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PIONEERS START STRONG AT CANCUN CLASSIC
NCAA ScoreSheet
Event Winner Sheet
 CANCUN, Mexico (January 4) - The 2008 Texas Woman’s University gymnastics team recorded an impressive 190.900 team score in their season opening quad meet at the Cancun Classic in Cancun, Mexico.
The Pioneers’ team total marked their highest team score to start a season in the 30 year history of the TWU gymnastics program.
“This team performed phenomenally well today,” said TWU head coach Frank Kudlac. “Our routines were crisp on every event. We only counted one fall (on bars) the entire meet. To execute at such a high-level in our first meet of the season is quite an accomplishment.”
The Pioneers’ score placed them fourth in the meet behind three nationally acclaimed NCAA Division I opponents. The LSU Tigers won the meet with a score of 195.725. Denver University placed second with a 193.200. The University of Minnesota came in third with a 192.725. LSU (#10), Denver (#15), and Minnesota (#31) all finished very high in the final GymInfo national collegiate gymnastics rankings for 2007.
“The caliber of competition we faced today was extremely difficult,” Kudlac elaborated. “Our girls saw that as a challenge. And, I’ve got to give them all the credit in the world, they stepped up and met that challenge. We hung in there with three of the top teams in the nation and came away with some richly deserved respect.”
The Pioneers got off to a strong start in the meet thanks to their vault team. Five of the six TWU vaulters scored a 9.500 or better, led by freshman Mollie Blessing’s 9.725 vault. As a team, TWU posted a 48.025 vault score.
On bars, the Pioneers scored a 47.075. Another freshman, Jennifer Liberato, paced TWU on the event with a score of 9.650. Senior Courtney Arno-Templet (9.600) and junior Amie Boles (9.575) also did well on the apparatus.
TWU’s top event score of the day, 48.050, came on beam. Arno-Templet, the Pioneers’ beam anchor, delivered a score of 9.750 that kept the team from having to count a fall on the event. Sophomore Alexa Brennan (pictured), who was making her collegiate debut on beam, helped the Pioneers’ cause with a score of 9.625.
Junior Amy Hulbert and her classmate, Amie Boles, led TWU on floor exercise with scores of 9.675 and 9.650 respectively. The Pioneers’ team floor total was a solid 47.750.
Kudlac is confident that his squad can use Friday afternoon’s effort as a springboard for a successful 2008 campaign.
“All of our gymnasts and coaches are very pleased with how we looked today,” he explained. “Our focus the entire preseason was to be stronger at the start of the season. We accomplished that goal with our score this afternoon. Hopefully we can build on this performance as our season goes along.”
The Pioneers will now turn their attention to their 2008 home opener, scheduled for Saturday, January 19, at 7:00 p.m. in Kitty Magee Arena versus the University of Oklahoma Sooners.
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