In The (Gator) Zone: McMurtry Makes Instant Impact, Raymond Ponders Retirement, More Tidbits
Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Her back hurts most days, her friends back home in Virginia are reveling in their senior year of high school, and she has yet to perform in the floor routine, her favorite event.
Still, Gators freshman gymnast Alex McMurtry wouldn't change a thing. She is having a blast.
“The stakes are high, the pressure is up, but it's exciting,'' McMurtry said. “I needed something new.”
That is why McMurtry opted to graduate high school a year early and enroll at Florida last summer as a 17-year-old. Gators head coach Rhonda Faehn has had a handful of gymnasts over the years enroll early at mid-year, but never one at the start of the fall semester.
In McMurtry's case, Faehn rolled out the orange and blue carpet and held the door open.
“It's a tremendous testament to her, to her maturity level,'' Faehn said. “She is a tremendous talent.”
When McMurtry signed with the Gators, her plan was to finish her senior year at James River High in Midlothian, Va. She looked forward to homecoming, prom, and other milestones showcased in the yearbook.
But she was so advanced academically, McMurtry had an opportunity to earn her diploma early. When Faehn heard that, she asked McMurtry and her parents if she was interested in enrolling at UF early.
UF freshman gymnast Alex McMurtry made the jump from high school to college a year early. Among her collegiate experiences is shooting a selfie with a live UF mascot at Lake Alice.
“At first when they suggested it, I was really against the idea,'' she said. “I'm not missing my senior year. Everyone talks about their senior year.”
Time passed and McMurtry entertained the idea. She had accomplished everything she could as a Level 10 junior gymnast. Finally, she made the call to become a 17-year-old UF freshman (she turned 18 in December).
The opportunity to start her college career and join the two-time defending national champions provided McMurtry a new challenge after eight years as an elite junior gymnast and more trophies than she can count.
After three meets it's clear McMurtry is ready. In her home debut on Jan. 16 against Auburn, McMurtry scored the first 10 of her Florida career on vault.
“A lot of freshmen don't even the opportunity to compete,'' she said. “Doing really well at the first home meet was amazing. I would have never expected it.”
She did it despite three hairline fractures in her lower back from the wear and tear of years as a gymnast. Faehn and UF's training staff monitor McMurtry closely. Some days are better than others. To stay healthy, McMurtry performs less routines in practice and has not competed on the floor routine, which Faehn called textbook.
“I have to be very careful with her. She is so good, and so talented, and has so much potential,'' Faehn said. “It's a fine line to be able to build up that confidence and compete aggressively without as much training.”
McMurtry may have hesitated at first to start her college career a year early, but those concerns have passed. She stays in touch with her friends at home, has made new friends at UF, and made her mark for the Gators, who host Georgia on Friday night at the O'Connell Center.
Keep an eye on McMurtry. She dazzled in her O'Dome debut.
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Former UF tennis star Lisa Raymond is 41 and more than a decade older than most of her doubles playing partners these days.
While Raymond has stayed healthy, many of her playing partners have not the last two years, including Mirjana Lucic-Baroni at this week's Australian Open. Lucic-Baroni suffered a calf injury that derailed any hopes Raymond had to climb back toward the top of the women's doubles rankings.
Raymond told The New York Times that retirement has started to creep into her mind if her luck doesn't change soon.
Still, her dream ending is to win another Grand Slam doubles title and go out on top the way Pete Sampras did by winning the 2002 U.S. Open.
“Hopefully there will be some good signs coming soon,'' she said. “Because I don't know how much longer I can take this; I'll be honest. It's a cliche, but everybody wants to walk away on their own terms, and they want to walk away like Pete did."
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Gators women's basketball coach Amanda Butler won her 150th game at UF on Sunday in Florida's victory over Arkansas. Butler will go for No. 151 on Thursday night when Florida hosts Missouri.
Where does Butler rank on UF's all-time win list for head coaches? She is second to Carol Ross, who won 247 games at Florida from 1990-2002. Butler is 150-105 in her eighth season.
The Gators have had nine head coaches in the program's history and Ross and Butler are the only coaches to reach 150 career wins. Carolyn Peck (72-76 record from 2002-07) ranks third.
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Twenty-five days ago Jeff Dillman was on the Gators' sideline in their victory over East Carolina in the Birmingham Bowl, his final game at Florida. Dillman was replaced by Mike Kent as the Florida's director of strength and conditioning when head coach Jim McElwain took over the program.
Dillman was quickly snatched up by Alabama and on Tuesday, stopped by the Florida basketball team's shootaround to say hello to some old friends.
Colleague Chris Harry provides visual evidence:
Ran into an old friend here at @Gators shoot-around. @Jeff_Dillman = Great guy. pic.twitter.com/qZGmUf4yZr
— Chris Harry (@GatorZoneChris) January 27, 2015
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The boys of spring are in the middle of preseason practice as they prepare to open the season at home against Rhode Island on Feb. 13. The Gators baseball team is ranked No. 2 in the country in the D1Baseball.com national poll, and No. 6 according to Baseball America.
As he prepares to enter his eighth season, head coach Kevin O'Sullivan met with the media Tuesday to discuss his team:
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EXTRA, EXTRA
Former Florida All-American defensive back Joe Haden, now with the Cleveland Browns, received a special honor Tuesday. Haden became the first professional football player to be named Special Olympics Global Ambassador writes Andrew Gribble of ClevelandBrowns.com … Tim Tebow claimed a closest-to-the-pin contest Wednesday during a pro-am event at the Phoenix Open. Later, he met up with a couple of other former Gators:
Representing #GatorNation with @TimTebow and @OSUCoachMeyer! @GatorZoneNews pic.twitter.com/LsxbsQTlS6
— Emmitt Smith (@EmmittSmith22) January 29, 2015 
