University of Minnesota Athletics
WOMEN'S GYMNASTICS SIGNS FOUR TO NATIONAL LETTERS OF INTENT
12/10/1999 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
"We are thrilled with the sense of assurance for our future, signing three Minnesotans and the younger sister of an existing team star from Indiana," Jim Stephenson said. "All four of these women are competitors with long histories of achievement and success. Each of them meets with our objective of athletes who perform top-level gymnastics with a presentation, style, and overall look that classifies them as accomplished artists."
Hortsch is a Junior Olympic regional qualifier and a Minnesota high school all-state selection. The 1998 state champion on the uneven bars, Hortsch was recognized as one of the top athletes in the state by the Minnesota Women's Gymnastics Foundation.
Opsahl is the 1999 Junior Olympic state all-around champion and has twice qualified for the Junior Olympic national championships. In 1999, she finished 25th in the all-around, 19th on uneven bars and 26th on floor exercise.
Laatsch, of Burnsville High School, was the 1999 Junior Olympic regional champion on uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise while placing second in the all around. She has qualified for the Junior Olympic national championships the last four years, including a sixth-place finish on the uneven bars and 11th-place finish on floor exercise.
Skokut, a senior at Carmel High School, qualified for both the American and U.S. Classics. She finished seventh on the uneven bars at the 1998 Junior Olympics national championships. Skokut is the younger sister of Gophers junior Megan Skokut.
