Florida Gators
NCAA Championships (Session I)
Gator Gymnasts Advance to NCAA Super Six After Finishing Second in NCAA Session I Team Qualifying
Thursday, April 26, 2007 | Gymnastics
The No. 1 University of Florida gymnastics team advances to the NCAA Super Six team final after posting its highest score ever, 197.40, in NCAA Championships competition.
For the first time this season, the Gators didn't finish or tie for the top position in the team standings. Georgia won the NCAA Championships Session I Team Qualifier at 197.70, its third-highest team score of 2007. Florida's runner-up total of 197.40 is the highest ever in NCAA Championships' competition and the top road mark ever for the program.
Nebraska claimed the third and final NCAA Super Six berth at 196.625. Oklahoma was fourth at 196.25, followed by Alabama (196.125) and Oregon State (195.10). The Crimson Tide, seeded fourth for the championship, failed to advance to the NCAA Super Six for only the second time since the Super Six format began in 1993.
The teams advancing from NCAA Session II include Utah (197.325), Stanford (197.20) and UCLA (196.475). Rounding out the Session II results were LSU (196.275), Denver (195.575) and Michigan (195.10).
For Friday's Super Six competition, Florida will start on the balance beam. This is the second time UF opens on beam in NCAA Super Six competition, also starting on the event in 1994.
For Florida Head Coach Rhonda Faehn, she knew the Gators performed well Thursday, but there are definitely some areas that will need to be cleaned up if Florida is to have a chance to become the fifth team to win a NCAA Gymnastics team title.
“We didn't peak today. We had a good competition, but not a great competition. That is exactly what we needed. You don't want your best competition of the entire year this afternoon; we want it tomorrow,” Faehn said. “To win the national title, you have to get all your stuck landings and handstands on bars to eliminate the little deductions that really add up. We definitely have room to improve.”
Faehn thinks a key to a successful performance tomorrow is to focus on a common theme for this year's Gator squad – have fun.
“Tonight we'll talk about focusing in on ourselves as a team and what we need to do tomorrow. We want to just really perform, have fun out there and to show it off,” Faehn said. “Today is always a little bit of a pressure-packed situation because advancing is on the line. You have nothing to lose tomorrow. So a key for tomorrow is just to have fun out there.”
In addition to determining which teams advance to Friday's Super Six team final, Thursday's competition also established All-America honors and the gymnasts advancing to Saturday's individual event finals. The Gators received strong individual performances on each apparatus, advancing at least one gymnast to each of Saturday's four event finals. It is only the second time in the program's history that UF placed a gymnast in each event final, with the first time coming in 1998.
| Florida's NCAA Super Six Finishes | ||
| Year | Finish | Score |
| 2006 | 4th | 196.275 |
| 2004 | 5th | 196.800 |
| 1998 | 2nd | 196.350 |
| 1997 | 5th | 196.425 |
| 1994 | 6th | 194.850 |
Florida sends three to the NCAA floor exercise final. Corey Hartung and Savannah Evans will make their second consecutive appearance in the floor final. They will be joined by junior Ashley Reed, who makes her event final debut Saturday. All three shared second in the Session I floor standings at 9.90. The mark ranks as a season-best for Evans. The Gators shared the high floor team total of the opening session with Georgia at 49.425.
Evans also advances to the NCAA vault final and will be joined by freshman Amanda Castillo. They each led UF on the vault Thursday with season-best marks of 9.90, which tied for third in the session. The Gators turned in a vault team total of 49.25 – a solid score, but its potential was hurt by some extra steps on landings of a few other competitors.
Red-shirt freshman Melanie Sinclair, who shares the UF uneven bars record of 10.0, earned a spot in that event final by taking second in the session at 9.925. Castillo and Reed both earned All-America second team honors for the uneven bars by tying for fifth with marks of 9.875. Florida's uneven bars total of 49.30 was second to UGA's 49.40.
| Did You Know? |
| Florida gymnasts earned a total of 15 All-America honors Thursday, bettering the previous high of 12 honors in 2004. |
The Gators finished the day by posting the session's highest balance beam total of 49.425 – matching its second-high mark for the event in 2007. Three Gators will advance to Saturdays' beam final. Hartung led all competitors in the session with her mark of 9.925. Sinclair and Castillo also advance by tying for second overall at 9.90. It will be Hartung's second consecutive appearance in the NCAA beam final, as she tied for fifth in 2006. Senior Breanne King earned All-America second-team honors by tying for eighth at 9.875.
All three Gator all-arounders earned All-America honors Thursday, the only school to have each of its all-arounders in Session I to do so. Castillo was second in the session's all-around and third overall with a collegiate-best total of 39.55, earning her a spot on the All-America first team. Hartung and Reed tied for fifth in the session at 39.40 for a spot on the All-America second team.
| Amanda Castillo's all-around total of 39.55 matches the top score by a Gator freshman. Her overall NCAA all-around finish of third is the highest ever by a Florida freshman. |
Georgia's Courtney Kupets successfully defended her NCAA all-around title with her winning total of 39.75. She also was first on vault, bars and floor with identical marks of 9.95.
As one of the top three teams in the NCAA Championships' opening session of the team qualifying competition, Florida advances to the NCAA Super Six where the NCAA team champion is determined. Competition for the NCAA Super Six is set for Friday, April 27 at 9 p.m. (EDT). This is the sixth NCAA Super Six appearance for the Gators (1994, 1997, 1998, 2004, 2006, and 2007). The highest NCAA finish for the Gators was second in the 1998 event held in Los Angeles, Calif.
Check back to www.GatorZone.com on Friday for Saturday's individual event final draws.
NCAA Championships' Session I Results | ||||||
| Huntsman Center (7,712) – Salt Lake City, Utah. – April 26, 2007 | ||||||
|
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor | Rank | Total |
| Georgia | 49.525 | 49.400 | 49.350 | 49.425 | 1 | 197.700 |
| Florida | 49.250 | 49.300 | 49.425 | 49.425 | 2 | 197.400 |
| Nebraska | 49.350 | 49.000 | 49.100 | 49.175 | 3 | 196.625 |
| Oklahoma | 49.350 | 48.800 | 48.925 | 49.175 | 4 | 196.250 |
| Alabama | 49.050 | 49.125 | 49.100 | 48.850 | 5 | 196.125 |
| Oregon State | 49.150 | 48.525 | 48.675 | 48.750 | 6 | 195.100 |
| Shading denotes teams advancing to April 27 NCAA Super Six Team final | ||||||
NCAA Championships' Session II Results | ||||||
| Huntsman Center (7,712) – Salt Lake City, Utah. – April 26, 2007 | ||||||
|
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor | Rank | Total |
| Utah | 49.500 | 49.500 | 49.200 | 49.125 | 1 | 197.325 |
| Stanford | 49.525 | 49.200 | 49.300 | 49.175 | 2 | 197.200 |
| UCLA | 49.425 | 49.225 | 49.025 | 48.800 | 3 | 196.475 |
| LSU | 49.300 | 48.700 | 49.250 | 49.025 | 4 | 196.275 |
| Denver | 48.975 | 48.700 | 48.975 | 48.925 | 5 | 195.575 |
| Michigan | 49.125 | 48.700 | 48.150 | 49.125 | 6 | 195.100 |
NCAA Championships' Super Six Competition Draw | ||||||
| Huntsman Center – Salt Lake City, Utah. – April 27, 2007 @ 9 p.m. (EDT) | ||||||
| Rotation | Vault | Bye | Bars | Beam | Bye | Floor |
| I | Stanford | Georgia | UCLA | Florida | Utah | Nebraska |
| II | Nebraska | Stanford | Georgia | UCLA | Florida | Utah |
| III | Utah | Nebraska | Stanford | Georgia | UCLA | Florida |
| IV | Florida | Utah | Nebraska | Stanford | Georgia | UCLA |
| V | UCLA | Florida | Utah | Nebraska | Stanford | Georgia |
| VI | Georgia | UCLA | Florida | Utah | Nebraska | Stanford |
| 2007 Gator All-Americans | |||
| Name | Event | Session I Score | All-America team |
| Amanda Castillo | All-Around | 39.55 | First Team |
| Vault | 9.900 | First Team | |
| Uneven Bars | 9.875 | Second Team | |
| Balance Beam | 9.900 | First Team | |
| Savannah Evans | Vault | 9.900 | First Team |
| Floor Exercise | 9.900 | First Team | |
| Corey Hartung | All-Around | 39.400 | Second Team |
| Balance Beam | 9.925 | First Team | |
| Floor Exercise | 9.900 | First Team | |
| Breanne King | Balance Beam | 9.875 | Second Team |
| Ashley Reed | All-Around | 39.400 | Second Team |
| Uneven Bars | 9.875 | Second Team | |
| Floor Exercise | 9.900 | First Team | |
| Melanie Sinclair | Uneven Bars | 9.925 | First Team |
| Balance Beam | 9.900 | First Team | |
| NCAA Championships Individual Event Finals Draw | |
| Saturday, April 28, 2007 * 9 p.m. (EDT) * Huntsman Center * Salt Lake City, Utah | |
| Vault | Uneven Bars |
| Flight One | Flight One |
| Nicki Butler, LSU | Tasha Schwikert, UCLA |
| Mandi Rodriguez, Oregon State | Courtney Kupets, Georgia |
| Kiara Redmond, Oklahoma | Ashley Postell, Utah |
| Marcia Newby, Georgia | Katie Heenan, Georgia |
| Amanda Castillo, Florida | |
| Megan Dowlen, Georgia | |
| Carly Janiga, Stanford | |
| Savannah Evans, Florida | |
| Flight Two | Flight Two |
| Courtney Kupets, Georgia | Melanie Sinclair, Florida |
| Nicolle Ford, Utah | Terin Humphrey, Alabama |
| Tiffany Tolnay, Georgia | Kristina Baskett, Utah |
| Brittney Koncak-Schumann, Oklahoma | Daria Bijak, Utah |
| Emily Parsons, Nebraska |
|
| Tasha Smith, Oregon State | |
| Annie DiLuzio, Utah | |
| Liz Tricasek, Stanford | |
| Michele Zabawa, Nebraska | |
| Beam | Floor |
| Flight One | Flight One |
| Tabitha Yim, Stanford | Carly Janiga, Stanford |
| Grace Taylor, Georgia | Beth Rizzo, Utah |
| Terin Humphrey, Alabama | Ashley Reed, Florida |
| Melanie Sinclair, Florida | Janae Cox, West Virginia |
| Kelly Phelan, LSU | Ashley Postell, Utah |
| Jessica Lopez, Denver | Corey Hartung, Florida |
| Courtney Kupets, Georgia | Karin Wurm, Arizona |
| Katie Lieberman, Michigan | |
| Kiara Redmond, Oklahoma | |
| Flight Two | Flight Two |
| Tricia Woo, Nebraska | Tabitha Yim, Stanford |
| Kelly Fee, Stanford | Kelly Phelan, LSU |
| Anna Li, UCLA | Emily Parsons, Nebraska |
| Kristi Esposito, LSU | Savannah Evans, Florida |
| Amanda Castillo, Florida | Morgan Dennis, Alabama |
| Ashley Postell, Utah | Jessica Lopez, Denver |
| Corey Hartung, Florida | Tiffany Tolnay, Georgia |
| Nicole Ourada, Stanford | Susan Jackson, LSU |
| Courtney Kupets, Georgia | |
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Quotes from Session I Press Conference
Florida Head Coach Rhonda Faehn
Opening Statement
“I would first like to start off by saying that we are very excited to be where we are right now, headed into tomorrow's competition. We looked very solid this afternoon. It was very exciting out there today, a lot was going on. It was a great competition for all those involved. Right now we are just really excited about going out there tomorrow night.”
Question: “This is the third time you and Georgia have met this year. Are you at all surprised about each of your successes this year?”
Answer: “I am not surprised at all. Whenever Georgia and us get together it is always going to be competitive. Any competition we have in the SEC it is always going to be exciting, close and competitive. I think that is what makes us so strong. They had a great competition; they were nailing everything left and right. They did very well. That tells us that we have to do our job. We need to prepare and advance. Today we missed a lot of landings and that is what we will be working on for tomorrow.”
Question: “How hard is it to come back so soon tomorrow night?”
Answer: “I believe that this session was the more difficult of the two. All the teams here today are strong and they were all prepared. It is going to be unbelievable tomorrow night. There is going to be a lot of talent out on the floor. It's going to be about the team that pulls together and gets their landings stuck.”
Florida Student Athlete Amanda Castillo
Question: “How do think your performance went today?”
Answer: “All year our team has been together. Today wasn't about the individual factor. The individual performance did not come into play today.”
Question: “Talk about the atmosphere at the national championships.”
Answer: “There are a lot of Gator fans here, which has been great. We really appreciate that. I think it picks the whole team up.”
Georgia Head Coach Suzanne Yoculan
Opening Statement
“This is exciting for us. We've had 11 different floor lineups and didn't know what we'd get to start with today. We started strong and got some good momentum. Adversity was a tremendous motivator for us today.”
Question: “Talk about how difficult it will be to come back tomorrow and compete again.”
Answer: “It's very important after an emotional hurdle like this one to get a little time off. We had five new girls in the lineup and lots of question marks today. There was lots of emotion and the more recovery time we have, the better advantage for us. So competing in the afternoon will help because of the lineup changes we've gone through.”
Georgia Student-Athlete Courtney Kupets
Question: “Did you feel going in that you'd get off to a big start?”
Answer: “As a team, we'd struggled a little bit this season at times and didn't put together good meets at times. Through our adversity we got closer as a team and when our girls got hurt we had to do that. They did a great job of being our biggest cheerleaders and supporting our team.”
Question: “What was your mindset going into the meet?”
Answer: “Going into the meet was just about having fun and doing gymnastics. We were all about rising up to the occasion. Everything that happened out there we were excited about and just had to brush off mistakes.”
Question: “Talk about your all around performance, since it looks like you're on your way to another individual title.”
Answer: “I was kind of nervous today. I felt like a little kid competing for the first time. As a team, we really got into it and today was all about the team and what I could do individually to help the team.”
Nebraska Head Coach Dan Kendig
Opening Statement
“I want to congratulate Florida and Georgia. What a great meet for both of them so far. We're excited that our athletes rose to the occasion today and excited about being in the Super Six tomorrow.”
Question: “It's a tough rotation coming back tomorrow after competing today. How hard will that be?”
Answer: “Tomorrow is what we've trained for all year, it's what dreams are made of. I think that emotion and momentum will be big tomorrow. All six teams will be ready.”
Nebraska Student-Athlete Michelle Zabawa
Question: “You averaged over 9.85 in your events today. How will you repeat that tomorrow?”
Answer: “At this point we're very pleased with how we did today. Tomorrow we'll try to key in on our landings and fight for every tenth, because that's what it comes down to. We're going to go out tomorrow and have fun.”
