University of Washington Official Athletic Site - Women's Gymnastics
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Huskies enter meet ranked No. 14.
Jan. 28, 1998
Washington and Oregon State Gymnastics Teams Square Off in Corvallis Seattle, WA The Washington womens gymnastics team (4-0) takes to the road for the second time in three weeks when it meets Oregon State Friday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. PST at Gill Coliseum. The meet will be televised by Fox Sports Northwest (Bob Akamian and Judy Corwin), on a tape delayed basis, at 11 a.m. PST, Jan. 31.
The Meet: Fridays meet will mark the third consecutive week the Huskies have competed against a Pac-10 opponent. It is Washingtons second dual-meet of the season. Last season the Huskies and Beavers met on three occasions. Washington defeated OSU 196.775 to 192.850 in a dual meet Feb. 21. The Huskies overall score stands as the highest in the programs history. Washington placed just ahead of Oregon State at the Pac-10 Championships (third) and the NCAA West Regionals (second). Washington has not placed ahead of the Beavers in Corvallis since 1987 when the Huskies finished first at the Shanico Inn-vitational. Washington also won the event in 1996.
Bringing Out the Best: Washington has posted some of its highest marks ever in competition against the Beavers. Last seasons victory by Washington at Hec Edmundson Pavilion featured the highest team score (196.775) in Husky history. At that same meet Jamie Stauffer turned in the all-time all-around score with a 39.675 performance. In 1996, at the Pac-10 Championships in Corvallis, Klra Kudlkov recorded UWs only 10.00 on vault to win the league title.
Last Week: Washington opened its home season by placing first in a four-way meet at Hec Edmundson Pavilion Jan. 23. The Huskies scored 191.250 to hold off 17th-ranked Utah State (187.125), California (186.650) and Sacramento State (178.825). For the second straight week Tiffany Simpson captured the all-around title, scoring 38.525. She plaed in a tie for first in vault (9.700), parallel bars (9.825) and floor exercise (9.850). Kudlkov tied Simpson in the vault and floor exercise competition. Husky senior Jamie Stauffer equaled Simpson on the bars. Washington completed its sweep of the top two positions in each event with Lauren Riesenman (9.750) and Lanna Apisukhs (9.600) scores on beam.
The Polls: Washington dropped one spot to 14th in this weeks coaches poll after starting the year ranked 9th in the preseason poll. Oregon State is ranked 16th in this weeks poll.
Individual Rankings: Several Huskies are currently ranked among the top-25 in the nation following the first two weeks of competition. Junior Tiffany Simpson is 13th in the all-around with a score of 38.750. Senior Jamie Stauffer is tied for 14th on vault with a 9.775 average while Simpsons 9.825 average on bars has her ranked 23rd nationally. Kudlkov and Simpson are tied for 23rd on floor at 9.800.
Stauffer Slowed: Senior All-American Jamie Stauffer is off to a slow start this season due to a strained achilles tendon. Stauffer, who placed ninth at last years NCAA Championships in the all-around (39.300), was limited to competiting on the parallel bars last week in UWs home opener. That is the only event she is scheduled for this week.
OSU Connections: Washington and Oregon State have some strong coaching connections. Current Beaver head coach Tanya Chaplin is in her first year at OSU after serving the past seven years as an assistant for Bob Levesque at Washington. The Husky coaching staff has featured a former Beaver gymnast the past few season. Linda Pierce, a 91 OSU graduate and four-time letterwinner, was on the UW staff the past two seasons. Joy Selig, a current assistant coach at Denver, was an assistant at Washington from 1993-95.
Scores are Down: The emphasis on tougher scoring has been evident at Washingtons first two meets this season. The Huskies scored 191.525 points vs. Stanford in the season opener and followed that up with 191.250 last week. Last season the Huskies posted scores of at least 191.500 in 16 of 17 events.
Pac-10 Honors: Junior All-American Tiffany Simpson was named the Pac-10 Conferences Gymnast of the Week for Jan. 19. Simpson led the Huskies to a 191.525 to 190.700 victory at Stanford in Washingtons first meet of the 1998 season. Simpson finished first in the all-around (38.975) and placed first in vault (9.800) and beam (9.700).
Next Week: Its more Pac-10 action for the Huskies as Washington travels to Arizona for a meet with California and Illinois-Chicago. The Gym Cats are ranked 19th in this weeks coaches poll.
The Huskies: Washington returns four All-American and seven of its top eight gymnasts from last season. The Huskies are coming off the must successful campaign in school history. Washington placed eighth at the NCAA Championships and second at the NCAA West Regionals. Head coach Bob Levesque was named the 1997 Pac-10 and West Region coach of the year.
Hosting the NCAAs: Washington will serve as the host institution for the 1998 NCAA West Regional Gymnastics Championships April 4 in Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Tickets for the event are on sale now at the Husky Ticket Office in the Graves Building. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for children. All tickets are general admission.
Head Coach Bob Levesque: Washington head coach Bob Levesque is in his eighth year at Washington. Since taking over the Husky program in 1991, Levesque has posted a 74-59 (.556). Last season he was named the Pac-10 Conference and West Regional coach of the year. A 1972 Fresno State graduate, Levesque had coached five gymnasts who have competed in the Olympics.
Televised Events: Two of Washingtons gymnastics meets will be televised by Fox Sports Northwest this season. The Huskies meet at Oregon State on Jan. 30 will be replayed on Jan. 31 at 11 a.m. and Washingtons Feb. 20 home meet with Utah will both be replayed Feb. 21 at 11 a.m. The Pac-10 Championships will air on Fox Sports Net on Sunday, March 29 at 2 p.m.
Washington at Oregon State
Husky Competition Order Vault Season High Career High 1. Jessica Schedler 9.400 9.400 2. Mandi Klug 9.500 5.500 3. Angela Orange 9.550 9.750 4. Amber Erdos 9.550 9.900 5. Klra Kudlkov 9.800 * 10.000 6. Tiffany Simpson 9.800 9.975 Team 48.475 Beam Season High Career High 1. Rhyan Pelander 9.350 9.725 2. Leah Waaramaki 8.975 8.975 3. Lanna Apisukh 9.600 9.600 4. Lauren Riesenman 9.750 9.875 5. Klra Kudlkov 9.125 9.850 6. Tiffany Simpson 9.700 9.925 Team 47.075 Bars Season High Career High 1. Lanna Apisukh 9.450 9.450 2. Lauren Riesenman 9.475 9.800 3. Amber Erdos 9.500 9.900 4. Jamie Stauffer 9.825 9.900 5. Tiffany Simpson 9.825 9.925 6. Klra Kudlkov 9.500 9.850 Team 47.875 Floor Season High Career High 1. Rhyan Pelander 9.350 9.775 2. Leah Waaramaki 9.575 9.400 3. Lauren Riesenman 9.825 9.900 4. Lanna Apisukh 9.725 9.725 5. Tiffany Simpson 9.850 * 10.000 6. Klra Kudlkov 9.850 9.950 Team 48.825 All-Around Season High Career High 1. Tiffany Simpson 38.975 39.625 2. Klra Kudlkov 38.000 39.475 Team 191.525 196.775 * School Record
Coaches Poll (Jan. 27) Rank Team 1. Georgia 2. Utah 3. Penn State 4. Alabama 5. Florida 6. Kentucky 7. UCLA 8. West Virginia 9. Michigan 10. Minnesota 11. Ohio State 12. Arizona State 13. Stanford 14. WASHINGTON 15. Illinois 16. Oregon State 17. Michigan State 18. LSU 19. Arizona 20. Iowa State 21. Central Michigan 22. Massachusetts 23. New Hampshire 24. Massachusetts 25. Auburn
