University of Minnesota Athletics
WGYM: Two Gopher Gymnasts Win Titles at Big Ten Championships
3/26/2005 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
Minnesota had more than one individual event champion for the first time since the 1991 season, as freshman Ashley Mutchler tied for first on the vault, and senior Carolyn Yernberg tied for first on the floor. Mutchler is the first Gopher freshman to win a Big Ten title since Jessica Wolf won the Big Ten vault title as a freshman in 1991.
The Golden Gophers started the meet on the balance beam, and were led by freshmen Ashley Stanton and Ashley Mutchler, who each earned a score of 9.775 to tie for 10th place. The team score for Minnesota on the beam was 48.525. The event champion was Kristal Uzelac of Penn State, who scored a 9.925.
The floor exercise was the second event of the evening for Minnesota. The Gophers earned a team score of 48.925. Minnesota's top finisher was Carolyn Yernberg, who earned a 9.850 to tie for first place with Michigan's Becca Clauson. Also in the top 10 for Minnesota on the floor was Laura Johnson, who finished in a tie for eighth place with a 9.800.
The Gophers scored a season-best 49.125 on the vault in their third event of the competition. Ashley Mutchler was the top scorer for Minnesota, earning a career-best 9.900 to tie for first place. Also scoring a 9.900 were Michigan's Katie Lieberman and Jenny Deiley. Minnesota's other top-10 finishers on the vault were Carolyn Yernberg, who tallied a 9.875 to tie for fourth, and Laura Johnson who posted a 9.850 to tie for sixth.
Minnesota's last event was the uneven bars, where the Gophers scored a 48.800. Laura Johnson was the top scorer for Minnesota, tying for fourth place with a score of 9.850. Stephanie Funk was the other Minnesota gymnast in the top 10, earning a 9.825 to tie for ninth place. Penn State's Kristal Uzelac was the event winner, earning her second event title of the meet with a 9.950.
In the all around, Minnesota's Laura Johnson finished fifth with a total score of 39.125. Michigan's Elise Ray was the all around winner, scoring a 39.500.
Two Minnesota gymnasts earned first-team All-Big Ten honors, announced at the championship banquet. Laura Johnson was a first-team honoree for the second-consecutive season, and made her third appearance on the all-conference list. Carolyn Yernberg was honored on the first team for the first time in her career after being a second-team All-Big Ten honoree in her sophomore and junior seasons.
Minnesota will next be in action on April 9 when they head to the NCAA Regional Championship.
