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Life > Athletics > Gymnastics > April 16
FUENTES LEADS TWU AS BARS CO-CHAMPION
 ITHACA , N.Y. – In the individual event finals at the USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships, freshman Brisa Fuentes was the co-champion on the uneven bars to lead Texas Woman’s University.
Four of the five Pioneers were making their first appearance in the individual finals. Senior Jessica Brozovich competed on the vault for the third time in four years. Courtney Arno (uneven bars and balance beam), Thecla Gavin (floor exercise), Brittany Abney (floor) and Fuentes (bars) earned their first USAG All-American honors and a spot in the finals.
“To be represented on every event in the finals was an honor,” head coach Frank Kudlac said. “We had a co-National Champion in Brisa. She is a local girl who attended the Achiever’s Gymnastics Center in Denton . It is very special to me after watching her grow up and a dream come true that she is at TWU.”
The meet was a combination of the men and women event finals. On the ladies side, they competed in Olympic order competing on the vault twice. The men staggered their six events into the four rotations.
On the vault, Brozovich posted a 9.350 on her first attempt and a 9.575 on her second. The average of those, 9.4625, earned her sixth place honors.
 Arno and Fuentes represented the Pioneers on the bars. Fuentes, a freshman, had another strong showing on the bars to share first place honors with a score of 9.750. Arno posted a 9.700 for third place accolades in the first of her two events.
“Courtney was third on bars and what I considered one of the top two finishers. It was and always is a tough competition,” Kudlac added. “You have to be at your very best to compete three days in a row.”
“I give the credit to consistent bar practices and lots of prayer,” Fuentes said. “USAG’s were fun. I loved having my team behind me. I felt some pressure but my teammates gave me confidence and made it easy.”
In the third rotation, Arno competed on the beam. The sophomore finished seventh with a 9.475 mark.
 The meet concluded on the floor. Abney placed sixth for TWU with a score of 9.700. Gavin was ninth with an 8.900 mark.
“I am proud of Thecla because she put in a new element for this meet. She just over rotated and went out of bounds but it is special that she attempted it,” Kudlac said.
After the competition, assistant coach Jackie Fain was named the USAG Assistant Coach of the Year. In addition, Arno was the Mary Rae Soper Award recipient which is presented to the female gymnast in recognition of their passion, dedication and devotion to the spirit of gymnastics.
“Jackie and Courtney are very deserving of the USAG awards. Jackie has won the award twice in the past three years. She is a rock in our program and someone the girls respect, I certainly do,” Kudlac stated. “Each coach was asked to nominate a gymnast for the Soper Award and I could only think of one person, Courtney. She has the desire and dedication for gymnastics after adversity with her knee injury and at Utah State .”
The Pioneers bring the 2005 season to a close with runner-up finishes at the Midwest Independent Conference and USAG Championships.
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Photo: Stew Milne
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