Vogel Posts 10.0 On Floor * Florida Third At Magical Classic
Saturday, February 22, 1997 | Gymnastics
University of Florida senior gymnast Chrissy Vogel won the Magical Classic floor exercise title with a school-record 10.0 mark Friday in front of an Orange County Convention Center crowd of 954. The 10.0 mark moves Vogel into a tie with former Gator All-American Pam Titus for the school-record. Titus set the record during the 1991 season. Vogel's 10.0 mark led the Gators to a school-record team score of 49.50 on the event, bettering the previous best of 49.45 set last March in Kentucky.
"I'm shocked and I'm so happy. I stuck all my passes and showed it (the routine) off tonight," Vogel said. "The whole team was jumping up and down and I just couldn't believe it."
The Gators' strong finish on the floor was the highlight of an evening that was marked by UF troubles on the uneven bars and balance beam. No. 11 Florida finished third at the Magical Classic with a total of 195.10. The meet title was claimed by No. 8 UCLA at 196.925, while No. 4 Michigan was second at 195.975. No. 18 Kentucky rounded out the team scoring with a 194.725.
"I said coming in that it would be a good confidence boost if we did really well -- if we didn't, it would be a good kick in the pants," UF Head Coach Judi Markell said. "I think it was pretty obvious which it was. We had problems on beam and bars, but vaulting and floor were very good. I'm glad that we finished on a strong note (floor), hopefully we can build on that for our next competition."
Besides Vogel's win on the floor exercise, the Gators placed at least one gymnast in the top three on every event but one Friday. Chrissy Van Fleet took runner-up honors in the all-around with a 39.475 -- the best all-around total ever by a Gator freshman. She also tied for third on the uneven bars with a collegiate-best mark of 9.925. Vogel was runner-up on the balance beam with a collegiate-best mark of 9.925. UCLA's Leah Homma claimed three event titles Friday, posting a perfect 10.0 in the vault and taking the balance beam title with a mark of 9.95. She also shared the uneven bars crown with Michigan's Beth Amelkoich at 9.95.
Florida returns to the O'Connell Center on Friday, Feb. 28 to play host to the Gatorade SEC Showcase. Meet time is set for 7 p.m. in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
