Greg

Saturday, 02 April 2011 21:38

Men's: Stanford Wins MPSF

Stanford defeated top ranked OU for the title, posting a 362.25 to OU's 360.7.  Cal was third with a 356.05, while NU was fourth with a 356.05.  Host Air Force netted a 344.8.

OU's Jake Dalton won the VT (16.65), PB and AA (90.9).  He also tied for the FX title with teammate Steven Legendre. 

Link:  AF Release

Saturday, 02 April 2011 21:36

Men's: UIC Wins ECAC Championship

UIC won the ECAC title, posting a season-high 346.9.  Temple was 2nd with a 388.3, W&M 3rd with a 336.5, Springfield 4th with a 333.2, Navy in 5th with a 326.7 and Army in 6th with a 324.3. 

The AA winner was UIC's Kyle Voissem.

Link:  UIC Release

Saturday, 02 April 2011 19:51

Denver: Arkansas, UF Advance

In DU, #1 Florida struggled on BB, their final event, to leave the door open for Arkansas and Boise State.  Arkansas stayed steady on UB for the win, their second over UF this season.  On the last event, Boise State ended just short of upsetting UF, with a few uncharacteristic wobbles late in the lineup that proved to be the 0.025 difference.  Advancing as individual AAers are Boise State's Amy Glass and DU's Brianna Springer.  Also advancing as individuals on BB are Bekah Gher of Boise State and Jorie Hall of DU.

1 University of Arkansas 196.550
2 University of Florida 196.425
3 Boise State University 196.400
4 University of Denver 195.625
5 University of Arizona 195.400
6 Brigham Young University 194.650

Link:  Results and Arkansas Release and Boise St Release and DU Release

Saturday, 02 April 2011 19:17

Tuscaloosa: Bama, Illinois Advance

Bama and Illinois advanced out of the Tuscaloosa Regional. Bama cruised to a 197.275.  Illinois hit a 49.075 on the BB to edge PSU, 195.925 to 195.8, as the last round of competition once again determined the outcome.  Two individuals advanced:  Sharaya Musser of PSU and Kylie Shields of AU.  

1.  Bama 197.275
2.  Illinois 195.925
3.  PSU 195.85
4.  AU 195.6
5.  CMU 195.075
6.  UK 195.175 

Link:  Bama Results  and Bama Release

Saturday, 02 April 2011 19:11

Corvallis: Oregon State, Nebraska Advance

Oregon State posted a 197.025 to advance to the National meet.  The hosts defeated 2nd place NU's 196.55.  In the rest of the field, MSU posted a solid effort to take third in 194.5.  The top two AAers not on an advancing team are Iowa's Rebecca Simbhudas and Houry Gebeshian.  In addition, Katie Valleau of San Jose St advanced on FX.

1 Oregon State 197.025
2 Nebraska 196.550
3 Michigan State 194.525
4 San Jose State 194.425
5 Iowa 193.925
6 Southern Utah 193.775

Link:  Results and NU Release

Saturday, 02 April 2011 18:07

Ann Arbor: Michigan, Kent State Advance

Michigan posted a 197.075 to win the Regional.  But in the big story, Kent State, the sixth seed in the Region, edged the field to advance to Nationals, which they will host in two weeks.  Stanford counted a fall on BB to set up an intense final rotation, as Kent State and Ohio State traded off hit routines.  Minnesota ended up tied with Stanford, after lower totals on VT and UB.  Advancing as individual are Ohio State's Rebecca Best in the BB and Minnesota's Kayla Slechta and Iowa State's Michelle Shealy in the AA.    

1 University of Michigan 197.075
2 Kent State University 195.450
3 Ohio State University 195.350
4 University of Minnesota 195.225
4 Stanford University 195.225
6 Iowa State University 194.800

Link:  Prelim Scores and Michigan Release

Saturday, 02 April 2011 17:28

Norman: OU, Utah Advance

Oklahoma won with a 197.35 and Utah stayed calm on the last event with a 196.475 to overtake UW.  While OU hit every event, UW hit VT and FX to set up a huge UB rotation to take the lead over Utah.  But, nerves and excitement led to some early falls that deflated the team's momentum.  Utah started strongly on UB and then faced an equipment malfunction, which delayed the completion of their UB set.  Unfazed, they avoide mishaps to advance.  UNC's Morgan Evans and UW's Aliza Vaccher advanced as the top two AAers. 

1.  OU 197.35
2.  Utah 196.475
3.  UW 195.3
4.  UNC 195.225
5.  UNH 194.5
6.  Missouri 194.175

Link:  OU Results and OU Release and Utah Release and  UW Release

Saturday, 02 April 2011 17:26

Athens: UCLA, UGA Advance

UCLA posted a 197.425 for the win.  UGA claimed the 2nd spot at Nationals with a 196.75.  LSU's Kaleigh Dickson and NC State's Stephanie Ouellette are the top two AAers on a non advancing team and should qualify to Nationals as well.

1 UCLA 197.425
2 University of Georgia 196.750
3 Louisiana State University 195.350
4 North Carolina State University 194.750
5 University of Maryland 193.200
6 West Virginia University 192.500

Link:  Results and UCLA Release

Illinois won the Big 10 title Friday night.  Michigan, led by frosh Sam Mikulak's win in the AA, placed 2nd. 

Team Standings:

1.  Illinois 355.55
2.  Michigan 352.75
3.  Ohio State 350
4. PSU 349
5. Minnesota 344.4
6. Iowa 339.3

AA:

1.  Sam Mikulak, Michigan 89.05
2.  Kris Done, Ohio State, 86.6
3.  Tyler Mizoguchi, Illinois 85.7

Link:  Michigan Release

Friday, 01 April 2011 12:16

Women's Regionals: Preview

As always, we'll have links to scores and coverage posted for Saturday afternoon.  Here's a brief overview of the meets.

Athens Regional, 4 p.m. ET
#6 UCLA, #8 Georgia, #18 LSU, #26 NC State, #28 Maryland, #29 West Virginia

With the way the Regionals are seeded, the teams in ranks 5 to 8 are usually paired with seeds #17 and #18.  This produces a challenging situation for any of the teams in the Regional field to surpass either of the teams in the top two positions.  That's made even more difficult when one of the Top 2 seeds is also a host.  Hosting gives a distinct advantage to the host, even with the diverse four-judge panels in place at the Regional meet.  The equipment is usually familiar, and the gym and its spatial cues (the lighting, the ceiling height, the give in the subfloor, etc) are familiar.  What's more, the host gets to sleep in their own bed, eat familiar food, and perhaps most of all, get the support of a large and partisan crowd.     

All three seeded teams have experienced some inconsistency during the year, but it may not be enough, barring a complete meltdown, to shake up the final standings.  Host UGA is coming off a strong performance at the SECs, while UCLA is building back consistency.  A stable performance should be enough to stay ahead of the rest of the field, led by a young LSU squad. 

Norman Regional, 4 p.m. CT
#5 Oklahoma, #7 Utah, #17 Washington, #32 New Hampshire, #33 Missouri, #35 North Carolina

This is the other top heavy regional, with the combined total of the top two seeds being "12", the lowest total of any Regional.  Host OU has been strong all season, with its highest score coming on the road.  Despite a young squad and some injuries, Utah has remained consistent all season long.  #3 Seed UW upset the then #3 Stanford at the Pac 10s, and has performed equally well on the road as at home.  But, OU and Utah will look to stay consistent and avoid major mistakes that might lead to an upset.

Ann Arbor Regional, 6 p.m. ET
#4 Stanford, #9 Michigan, #16 Ohio State, #21 Iowa State, #23 Minnesota, #24 Kent State

Stanford and host Michigan will look to hold off a young Ohio State squad, plus one of the strongest 1-6 seeded fields.  Stanford is coming off a somewhat lackluster performance at the Pac-10s.  A repeat of that meet or counting a fall ould leave them vulnerable.  The Cardinal have been very consistent all season long, however, not even counting a fall at the Pac-10s.  Both of the top two seeds will look to stay not only major mistake free, but must not give up easy tenths on steps, OOB, and wobbles along the way.  For the young Buckeyes, the UB rotation could prove to be key, while VT and FX remain strong.  Both Iowa State and Minnesota hope to not lose too much ground on VT while remaining consistent on the other events, in hopes of an opportunity.

Corvallis Regional, 4 p.m. PT
#3 Oregon State, #10 Nebraska, #15 Iowa, #31 Southern Utah, #34 San Jose State, #36 Michigan State

Host Oregon State will look to continue their momentum while holding off any upset, in order to advance.  Like the Beavers, NU is coming off a big conference championship win.  Both teams are very clean and have demonstrated good consistency in the 2nd half of the season.  This makes the job especially tough for Iowa, which is experiencing one of its best seasons in quite a while.  This is the weakest of the Regional fields, however, with the three lower ranked teams hampered by injury and inconsistency.   

Tuscaloosa Regional, 6 p.m. CT
#2 Alabama, #11 Penn State, #14 Illinois, #22 Auburn, #25 Central Michigan, #30 Kentucky

#2 Bama is another high seeded host who will be difficult to knock off, barring any major issues with the young Tide lineup.  Thus, it will be #11 PSU that will have the big target drawn on them by the rest of the field.  The BB is often the decider, and it will be the key event to watch here.  The pressure of Regionals and an unfavorable rotation draw makes it a tough task for the #2 and #3 seeds in each Regional.  PSU gave a close challenge to Michigan in the Big 10s, but Illinois was not far behind. AU, CMU and UK look to stay as close as possible as well.   

Denver Regional, 6 p.m. MT
#1 Florida, #12 Arkansas, #13 Boise State, #19 Denver, #20 Arizona, #27 BYU

#1 Florida may have lost the SEC title, but if they compete confidentally at DU, they should advance.  #12 Arkansas, with a young squad, was upset by #27 BYU earlier in the season.  Although Arkansas has been building momentum in the 2nd half of the season, that earlier upset illustrates just how close this meet could be.  Tensions will mount, and the first two rotations will be critical.   Host DU has a built-in home and rotational advantage, but Boise State has had strong performances from their stars.  For all six squads, the atmosphere will be a high altitude pressure cooker that may produce some unexpected results.

Page 18 of 135