March 1, 2013
What's Up:
No. 15 Arizona gymnastics weclomes in-state rival Arizona State for a chance at a point in the Territorial Cup. Fans are encouraged to "red out" McKale, rocking the color red to support the Wildcats. Routines will begin promptly at 3:00p.m. this Saturday, March 2.
This meet is the first ever competition to be featured as a live event on the Pac-12 Network. As such, a live web stream will be available at http://video.pac-12.com with a login from your local television provider and meet action can be viewed on television. Live stats will also be available the day of the meet.
Territorial Cup Standings:
Arizona State currently leads Arizona 5.5 points to 2 in the annual battle for the Territorial Cup. Because the two gymnastics teams face off against each other in a dual meet and again at the Pac-12 Championships the teams will have two chances to contribute towards this total - each opportunity will reward the victorious team with 0.5 points.
From a gymnastics standpoint, Arizona State leads the overall series 30-11-1 since 1977. That being said, the Wildcats have defeated the Sun Devils for the past six consecutive years, overcoming a hiccup 2nd place finish in Tempe in last season by defeating Arizona State 195.900 - 195.500 in a re-match in Tucson that same year.
Scouting the Opposition:
Arizona State: The Gym Devils took second in last week's conference meet against Washington 195.500-196.000. Despite the loss, ASU swept the podium with first place finishes on all four events. Sun Devils to watch out for include sophomores Brianna Gades and Natasha Sundby, and freshmen Stephanie Micelli and Carissa Kraus. Gades posted two new career high scores in last week's meet, earning first place on bars with a 9.875 and second place on floor with a 9.875. On beam, Micelli earned a new career high 9.875 for the event title. Sundby tied her career high floor score of 9.900 to win the event, and Kraus earned her firs t event title with a career best 9.850 on vault.
Full Recap
Last Week:
Missing senior Molly Quirk from the lineup as well as full strength from regular all-arounders Jordan Williams and Allison Flores, the Wildcats had a difficult week in Corvallis, taking second place with a score of 194.900. The Beavers won the meet with a 196.925, and Seattle Pacific placed third with a 191.400.
Despite the difficulties, there were a number of highlights throughout the meet:
Williams was able to contribute for a third place finish with a 9.850 on bars and freshman Lexi Mills earned a new career high 9.825 on the event. Sophomore Kristin Klarenbach took third place on floor with a 9.875, and senior Aubree Cristello tied for second place on vault with a 9.900.
Full Recap
In the Rankings:
Now into rankings by RQS, Arizona holds steady at No. 15 with a 195.640. Consistent with last week, the Wildcats hold the No. 5 spot in the Pac-12 conference behind No. 6 UCLA, No. 8 Utah, No. 9 Oregon State, and No. 12 Stanford.
Holding a number of event rankings, the team is currently No. 18 on vault (up seven spots from last week), No. 15 on bars (up two spots from last week), No. 19 on beam, and No. 9 on floor.
Individually Cristello and Klarenbach are making their mark in the rankings: the senior is currently No. 13 in the all-around, and the sophomore holds a No. 22 spot on floor.
Full Rankings
Look Out for New GymCats:
Arizona added a number of new faces this season, including Shelby Edwards out of San Tan Valley, Ariz., Lexi Mills hailing from Frisco, Texas, Sloughouse California native Jessie Sisler, and Krishna Yemany from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. All of these gymnasts were top J.O. or Canadian Elite competitors and should make a dent in the lineups this season.
Pre-season Rankings:
The Arizona gymnastics team heads into the season ranked No. 19 in the 2013 Women's Pre-Season Coaches poll. The Wildcats are one of six Pac-12 schools to place within the top 25, including No. 2 UCLA, No. 5 Utah, No. 6 Stanford, No. 9 Oregon State and No. 17 Washington.
Stacked to the Max:
The Arizona gymnastics team is going to complete an extremely difficult season in 2013. Of the 12 regular season meets and 20 regular season opponents, the Cats will face 11 ranked teams during eight meets (six of which within the top 10). Those opponents include No. 2 UCLA, No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 5 Utah, No. 6 Stanford, No. 7 Nebraska, No. 9 Oregon State, No. 13 Auburn, No. 17 Washington, No. 18 Illinois, No. 21 Missouri, and No. 25 Kentucky.
Ryden's Record:
Head Coach Bill Ryden bolsters an overall record of 204-193-3 after the second place finish in Corvallis.
What's Coming Up:
Arizona heads to Norman, Okla. for a dual meet against the University of Oklahoma. The team will take on the Sooners on March 8 at 7:00p.m. CT (6:00p.m. MST).
