University of Minnesota Athletics
Women Gymnasts Conclude Season Ninth in the Nation
5/2/2002 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
The University of Minnesota women's gymnastics team finished the season in ninth place at the NCAA Championships with a score of 195.700. Annie Laatsch (Burnsville, Minn./Lakeville) and MaryAnne Kelley (Barrington, Ill./Fremd) earned first team All-America honors. Kelley also earned second team All-America honors in the all around. Top-seeded Alabama finished with a 197.575 to beat Georgia (197.25) and end UCLA's two-year title run.
Kelley Honored as Senior of the Year
Senior gymnast MaryAnne Kelley was presented with Senior Athlete of the Year Award at the annual Berg Awards Banquet held Tuesday, April 30.
The Senior Athlete of the Year award is voted on by the student- athletes. The award recipient is chosen for her performance athletically and academically but also for their character and leadership abilities.
Kelley, a native of Barrington, Ill., is one of just two Gopher gymnasts (Marie Roethlisberger) to earn multiple NCAA All-America honors, earning first-team All-America honors in floor exercise in 2002, second-team All-American in all around in 2002 and vault in 2001. Kelley led her team to its highest national finish (ninth) at the 2002 NCAA Championships and helped the Gophers advance to four post-season NCAA appearances in her career.
She was honored as the 2002 Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and was a 2002 All-Big Ten selection on floor exercise, the fourth All-Big Ten honor of her career. Kelley, a three-time team MVP and four-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Week, owns the Minnesota floor exercise record with a 9.975, she also owns the school all around record with a 39.600. A Honda Award finalist, Kelley scored 10 of the top 12 all around scores in Minnesota history.
The 2002 NCAA Championships
Top-seeded Alabama finished with a 197.575 to beat Georgia (197.25) and end UCLA's two-year title run. It was Alabama's third time playing host to the event, and they have won the crown each time. But no host team had won the championship since Alabama in 1996.
Seventh-seeded Georgia was a runner-up for the second straight year, while UCLA (197.15) slipped to third despite raising its score from the preliminary round. Utah was fourth with 196.95, while Nebraska had 196.425 and Stanford 196.025 in its first Super Six appearance.
This year's competition marked the second time in program history that the Gophers had ever been to the NCAA Championships. The last time the Gophers competed was in 1997 when they scored a 194.775 to finish the season 10th in the nation.
In Thursday's preliminary round, the battle for the third spot and the chance to make it to the Super Six competition came down to Minnesota and the Stanford Cardinal. The Gophers began the competition on vault. Sophomore Mary Skokut (right) (Carmel, Ind./Carmel) was the first gymnast up for the Gophers, scoring a 9.725. Minnesota was kept on pace by MaryAnne Kelley (Barrington, Ill./Fremd) and Carolyn Yernberg (Blaine, Minn./Blaine) who each scored a 9.80 to lead the Gopher team tally to a 48.675. The Maroon and Gold finished the first rotation in second place behind UCLA who was in first with a 49.250 on beam.
After a bye, the Gophers came back on uneven bars where they scored a 48.575. From bars Minnesota went straight to balance beam, scoring a 49.125 as a team with five gymnasts scoring at least a 9.80. Kelley and Laatsch each scored a 9.85 to keep Minnesota in the running.
Minnesota got a resting period with a bye before its final and best event, the floor exercise. Kelley and Laatsch earned first-team All-America honors on floor, after they both scored 9.90's. Senior Megan Beuckens (Brandon, S.D./Brandon Valley) and Jenny Alf (Ripon, Wis./Ripon) each scored a 9.85. Skokut scored a 9.80 while senior Courtney Norman (Minneapolis, Minn./Cretin-Derham) scored a 9.825.
Laatsch and Kelley Compete for National Title in Women's Gymnastics Senior MaryAnne Kelley and sophomore Annie Laatsch competed in the individual event finals on the floor exercise at the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships on Saturday night at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and Honda Award finalist Kelley scored a 9.875 in her final collegiate competition to tie for ninth of 15 competitors. Laatsch went on to score a 9.825 to tie for 12th in the nation.
Sophomore all around champion Jamie Dantzscher of UCLA edged Georgia's Marline Stephens' 9.950 mark to win the vault title with a 9.9563. Michigan Olympian Elise Ray took the national title on balance beam with a 9.925, with Alabama's Jeana Rice scoring a 9.912 to take second place.
Dantzscher went on to tie Nicole Arnstad of LSU for the floor exercise title, each scored a 9.950.
Crowd favorite and SEC Gymnast of the Year Andree Pickens of Alabama scored a 9.925 to become the uneven bars champion.
Laatsch (left) and Kelley are the first gymnasts since 1997 to earn first-team All-America honors. Kelley also earned second-team All-America honors in the all around competition.
Doug Day Named National Women's Gymnastics Assistant Coach of the Year
The Gopher women's gymnastics assistant coach Doug Day was named the National Assistant Coach of the Year on Saturday, April 20, in Tuscaloosa, Ala., the site of the 2002 NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships.
Day has been instrumental in the Gophers' success this season, helping lead Minnesota to its second NCAA appearance ever. This year Minnesota finished ninth in the nation with two first team All-Americans, MaryAnne Kelley and Annie Laatsch.
Day has been an assistant coach at Minnesota since 1997. He was last named NCAA National Assistant Coach of the Year in 1995 as an assistant coach at New Mexico.
MaryAnne Kelley Earns Honda Sports Award Nomination
Senior gymnast MaryAnne Kelley was named as one of four finalists for the prestigious Honda Sports Award in gymnastics. This award determines the top woman collegiate athlete in that sport. The winner after nationwide balloting, will become a nominee for the Honda-Broderick Cup which is awarded annually to the nation's outstanding collegiate woman athlete of the year at the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year Banquet to be held this year on June 17 in Dallas during the NACDA convention.
Kelley is one of the strongest competitors in Minnesota gymnastics history. She is a three time All-America honoree, a Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and an All-Big Ten honoree. This Barrington, Ill., native is a four time Big Ten Gymnast of the Week selection. She holds three Minnesota records.
UCLA's Jamie Dantzscher, Utah's Theresa Kulikowski and Alabama's Andree' Pickens are the other three finalists for this award.
About Minnesota
This season has shaped up to be a record-setting year for the Gopher women's gymnastics team. Minnesota finished the season in the top 10 as a team, with two gymnasts being named All-Americans.
Minnesota has set or tied individual records in all events including the all around competition. In team scores, Minnesota tied the school record this season, scoring a 196.850 and set a new team vault score of 49.600.
For the first time in Gopher gymnastics history, two gymnasts earned perfect 10s. Courtney Norman and Carolyn Yernberg (right) re-wrote the Gopher record books with there 10.0 performance on the vault apparatus.
Minnesota made its seventh consecutive appearance to the NCAA Regional competition and finished in second place for the first time since the 1983 season.
The Maroon and Gold finished second at the Big Ten Championships, their highest finish the 1998 season, where Minnesota won the championship. This year, the Gophers had four gymnasts to earn All-Big Ten honors while Annie Laatsch won the individual bars title, becoming the first Gopher to win an event since Cathy Keyser on balance beam in 1998.
The Gophers' talented squad has been equipped with two all around competitors in Big Ten Gymnast of Year MaryAnne Kelley and Mary Skokut. Minnesota's lineup consists of three seniors, three juniors, four sophomores and one newcomer over the four events. The coaching tandem of Jim and Meg Stephenson and Doug Day have anchored accolades also this season.
Jim and Meg Stephenson's combination of knowledge and experience has created a successful coaching team where they were honored as Big Ten Coaches of the Year and Regional Coaches of the Year this season. Day has brought a wealth of knowledge to his position as assistant coach. His coaching prowess led him to be honored as National Assistant Coach of the Year at this year's national championships.
Women Gymnasts Conclude Season Ninth in the Nation
The University of Minnesota women's gymnastics team finished the season in ninth place at the NCAA Championships with a score of 195.700. Annie Laatsch (Burnsville, Minn./Lakeville) and MaryAnne Kelley (Barrington, Ill./Fremd) earned first team All-America honors. Kelley also earned second team All-America honors in the all around. Top-seeded Alabama finished with a 197.575 to beat Georgia (197.25) and end UCLA's two-year title run.
Kelley Honored as Senior of the Year
Senior gymnast MaryAnne Kelley was presented with Senior Athlete of the Year Award at the annual Berg Awards Banquet held Tuesday, April 30.
The Senior Athlete of the Year award is voted on by the student- athletes. The award recipient is chosen for her performance athletically and academically but also for their character and leadership abilities.
Kelley, a native of Barrington, Ill., is one of just two Gopher gymnasts (Marie Roethlisberger) to earn multiple NCAA All-America honors, earning first-team All-America honors in floor exercise in 2002, second-team All-American in all around in 2002 and vault in 2001. Kelley led her team to its highest national finish (ninth) at the 2002 NCAA Championships and helped the Gophers advance to four post-season NCAA appearances in her career.
She was honored as the 2002 Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and was a 2002 All-Big Ten selection on floor exercise, the fourth All-Big Ten honor of her career. Kelley, a three-time team MVP and four-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Week, owns the Minnesota floor exercise record with a 9.975, she also owns the school all around record with a 39.600. A Honda Award finalist, Kelley scored 10 of the top 12 all around scores in Minnesota history.
The 2002 NCAA Championships
Top-seeded Alabama finished with a 197.575 to beat Georgia (197.25) and end UCLA's two-year title run. It was Alabama's third time playing host to the event, and they have won the crown each time. But no host team had won the championship since Alabama in 1996.
Seventh-seeded Georgia was a runner-up for the second straight year, while UCLA (197.15) slipped to third despite raising its score from the preliminary round. Utah was fourth with 196.95, while Nebraska had 196.425 and Stanford 196.025 in its first Super Six appearance.
This year's competition marked the second time in program history that the Gophers had ever been to the NCAA Championships. The last time the Gophers competed was in 1997 when they scored a 194.775 to finish the season 10th in the nation.
In Thursday's preliminary round, the battle for the third spot and the chance to make it to the Super Six competition came down to Minnesota and the Stanford Cardinal. The Gophers began the competition on vault. Sophomore Mary Skokut (right) (Carmel, Ind./Carmel) was the first gymnast up for the Gophers, scoring a 9.725. Minnesota was kept on pace by MaryAnne Kelley (Barrington, Ill./Fremd) and Carolyn Yernberg (Blaine, Minn./Blaine) who each scored a 9.80 to lead the Gopher team tally to a 48.675. The Maroon and Gold finished the first rotation in second place behind UCLA who was in first with a 49.250 on beam.
After a bye, the Gophers came back on uneven bars where they scored a 48.575. From bars Minnesota went straight to balance beam, scoring a 49.125 as a team with five gymnasts scoring at least a 9.80. Kelley and Laatsch each scored a 9.85 to keep Minnesota in the running.
Minnesota got a resting period with a bye before its final and best event, the floor exercise. Kelley and Laatsch earned first-team All-America honors on floor, after they both scored 9.90's. Senior Megan Beuckens (Brandon, S.D./Brandon Valley) and Jenny Alf (Ripon, Wis./Ripon) each scored a 9.85. Skokut scored a 9.80 while senior Courtney Norman (Minneapolis, Minn./Cretin-Derham) scored a 9.825.
Laatsch and Kelley Compete for National Title in Women's Gymnastics Senior MaryAnne Kelley and sophomore Annie Laatsch competed in the individual event finals on the floor exercise at the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships on Saturday night at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and Honda Award finalist Kelley scored a 9.875 in her final collegiate competition to tie for ninth of 15 competitors. Laatsch went on to score a 9.825 to tie for 12th in the nation.
Sophomore all around champion Jamie Dantzscher of UCLA edged Georgia's Marline Stephens' 9.950 mark to win the vault title with a 9.9563. Michigan Olympian Elise Ray took the national title on balance beam with a 9.925, with Alabama's Jeana Rice scoring a 9.912 to take second place.
Dantzscher went on to tie Nicole Arnstad of LSU for the floor exercise title, each scored a 9.950.
Crowd favorite and SEC Gymnast of the Year Andree Pickens of Alabama scored a 9.925 to become the uneven bars champion.
Laatsch (left) and Kelley are the first gymnasts since 1997 to earn first-team All-America honors. Kelley also earned second-team All-America honors in the all around competition.
Doug Day Named National Women's Gymnastics Assistant Coach of the Year
The Gopher women's gymnastics assistant coach Doug Day was named the National Assistant Coach of the Year on Saturday, April 20, in Tuscaloosa, Ala., the site of the 2002 NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships.
Day has been instrumental in the Gophers' success this season, helping lead Minnesota to its second NCAA appearance ever. This year Minnesota finished ninth in the nation with two first team All-Americans, MaryAnne Kelley and Annie Laatsch.
Day has been an assistant coach at Minnesota since 1997. He was last named NCAA National Assistant Coach of the Year in 1995 as an assistant coach at New Mexico.
MaryAnne Kelley Earns Honda Sports Award Nomination
Senior gymnast MaryAnne Kelley was named as one of four finalists for the prestigious Honda Sports Award in gymnastics. This award determines the top woman collegiate athlete in that sport. The winner after nationwide balloting, will become a nominee for the Honda-Broderick Cup which is awarded annually to the nation's outstanding collegiate woman athlete of the year at the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year Banquet to be held this year on June 17 in Dallas during the NACDA convention.
Kelley is one of the strongest competitors in Minnesota gymnastics history. She is a three time All-America honoree, a Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and an All-Big Ten honoree. This Barrington, Ill., native is a four time Big Ten Gymnast of the Week selection. She holds three Minnesota records.
UCLA's Jamie Dantzscher, Utah's Theresa Kulikowski and Alabama's Andree' Pickens are the other three finalists for this award.
About Minnesota
This season has shaped up to be a record-setting year for the Gopher women's gymnastics team. Minnesota finished the season in the top 10 as a team, with two gymnasts being named All-Americans.
Minnesota has set or tied individual records in all events including the all around competition. In team scores, Minnesota tied the school record this season, scoring a 196.850 and set a new team vault score of 49.600.
For the first time in Gopher gymnastics history, two gymnasts earned perfect 10s. Courtney Norman and Carolyn Yernberg (right) re-wrote the Gopher record books with there 10.0 performance on the vault apparatus.
Minnesota made its seventh consecutive appearance to the NCAA Regional competition and finished in second place for the first time since the 1983 season.
The Maroon and Gold finished second at the Big Ten Championships, their highest finish the 1998 season, where Minnesota won the championship. This year, the Gophers had four gymnasts to earn All-Big Ten honors while Annie Laatsch won the individual bars title, becoming the first Gopher to win an event since Cathy Keyser on balance beam in 1998.
The Gophers' talented squad has been equipped with two all around competitors in Big Ten Gymnast of Year MaryAnne Kelley and Mary Skokut. Minnesota's lineup consists of three seniors, three juniors, four sophomores and one newcomer over the four events. The coaching tandem of Jim and Meg Stephenson and Doug Day have anchored accolades also this season.
Jim and Meg Stephenson's combination of knowledge and experience has created a successful coaching team where they were honored as Big Ten Coaches of the Year and Regional Coaches of the Year this season. Day has brought a wealth of knowledge to his position as assistant coach. His coaching prowess led him to be honored as National Assistant Coach of the Year at this year's national championships.
