Central Michigan University Athletics
Central Michigan University
MAC Championship (at Western Michigan)
Gymnastics Finishes Second at MAC Championships
3/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
March 25, 2006
KALAMAZOO - The Central Michigan University gymnastics team had already faced more than its share of adversity before today's Mid-American Conference Championships at Read Fieldhouse on the campus of Western Michigan University, and having two of its top gymnasts suffering from the flu on the day of the biggest competition of the season certainly added to the tally for 2006. CMU put forth a courageous effort, but in the end could only claim to be the top visiting team at the MAC meet, finishing second with a total score of 193.175. The host Broncos claimed their first MAC gymnastics title since 1986 with a score of 193.775 in front of a boisterous crowd in their home gym. CMU finished as the runner-up for the second consecutive season.
" We competed with great heart today," CMU head coach Jerry Reighard said. "Our attitude was to come in here and be the best team. It didn't happen today, but our effort was all that we could have asked for."
CMU had five gymnasts place in the top six on their respective events. Senior Mattie Crawford placed in the top six on all three of her events, tying for second on the vault with a 9.850, tying for fourth on the floor exercise with a 9.800 and taking sixth on the beam with a 9.650.
"As a coach, I have the privilege of seeing athletes develop over the course of their careers, not only in the gym but in life," Reighard said. "She has grown into such a wonderful young woman, and a beautiful gymnast. It's been a pleasure to coach her, and Stephanie (Langley) as well. They both had a great meet to close out their careers as seniors, and I couldn't be happier for them."
Junior Jules Passy had top-six showings on two events, placing sixth on bars with a 9.700 and third on the beam with a 9.725. Sophomore Danielle Espinoza tied for second on the floor with a 9.825, Langley tied for fourth on the floor with a 9.800 and junior Sheena Smith took sixth on the vault with a 9.825.
The Chippewas opened the meet on the vault and scored a season-best 48.750 on the event. Crawford and Smith led the way, with solid scores from Langley (9.725) and freshman Jessica Neel (9.700) providing support. CMU's vault total was matched on the next rotation by Western Michigan, but the Chippewas were at the top of the scoreboard after the first two rotations.
CMU slipped back to second place after its performance on the uneven bars. The Chippewas totaled 47.925 on the event, led by Passy's 9.700. Freshman Michelle Lopez came through with a great routine in her first MAC Championships appearance, scoring a 9.675. Neel and Smith, the two flu-riddled gymnasts, battled through to post scores of 9.625 and 9.550, respectively.
CMU competed its final two events, beam and floor, on consecutive rotations before sitting out the final rotation. It had two falls on beam and struggled to a total of 47.675 before rebounding nicely with a score of 48.825 on the floor.
"When you have mistakes, it really takes the wind out of your sails," Reighard said. "It takes away some of your aggressiveness. In gymnastics, you want to build momentum and start to score build on each event, and we just weren't able to do that the way we wanted to today.
"This was a character-building year for us. We showed growth as the season went along and we responded to challenges from injuries and poor performances in early-season meets. We developed grit as a team, and we showed a ton of it today. I couldn't be more proud of the athletes on this team."
CMU's season ends with a record of 13-10, 8-4 in the MAC. The Chippewas will have as many as three individuals qualify to compete at the NCAA Regionals as individuals. Official announcement of any NCAA qualifiers will come on Monday.
-###-
