University of Washington Official Athletic Site - Women's Gymnastics
Huskies Vie for NCAA Championship Spot in Six-Team Meet in Corvallis
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March 29, 2000
Seattle - For the 19th consecutive season, the Washington women's gymnastics team (9-8) will participate in the NCAA Regional Championships. The Huskies will travel to Corvallis, Ore. to compete in the six-team championship on Saturday, April 1 at 6 p.m. at Oregon State's Gill Coliseum. Each of the regional sites features two top-12 ranked teams and four teams from within the region. The top two teams at each regional site will advance to the NCAA Championships, set for April 13-15 at Boise State. Tickets for the meet can be purchased by calling the Oregon State ticket office at 1-800-GO-BEAVS. Reserved seats are 15 dollars, while general admission tickets are available for eight dollars.
The Regional Field: The six-team West Regional field is one of the strongest in this year's event. It features second-ranked UCLA, the Pac-10 champions, No. 10 Oklahoma, No. 15 Stanford, No. 18 Washington, No. 20 Oregon State and Boise State. The Huskies competed against every team in the field this year except for Oklahoma. This year the Huskies finished second in dual meets with Oregon State and Stanford, finished second behind UCLA in a four-way meet at UW and beat Boise State in a dual meet on the road. The Huskies placed third at the Pac-10 Championships behind UCLA and Oregon State, but ahead of Stanford.
Bob Levesque on the Regional: "We have our work cut out for us. Our team has been to Corvallis several times the past two seasons, so our gymnasts will be very comfortable in the setting. This is certainly going to be a tough regional. I think there are a few other teams who have more pressure and higher expectations placed on them at this regional. Not too many people expect us to reach the NCAA finals, so there is probably less pressure on us. But, do I think we can advance? If we hit our routines, we certainly have the ability to move on. I'm excited to see how Tiffany Simpson will compete. She has really come on strong the second half of the season."
UW's Rotation Order: The Huskies will start the regional meet on bars, followed by beam before getting a bye in the rotation order. The Huskies then move to floor and vault and have a bye in the final round of the rotation. Rotation order was selected by a random draw.
Last Year at the Regional: Washington placed fourth at the 1999 NCAA Regional in Corvallis. UCLA won the event with a score of 197.025 while the Huskies posted a score of 193.425. Two Washington gymnasts, Lanna Apisukh (39.025) and Lauren Riesenman (38.925), placed eighth and ninth, respectively, in the all-around competition and qualified for the NCAA Championship as at-large competitors. In 1998 the Huskies won the regional championship in Seattle. Current UW senior Tiffany Simpson, who did not compete last year due to an injury, tied for the all-around title with teammata Klara Kudilkova.
Huskies Stand 18th in Poll: Washington entered the 2000 season ranked 19th in the Preseason Coaches Poll. This week the Huskies occupy the No. 18 position (http://www.troester.com/gym). The Huskies moved up two spots after holding down the No. 20 ranking last week. Washington is nationally ranked in all four events. The Huskies figure 22nd in floor exercise (49.020 RQS), 17th in balance beam (48.710 RQS), 21st in bars (48.950 RQS) and 20th in vault (48.745 RQS). Washington senior Tiffany Simpson is ranked 10th among all-around competitors (39.390). She is ranked 20th in the balance beam standings (9.870 RQS). Husky junior Lanna is ranked 25th in the all-around (39.230). A total of five Pac-10 teams are currently ranked among the top 25 teams in the country. That group included UCLA (2nd), Stanford (15th), Arizona State (17th), Washington (18th) and Oregon State (20th).
Simpson Leads the Dawgs: Thanks to a slow start while recovering from surgery last season, Husky senior all-arounder Tiffany Simpson was not even ranked among the nation's top 25 performers at the beginning of the year. This week Simpson figures 10th in the standings. During the second half of the 2000 season, Simpson has showed the form that made her a six-time All-American. She won three straight all-around competition, equaling her career high (39.650) in the process. Her performance in the Dodge Shootout vs. UCLA, Alaska and Sacramento State, featured wins on floor exercise (10.000), bars (9.900 and beam (9.950). It was the final home meet of her career. At Utah, she posted a 39.350 in the all-around and tied for first on bean, Earlier this year, at Arizona, she won the all-around with a score of 39.475. She recorded then season-high marks on vault, bars, beam and the all-around. In addition to her all-around win, she also placed first on vault (9.875) and beam (9.925). In a three-way meet with Arizona State and Seattle Pacific, she won the all-around, scoring 39.325. During her last five competitions she has finished first in 10 events. Simpson returned to the Husky lineup this season after missing all but the opening meet in 1999 due to a stress fracture in her right leg. The 2000 season is her fifth year competing for Washington. She is the school record holder on floor exercise (10.000) and beam (9.975). Simpson has completed her undergraduate degree requirements and is currently pursing a graduate degree in education. Due to her grad school workload, and student teaching responsibilities, she cannot work out with her teammates at 8 a.m. Instead, she meets coach Bob Levesque at 3 p.m. for a solo training session.. In Washington's first two meets this season she posted back-to-back fourth place finishes in the all-around. She scored a 38.550 in the opener vs. California and followed that up with a 37.825 performance at Oregon State. Against Stanford, she began to show her old form, placing second in the all-around with a score of 39.400.
Simpson Tabbed for Pac-10 Honors: Husky senior Tiffany Simpson was named the Pac-10 Gymnast of the week on Feb. 29. Simpson won the honor on the strength of her performance in the Dodge Showdown, where she won three events, tied a school record on floor (10.000) and equaled her own career best mark in the all-around.
Apisukh Continues Big Scoring: Washington junior Lanna Apisukh had another strong showing during the 2000 season. She has won the all-around in three meets this year and scored above 39.000 in the all-around in five of the Huskies' nine meets. In Washington's final home meet of the season, she recorded her best score of the year with a 39.350 in the all-around. That score included season-high marks on beam (9.875) and floor (9.925). Apisukh won the all-around vs. California with a score of 39.125 and followed that up with the top score in a dual meet with Oregon State (38.800) to take home top honors. Against Boise State, she captured top honors with a score of 39.300, her highest mark of the season. Apisukh tied her career high in that meet with a 9.900 score on the vault. She is currently ranked 25th in the nation in the all-around with an RQS of 39.230.
Riesenman Sets Mark: Twice this season Washington senior Lauren Riesenman has bettered her career best mark in the all-around. In a meet at Boise State, Riesenman scored a 39.200 in the all-around to finish second to teammate Lanna Apisukh. Her previous best all-around score was a 39.175 against Oregon State in 1999. At the Dodge Showdown, she raised that mark with a score of 39.325. Her performances included a season high score of 9.950 on floor exercise.
Bruce Provides Balance: Washington sophomore Allison Bruce has been a nice addition to Washington's lineup in 2000. Last week, at Georgia, she posted scores of 9.700 (vault), 9.825 (beam) and 9.750 (floor) to record her highest combined point total (29.275) of the season. Her beam score was a career high. In addition to steadily raising her scores in all three events this year, she has set career best marks on vault (9.725) and floor (9.800).
Levesque Records 100: Washington coach Bob recorded his 100th career victory when the Huskies opened meet this season against California. He currently owns a 108-85 record with all of those results coming during his 10-year tenure with Washington. Levesque was named the Pac-10 and West Region coach of the year in both 1997 and 1998. He is the first UW coach to lead the Huskies to back-to-back NCAA appearances (1997 & '98). In seven of his nine years at Washington, Levesque has seen at least one Husky gymnast compete at the NCAA championships.
Lee Joins Staff: Washington added another full-time member to its coaching staff this season. Frank Lee joins Danna Durante as an assistant coach on the Husky staff. Lee is no stranger to the University or the Seattle area. Lee is the owner and head coach of the Cascade Elite Gymnastics Club in Montlake Terrace. He has operated the highly-successful club since he graduated from Washington in 1989. As an undergraduate, Lee competed for the Husky men's gymnastics team.
The Home Story: Washington saw very limited meet action at home this year. The Huskies' Feb. 27 meet was the final home competition for the 2000 season. Due to the current renovation that is taking place in Hec Edmundson Pavilion. All three home meets this year were held in the Pavilion Addition, located on the north side of the Pavilion. With a seating capacity of just 600, it provided a lively atmosphere for this year's meet. The Huskies will return to Bank America Arena for the 2001 season. When the building reopens, the Huskies will have a more intimate competition setting in the arena's new bowl configuration. Washington will also return to a newly renovated workout facility on the south side of the building.
Last Year: After posting back-to-back appearances at the NCAA Championships in 1997 and 1998, the Huskies stumbled to a 12-11 record and a disappointing fourth place finish at the NCAA Regional meet. Without Tiffany Simpson in the lineup, the Huskies were without their top all-around competitor for the season. Still, there were bright spots. Sophomore Lanna Apisukh stepped up and won the all-around competition in four meets and turned in the top three all-around scores for the season for the Huskies. The Huskies set a new school record on bars when they recorded a score of 49.400 in a dual-meet victory against Oregon State. Both Apisukh and junior Lauren Riesenman qualified for the NCAA Championships in the all-around competition and both finished 13th in their respective session.
Poll Information: Here's a look at this week's rankings: National Gymnastics Rankings (Score by RQS as of March 21)
1. Michigan 197.225 2. UCLA 197.015 3. Georgia 196.965 4. Utah 196.705 5. Nebraska 196.675 6. Alabama 196.670 7. LSU 196.390 8. Iowa State 196.195 9. West Virginia 195.710 10. Oklahoma 195.615 11. BYU 195.585 12. Florida 195.485 13. North Carolina St 195.465 14. Penn State 195.415 15. Stanford 195.405 16. Minnesota 195.400 17. Arizona State 195.280 18. Washington 195.235 19. Denver 195.230 20. Oregon State 195.205 21. Maryland 195.170 22. Central Michigan 195.005 23. Towson State 194.965 24. Utah State 194.940 25. Kent State 194.895
