University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Take Weekend Road Trip to Iowa and Iowa State
2/26/2008 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
The Gophers hit the road for the Iowa tour. Minnesota will compete at Iowa on Friday, Feb. 29 at 7 p.m., followed by a Sunday meet at Iowa State on March 2 at 2 p.m.
Live scoring for the Iowa meet will be available on the Hawkeyes’ website at www.hawkeyesports.com. Live scoring for the competition at Iowa State will be available at the Cyclones’ website, www.cyclones.com. A live webcast will also be available, and will be shown on simultaneously on both the Cyclones’ website and the Gophers’ website at www.gophersports.com.
Coming Up Next Week: North Carolina
The Gophers return home to host North Carolina on Friday, March 7 at 6 p.m. The meet is Minnesota’s only home meet this season on a Friday evening.
National Rankings
Minnesota dropped two spots to No. 27 in the GymInfo National Rankings this week with an RQS of 193.545. The Gophers are ranked No. 41 on vault, No. 20 on bars, No. 22 on beam, and No. 33 on floor.
This week’s opponents, Iowa and Iowa State, are ranked No. 23 and No. 30 respectively.
The Big Ten Conference is a powerhouse in women’s gymnastics again this season. All seven Big Ten teams are ranked among the top 30 this week, with Michigan leading the way at No. 4. Michigan State is No. 19, Penn State is ranked No. 20, Ohio State is No. 22, Iowa is No. 23, Illinois is No. 25, and Minnesota rounds out the conference at No. 27.
Explaining the Regional Qualifying Score
Starting this week, teams are ranked by Regional Qualifying Score (RQS). A team’s RQS is calculated by taking the top six scores of the season, of which at least three must be from away meets. Of those six scores, the top one is dropped and the remaining five scores are averaged. The result is an RQS.
The NCAA uses Regional Qualifying Scores to determine which 36 teams qualify for an NCAA Regional Championship. The top 18 teams are seeded into the six regional competition sites, with three of the top 18 going to each site. The next three highest-ranked teams in each region fill out each regional field.
Leading the Way
Carmelina Carabajal owns or is tied for the team’s top score in all four events plus the all around this season. She’s tied with Jamie Bullock for the best vault score (9.825), is tied with Kristin Furukawa for the best bars score (9.875), owns the top beam score (9.925), and is tied with Amanda Miles for the top floor score (9.850). She also leads the way in the all around with a best score of 39.300.
Carabajal has the team’s best average score on vault (9.746), and beam (9.796). She has the best floor average among gymnasts who have competed on floor in all seven meets (9.785).
In the national rankings, Carabajal is ranked No. 16 in the nation in the all around with an RQS of 39.060. She’s also listed at No. 35 (tie) on balance beam with an RQS of 9.795, is tied for No. 55 on floor with an RQS of 9.785, and is No. 76 on bars with an RQS of 9.750.
Winning Ways
At two meets this season, Carmelina Carabajal has won three event titles plus the all around. At the Best of Minnesota Meet on Feb. 9, she won on vault, bars, beam, and in the all around. Last weekend against Illinois-Chicago, she won on floor, beam, floor and the all around.
Carabajal has won 13 event titles this season, including four on beam, three on vault, two on bars bars, one on floor, and three in the all around.
One for the History Books
Carmelina Carabajal’s score of 9.925 on beam against UIC was the best individual score in by a Gopher gymnast in any event in more than three years. The last time a Minnesota gymnast scored 9.925 or better was on Jan. 8, 2005, when Carolyn Yernberg earned a 9.975 on floor.
Carabajal’s all around score of 39.300 last Saturday puts her in a tie with Judy Cavazos for fifth place on Minnesota’s all-time top performers list.
Stanton Strong on Beam
Senior Ashley Stanton has placed among the top three on beam in six of seven meets this season, including wins in two meets. She has led the team on beam at three meets.
Against Illinois-Chicago last weekend, she matched her career-best beam score with a 9.900 to place second in the event. In the GymInfo National Rankings this week, Stanton is tied for No. 43 on beam with an RQS of 9.785.
Freshmen Bolster Bars Line Up
Minnesota regularly competes with three freshman in the bars line up, and the results have been impressive this season. The Gophers tallied a 49.075 on bars last Saturday, the best bars score since the 2006 season. The Gophers also scored a 49.075 on Feb. 4, 2006 at New Hampshire. While the Gophers never scored over 49 on bars last season, they have surpassed the 49 mark twice so far this season.
Freshman Yuri Nagai posted a 9.825 on bars at the Best of Minnesota meet, a personal best. She followed up with scores of 9.800 at Michigan (2/15) and against Illinois-Chicago (2/23). Her average bars score for the year is 9.763, and is the best on the team.
Kristin Furukawa has competed on bars at all seven meets this year, and tallied her best score (9.875) against UIC last weekend. She is tied with Carmelina Carabajal for the team’s top bars score this year.
Kendra Elm was the Gophers’ top performer on bars at the season opener in Cancun. She has earned scores of 9.800 or better twice, including her best mark of 9.825 at the Best of Minnesota Meet (2/9).
Russell is Back
Sophomore Alexis Russell injured her right knee competing on vault in the meet against New Hampshire on Jan. 19. She returned to competition last weekend in the meet against Illinois-Chicago, competing in every event.
In her return to competition, Russell set a personal-best with a 9.825 on bars, and matched her career-high floor score with a 9.825.
Miles to Return this Weekend
Senior captain Amanda Miles did not compete last weekend due to a foot injury, but will return to the line up this weekend at Iowa and Iowa State.
The Opponent: Iowa
The Hawkeyes are currently ranked No. 23, and are coming off a loss to Iowa State on Feb. 22 and an upset win over Michigan State and Illinois on Feb. 24.
Iowa pulled an upset over No. 19 Michigan State and No. 21 Illinois with a score of 195.575 last Sunday. The score was a high the Hawkeyes had not seen since 2005. Iowa earned season-best team scores on bars and beam and Jenifer Simbhudas placed first in the all-around with a 39.275.
Minnesota and Iowa last met at the 2007 Big Ten Championships, held at Penn State. The Gophers finished fifth with a score of 193.225, while the Hawkeyes came in sixth with a 192.750.
The last regular-season meeting between the teams was a tri-meet with Iowa State in Iowa City on March 4, 2007. Minnesota finished first with a score of 195.350, while Iowa was third with a 194.275.
The Opponent: Iowa State
The Cyclones are ranked No. 30 this week, and earned their first win of the 2008 season last weekend. The Iowa State team beat in-state rival Iowa, 195.125-193.800 last Friday night. ISU’s score was their best output of the season, beating the previous best of 194.550 set on Feb. 10, against Stanford.
Sunday’s competition against ISU will be the second meeting of the two teams this season. In the earlier meeting, the Golden Gophers won against Iowa State with a score of 193.775. Carmelina Carabajal tallied an all around score of 39.100, with then-career-high scores of 9.800 on bars and 9.875 on beam.
The Gophers: Breakdown by Event
Vault: Carmelina Carabajal owns three of the team’s top five vault scores this season, and has two event titles to her name this season. Carabajal has been the team’s top performer on vault at six of seven competitions this season, and has the team’s best average score on vault with a 9.746. Jamie Bullock notched her personal-best vault score with a 9.825 at the Best of Minnesota (2/9), and has two of the team’s top five scores this year. At Michigan (2/16), Jade Beattie was the Gophers’ top performer on vault, matching her season-best score with a 9.725. Minnesota’s top vault score is a 48.650, earned in the meet at Utah (2/1).
Bars: Freshman Kristin Furukawa was the winner on bars against Illinois-Chicago last weekend with a 9.875. Furukawa is now tied with Carmelina Carabajal for the team’s top bars score this season. Carabajal earned her career-best 9.875 at the Best of Minnesota (2/9). Yuri Nagai was inserted into the bars line up in the New Hampshire meet, taking the place of the injured Alexis Russell, and has had great results since entering the line up in the second meet of the season. Nagai had the team’s best bars score against New Hampshire, a 9.650 to place second overall. Nagai set her personal best with a 9.825 at the Best of Minnesota, and followed with scores of 9.800 at Michigan (2/16) and against UIC (2/23). Nagai has the team’s best average score on bars with an average of 9.763. Minnesota’s top team score on bars is a 49.075 and came in the dual meet with Illinois-Chicago (2/23). Minnesota’s highest event ranking is the team’s No. 20 national ranking on bars.
Beam: Carmelina Carabajal owns the team’s top beam score this year, a 9.925 earned against UIC last Saturday. Carabajal has the team’s best average beam score, a 9.796. Carabajal tallied a 9.875 against Iowa State (1/26), giving her two of the team’s top five scores of the year. Ashley Stanton also owns two of the team’s top five scores on beam, with her best score (9.900) coming in the meet against UIC (2/23). Stanton also notched an event-winning 9.875 at Michigan (2/16). As a team, Minnesota’s top team score is a 49.175, scored against UIC (2/23). Angela Walker matched her career-high score on beam with a 9.875 against UIC. Minnesota’s highest event ranking is the team’s No. 17 national ranking on beam.
Floor: Amanda Miles owns two of the top five scores on floor this season, both marks of 9.850. Carmelina Carabajal matched Miles’ score when she earned a 9.850 against Illinois-Chicago last weekend. Carabajal has an average floor score of 9.785, best among regular floor competitors this season. Alexis Russell has competed on floor twice this year, and matched her career-high floor score of 9.825 against UIC (2/23). Russell has the team’s best average floor score with a 9.787. Against Iowa State on Jan. 26, Angela Walker was the team’s top performer with a 9.825, which tied her career-best score. Walker also led the team at the Best of Minnesota meet with a score of 9.800. Minnesota tallied its best team score on floor (48.625) against Iowa State (1/26).
Coaching the Gophers
Jim and Meg Stephenson are in their 16th season at the helm of the Golden Gopher program. Jim served as the head coach while Meg was an assistant until 1998, when Meg joined Jim as a co-head coach. The duo has a 153-122-1 record as co-head coaches.
Looking Ahead: Gophers to Host NCAA North Central Region Championship
The University of Minnesota has been selected to host the 2008 NCAA North Central Region Championship. The championship will be held at the Sports Pavilion on April 12 at 6 p.m., and will feature six teams from around the country. If the Golden Gophers are selected to compete in a regional championship, they will compete at home in the Sports Pavilion.
Tickets are available and may be ordered online at www.gophersports.com, or by calling the athletics ticket office at 612-624-8080 or toll free at 1-800-U-GOPHER. All seats are reserved, so fans are encouraged to order tickets early to get the best seats!
The University of Minnesota is one of six institutions to host a regional championship in 2008. The other five sites and host institutions are: Baton Rouge, La. (Louisiana State University), University Park, Pa. (Penn State University), Norman, Okla. (University of Oklahoma), Gainesville, Fla. (University of Florida), and Corvallis, Ore. (Oregon State University).
Two teams from each regional championship will advance to the NCAA National Championship, which will be hosted by the University of Georgia on April 24-26, 2008.
Players Mentioned
