Photo by: Jacob Rokeach
In a season with a rocky start, the 14th-ranked DU women’s gymnastics team ended the regular season on a high note last Monday in a dominating 196.525 to 187.250 victory against in-state foe Air Force.
The 196.525 score was the highest score on the road this season and second highest on the season following a 197.00 at home against Northern Illinois.
“I think it was a great meet. We are just coming together as a team. We are focusing on the small things and I think we are doing it more together than individual,” said senior Gretchen Goerlitz.
The Pioneers started the season with a fifth-place finish at the Super Six Challenge in Arkansas, where they had too many falls and were just starting to get their feet underneath them. Last Monday was a different scenario, as numerous school and personal-best records were broken and DU gained momentum heading into the regional that DU will host April 14.
“This is by far the best away meets we have had in a season and they have done a tremendous job on the road. I think they have passion they have heart and hopefully that can just continue going into regionals,” said Head Coach Melissa Kutcher.
The gymnasts recorded their best vault score of the season and second-best ever in school history with a 49.400 led by junior Courtney Butler and senior Heather Huffaker, both of whom received 9.95. Butler received a rare 10.0 from one judge, while senior Casey Dobyns recorded a 9.9 and junior Sasha Sullivan marked a 9.825 on vault to help the Pioneers.
On the uneven bars, Denver posted a team score of 48.975 led by sophomore Jessica Lopez who won her seventh event title of the season with a 9.875, followed by Butler with a 9.85.
The Pioneers had a solid performance on the balance beam, considered one of the more difficult events, by scoring 49.225. Sophomore Ellen McCarthy put in a flawless routine and was rewarded with a personal-best score of 9.925 and her first career event title. In second place, sophomore Nikki Brown posted a 9.875, followed by Sullivan with a 9.85, Huffaker with a 9.8 and freshman Kelley Hennigan with a 9.775.
To round out the competition, DU posted a 48.925 team score on the floor event led by Huffaker’s 9.875 and senior Katie Andrews’ 9.85.
Also on the all-around scores Sullivan won her second title of the season with a career-best score of 39.2 and Huffaker followed close behind with a 38.9.
Denver finishes the season with a 14-7 record and currently a no. 14 ranking.
“No one can fault these athletes. They have worked tremendously hard. The time, effort, sweats and tears in the gym everyday paid off and that takes a lot of effort, especially when you are going through finals. I am really proud of how they have overcome all of the obstacles,” said Kutcher.
“I think it has been a great season. We have improved every meet on an upward progression. There were a couple meets that probably did not need to happen but we learned from them,” said Goerlitz.
Denver will now begin training for the regional, which will take place at 7 p.m. on April 14 at Magness Arena. Along with Denver the regional will include No. 2 ranked Georgia, No. 11 Penn State, No. 23 BYU, No. 25 Minnesota and Utah State along with individuals from Iowa and Southern Utah. The training will include an intra-squad meet this weekend and usual practice throughout the week.
“The next two weeks going into regionals we will probably do a lot of pre-meet preparation in terms of very structured practices, intra-squad meets, line-ups and events and putting them under pressure,” said Kutcher.
Goerlitz said, “We are going to go back in the gym, be intense and get a lot of work in. Focus on the little things and taper up by the time we get out there and we are going to be fresh and we are going to hit it for regionals.” Come out and support your DU gymnasts on April 14!
