It was a moment that stood still on Saturday night, a moment that produced tears of joy, a moment that saw all the hard work and all the pain finally paid off, a moment that saw dreams come fulfilled and a moment that is sending the DU Pioneers to the NCAA National Championships.

Her toes clinched the light blue mat, her balance slowly came up-right, her hands went to the air to signal the end of her routine and her face showed signs of relief and then the smile slowly came to her face. It was a routine that saved the meet for the Pioneers, a routine that showed progress and strength in the career of junior Courtney Butler and a routine that help the Pioneers defeat Penn State by .05 of a point.

“I think everything made a difference, every tenth, actually without trying to pin-point one athlete, the real thing that made a difference in this meet was Courtney Butler saving that handstand in bars. Had she not done that it would have been over. She really is the one that got us to nationals to be honest with you, it was a team effort and you don’t want to take anything away from the team, but Courtney Butler two years ago would not have fought that hard for a handstand, she did a fantastic job,” said Head Coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart.

It was a job that is sending DU to its second National Championship appearance and first in six years.

Saturday night featured pain as Georgia senior Ashley Kuppets tore her Achilles tendon during practice on the floor exercise. The injury left her in tears and completed her four year career at Georgia as she will be out for the remainder of the season.

Saturday night featured nerves as every athlete approached their event knowing that every move they make could help lead their team to the NCAA Nationals. Nerves that Penn State fully felt as they watched DU sophomore Nikki Brown perform the final event of the evening on beam, knowing that they and the Pioneers were just tenths of a point apart.

Saturday night featured disappointment as Penn State lost yet another heart-breaking meet, this time by .05 points to DU. Just two weeks earlier they had lost the Big Ten Championships by .1.

Saturday night featured overwhelming joy not just by DU, but by Iowa junior Katie Burke who jumped out of the gym when she heard she was advancing as an individual to Salt Lake City.

Saturday night featured routines by the University of Georgia who have now qualified for 25 consecutive appearances in the NCAA National Championship’s.

Saturday night featured challenges, whether it was Butler holding her stance on her landing or sophomore Nikki Brown saving her fall on beam.

“Gymnastics is hard, it is always a challenge, there are always ups and downs, you can never take anything for granted,” said Georgia Head Coach Suzanne Yoculan.

Saturday night featured a night where goals where meet not just by individuals, but by teams and programs.

“The last several years here we have been genuinely at that level where we should be competing for a consistent spot at nationals, so now I feel like this is legitimate and this is exactly where we should be,” said Kutcher-Rinehart.

Most of all Saturday night was about gymnastics and about every gymnast putting everything they had on the floor and helping their teams do well.

They help their teams reach the ultimate platform of NCAA Nationals and shine in the bright lights in Salt Lake City.

“You look at Denver and you say we need to appreciate what we did today and not take anything for granted. There are so many teams out there that just wish they could go to nationals,” said Yoculan about Georgia’s performance.

As Kutcher-Rinehart sat at the podium late Saturday night and her gymnasts were celebrating on the floor below she wanted to make one point very clear.

“We are actually not going to nationals just to be there, we are going to compete and compete hard.”

Compete hard they will need to do as they go in with the lowest average score of the 12 teams, and having already defeated one of those competitors this season, UCLA. The Pioneers will also look to improve on their last and only trip to NCAA Nationals where they finished 12th.

Now that DU has gotten over the hump in terms of advancing, they look to make it a regular thing.

“I feel like now we are never going to look back, I want to thank everybody on this team that now that monkey is off our back as far as making it to nationals,” said Kutcher-Rinehart.

As the sparkles flew into the air and the streamers fell to the mats, tears fell as they could finally say, “we are going to Utah!”