Florida Gymnasts No. 2 in GymInfo Preseason Coaches Poll
Monday, December 17, 2007 | Gymnastics
The University of Florida gymnastics team is ranked No. 2 in the preseason poll released Sunday by GymInfo. This matches the highest preseason ranking ever for UF, as the Gators held the No. 2 spot in the 1999 preseason release. Florida has been ranked in the preseason top 10 each year since the poll's inception in 1992.
Three-time defending NCAA champion Georgia holds the top spot with 28 first-place votes. Rounding out the preseason top five are No. 3 Utah, No. 4 UCLA and No. 5 Stanford.
Seven of Florida's 10 dual meets this season are versus a top-25 preseason ranked team. The first preseason ranked team the Gators will meet is No. 1 Georgia. That dual meet is set for Friday, Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
| 2008 GymInfo Coaches Poll – Preseason | |||
| Rank | Team | Points | First Place Votes |
| 1 | Georgia* | 866 | 28 |
| 2 | Florida | 788 | 1 |
| 3 | Utah* | 779 | 3 |
| 4 | UCLA | 743 | |
| 5 | Stanford | 727 | 2 |
| 6 | Alabama* | 685 | |
| 7 | Nebraska | 641 | |
| 8 | Oklahoma | 620 | |
| 9 | Michigan | 593 | 1 |
| 10 | LSU* | 591 | |
| 11 | Oregon State | 503 | |
| 12 | Arizona | 402 | |
| 13 | Penn State | 385 | |
| 14 | Arkansas* | 365 | |
| 15 | Denver | 365 | |
| 16 | Missouri | 310 | |
| 17 | Iowa State | 285 | |
| 18 | Arizona State | 256 | |
| 19 | Auburn* | 237 | |
| 20 | Ohio State | 202 | |
| 21 | Michigan State | 197 | |
| 22 | West Virginia | 130 | |
| 23 | Illinois-Champaign | 124 | |
| 24 | Kentucky* | 104 | |
| 25 | North Carolina State | 72 | |
| *-2008 University of Florida opponent | |||
Florida returns nine letterwinners from the 2007 squad that placed third at the NCAA Championships and also claimed the Southeastern Conference team title. Florida's 2008 roster includes five All-Americans - seniors Tiffany Murry and Ashley Reed, junior Corey Hartung and sophomores Amanda Castillo and Melanie Sinclair.
The Gators open the 2007 season with a home meet versus Illinois-Chicago on Friday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $4.00 each for adults, while children 17 and under plus UF students with identification are admitted free.
