam. Nicole Pruchnik, Southern Connecticut State Second on the beam with a 9.65 and was third on the vault with a 9.5 in an Owls' sweep of Springfield and Rhode Island College. Karen Laskaris, West Chester Laskaris placed first on the uneven parallel bars this past weekend scoring her season best. Karen has a 9.45 RQS on this event and is ranked 17th in division II. Coaches Choice Meghan Cole, Southern Connecticut State Cole led the way for the Owls, as she won the All-Around with a 37.8 and the balance beam with a 9.675, in an Owls' sweep of Springfield and Rhode Island College. Coming off an injury, she still scored a personal-best score on the beam. Cole was the top finisher for the Owls on the vault finishing in second place, and took third in the floor exercise. Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III All-Around of the Week Lauren Pocius, Springfield In this tri-meet Lauren took 2nd place in the all around and 1st on bars. Lauren was a large contributor to Springfield's best team performance of the season. Up against strong competition from SCSU, Lauren again placed first on bars with a 9.55 and had a strong performance on beam 9.425, a personal best. Lauren continues to do well in the all around putting in consistent performances weekly. Kristin Feliu, Springfield Kristin helped the Springfield team score their highest total of the season with a great front front vault which scored 9.55. The vault earned 1st on the event and a personal best score. Earlier in the week, against RIC, Kristin placed 2nd on vault with a 9.45 for 2nd place.
Stephanie Schmidt, Ursinus Stephanie has been very consistent on floor all season and last weekend at West Chester University, she kept right on course! Stephanie scored a 9.525, keeping right in line with the rest of her floor scores posted all season. To-date, Stephanie is ranked 3rd in NCGA, DIII League, just being edged out of first place by the smallest margin. Mid American Conference Co-Gymnasts of the Week Whitnee Johnson, Kent State Helped lead Kent State to victory over Northern Illinois 195.800-194.350. Johnson took the allaround scoring a 39.150, a personal best, to beat the rest of the competition. Johnson placed second on the uneven bars to start the day by earning a 9.825 on the uneven bars. Next up, on the vault, Johnson took third for her score of 9.800. She then received a 9.825 on the balance beam, which was good for second place. Johnson s final score of the day came on the floor exercise where she brought home a 9.700, finishing ninth in the event. Kim Gotlund, Northern Illinois Junior Kim Gotlund totaled a career-high 39.025 all-around score versus Kent State, passing the 39-point mark for the first time in her career. She took second place in the meet with the highest all-around score by an NIU gymnast since 2011. Gotlund capped off her meet with her highest score of the year on floor exercise with a 9.850 to tie for second place and to tie her career-best floor score. Prior to that, Gotlund recorded a career high 9.800 on balance beam to finish fifth on that event. She started the day with a 9.675 on vault and stepped up for NIU with a 9.700 on uneven parallel bars. Rachel Guida, Kent State Took home two event victories in helping Kent State defeat Northern Illinois 195.800-194.350. On the vault Guida set a new career best when she received a 9.875 from the judges, the score was good for first place overall. Guida took on the uneven bars next; her routine would earn her a 9.900, once again good enough for a first place finish. Midwest Independent Conference Robyn Price, Centenary Price recorded a career-high, all-around score of 38.850 to take the title in a quad-meet at Texas Woman s University. The Marion, Ark., native also registered a career-high on the bars with 9.850 to tie for first in the event. The junior followed up with a season-high score of 9.725 on the vault. She posted scores of 9.60 and 9.625 on the beam and the floor respectively - the second best scores for the team. As a team, the Ladies posted season highs in vault, bars, floor and team at the meet. Bethany Larimer, Texas Woman s Larimer tied her career-high with a 9.900 on vault to capture the event title on Sunday, Feb. 24 at the home quad meet against Air Force, Centenary and UIC. It s her second 9.900 of the season
and has a 9.836 season average on the event. Larimer is currently ranked in the top-50 out of 387 gymnasts on vault. She has dominated the event this season, recording 9.725 or higher in all seven meets including 9.800 or higher in six meets. Larimer also scored a season-high 9.800 on bars and 9.625 on beam. Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Linnaea Hance, Air Force Air Force junior Linnaea Hance (Bend, OR) scored a career-best 9.85 on bars to tie for first during the TWU Quad last Sunday. She also tallied a personal-best 9.675 on vault and a seasonhigh 38.725 all-around. In addition to her win on bars, Hance finished third all-around and seventh-place beam (9.65). Pac-12 Conference Makayla Stambaugh, Oregon State Stambaugh led then-no. 11 Oregon State to a season-high 196.925 victory over No. 15 ARIZONA (194.900) and Seattle Pacific (191.400). The Sacramento, Calif., native tallied a 39.525 in the all-around to secure first place. She also tallied event titles on bars (9.90) and floor (9.950). The senior earned a 9.90 on vault which tied for second place and tallied a new career-high. She rounded out her all-around total with a 9.775 on beam to tie for fourth place. Her score of 9.950 on floor tied her career-high mark. This is the second week in a row that Stambaugh has tallied three event titles and topped the 39.50 all-around mark. Stambaugh is just one of five gymnasts to ever receive five or more honors. Lia Del Priore, Utah Del Priore scored a career-high 10.0 on floor that helped secure that Utes victory over STANFORD, 197.30-197.075. The 10.0 was the first by a Utah gymnast on floor in eight years and crushed Del Priore's previous career mark of 9.85 set in 2011. Del Priore tallied the third 10.0 by a Pac-12 gymnast this season and the first in the Pac-12 on floor. This was just her fourth floor routine in the past two years as she stepped into the floor lineup this season when teammate Corrie Lothrop suffered a season-ending injury. Del Priore was just the second individual on floor for the Utes making her 10.0 even more impressive as scores tend to go up during the rotation. The junior also competed on vault where she tallied a 9.90 to tie for third overall and set another career-high score. Freshman/Newcomer of the Week Allison Northey, Washington Freshman Husky Allison Northey competed in the all-around for just the second time in her career, tallying a 38.575 to earn third place overall. Northey helped lead then-no. 22 Washington to a victory over ARIZONA STATE, 196.000-195.500. She tallied top-three finishes on both vault (9.825) and bars (9.850). In addition, Northey tallied a 9.800 on beam to place fourth and earned a 9.100 on floor.
Southeastern Conference Caitlin Atkinson, Auburn Caitlin Atkinson helped Auburn score a program record 197.175 in its win over LSU. She took home the all-around title with a season-high total of 39.550, the third highest total in Auburn history, and equaled her career high on bars with a 9.90. Atkinson also recorded a 9.9 on vault and saved her best performance for last and in the most critical time for Auburn. With AU trailing entering the fourth rotation, Atkinson posted her career high on floor with a 9.925 to lead Auburn to its highest event score of the season, a 49.450 on the apparatus. Kelci Lewis, Arkansas Senior All-American Kelci Lewis competed in two events for the Razorbacks as Arkansas tied Alabama 197.100-197.100 on Friday. She recorded a 9.925 on vault as the Razorbacks totaled 49.425 on the apparatus, the third highest vault rotation in school history. Lewis later won the floor exercise with a 9.925 and led Arkansas to a 49.350 in that event, helping secure the tie with Alabama. Each of the marks for Lewis were career highs. Freshman of the Week Bridget Sloan, Florida Bridget Sloan turned in a pair of collegiate best marks in Florida s win versus Kentucky. She claimed her third consecutive uneven bars title upping her bars best to 9.975. Sloan has won four bar titles in the last five meets, all with marks of 9.925 or better. She also upped her vault best to 9.95 to take second overall. Four of her last five vault performances have earned a mark of 9.90 or better. Sloan shares UF s lead for 2013 event titles at 10 (4 uneven bars, 3 all around, 2 beam and 1 vault). Western Athletic Conference Nina McGee, Denver McGee, a sophomore from Cincinnati, Ohio (Clark Montessori HS), won the bars title with a 9.900, won the beam title with a 9.900 and placed third on floor with a 9.825 in a quad meet against Boise State, Utah State and Rutgers last week. McGee has now scored a 9.800 or higher in 10 of her last 11 routines. The Pioneer sophomore has a 9.853 average on bars and a 9.854 average on floor. Currently, McGee is No. 15 in the nation on bars with a 9.865 RQS. Moriah Martin, Denver Martin, a junior from Lake Mary, Fla. (Lake Mary HS), recorded a high-scoring vault for a second straight week, tallying a 9.950 to lead Denver to a 49.175 on the apparatus, its best event score at last week s quad meet. Martin s vault was her 18 th -career vault of 9.900 or higher, her fifth of the season and her fourth-straight. She is currently No. 7 on the event this season with a 9.900 RQS.
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Specialist Siri Wischmann, UW-Whitewater Wischmann placed in the top four in three events at Winona State University (Minn.) on Feb. 23, leading the Warhawks to a 184.775-182.675 win. She led all competitors on the balance beam with a score of 9.5. Wischmann was third on the floor exercise with a routine scoring 9.525 and her 9.45 performance on the vault tied for fourth behind a three-way tie for first. All-Around Katherine Prouty, UW-Stout UW-Stout's Katherine Prouty took first place on the vault, floor exercise, and in the all-around as UW-Stout defeated Hamline University (Minn.), 184.325-182.350. Prouty, a sophomore from Tigard, Ore., won the vault for the fourth time this season with a score of 9.550. She bested everyone on the floor exercise with a 9.600 and took the all-around with a total of 37.675. Prouty took second (9.225) and third (9.300) on the balance beam and uneven bars, respectively. On the uneven bars, Prouty was among five Blue Devils who occupied the top five spots, finishing third.