SALT LAKE CITY- There were the smiles from a goal-setting 10th place finish and the tears from the four seniors whose careers sadly came to an end after leading their team to a historic and record-setting season last Thursday at the NCAA Championships.
In the evening session on Thursday at the Hunstman Center on the campus of the University of Utah, the Pioneers finished in fifth place out of six teams with a score of 195.575. The top three teams, Utah, Stanford and UCLA in the session advanced to the super-six along with Georgia, Florida and Nebraska, held on Friday to determine the national champion. Overall DU finished 10th out of the 12 teams that advanced to the NCAA Championship’s, which is a Denver school record. Going into the event, the Pioneers were ranked 12th out of the 12 teams and defeated Michigan and Oregon State on Thursday.
“We came here to accomplish two goals, top 10 and not count a fall and we did it, so they should be really proud of themselves,” said Head Coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart.
Some teams would be disappointed after a 10th place finish, but not the Pioneers who came into the season wanting to finish a top 10 for the first time in program history and they did exactly that.
“I feel satisfied with my job tonight and I feel really happy for the team, because we got 10th and that was our goal,” said sophomore Jessica Lopez.
After having a bye in the first round, the Pioneers started the evening off on bars and were led by Lopez who recorded a 9.9, sophomore Nikki Brown, who scored a 9.75, junior Courtney Butler had a 9.75 as the team finished with a score of 48.7 on the event.
Next DU competed on beam, where once again Lopez shined with a 9.9 score and was followed by freshman Ellen McCarthy and senior Heather Huffaker, who both recorded a 9.8 and Brown placed a 9.775 as the team finished with a score of 48.975 on the event.
The Pioneers then had another bye and resumed competition on the floor exercise where Lopez once again led the team, this time with a 9.85. Junior Sasha Sullivan followed close behind with a 9.825 and senior Gretchen Goerlitz had a 9.8. Senior Katie Andrews and McCarthy both recorded a 9.725 as DU finished with a 48.925 on the event.
The final event of the evening for Denver was the strongest, the vault. This time senior Casey Dobyns led the way with a 9.875, while Huffaker and Butler finished with a 9.825 and Sullivan and freshman Kelley Henningan had a 9.725 as the team finished with a 48.975 on the event.
Overall, it could not have been a more successful evening for Lopez, who became the first three-time All-American in school history.
“I am very excited about it, because I really feel that I was prepared for this and I just wanted it so badly,” said the Venezuelan native.
Lopez finished tied for first in session II on balance beam and became DU’s first-ever first-team All-American on beam.
Lopez’s 9.85 on the floor exercise was good enough for third place and a second-team All-American bid. Finally she recorded a 9.9 on uneven bars for fifth place and a third-team All-American nod.
“She had an incredible night and honestly Jessica has had a rough year. She hasn’t done everything she was capable of doing, a little rocky on beam throughout the course of the year, so for her to do bars and beam at a national championship the way she wants is fantastic,” said Kutcher-Rinehart.
Lopez became DU’s first first-team All-American since 1984 when Karen Beer achieved the honor. Also she was the lone Pioneer to advance to the individual championships on Saturday night where she competed in beam and floor. She finished with a 9.55 on balance beam for 15th place and a 9.7375 on floor exercise for 16th position. Also Lopez missed advancing to the individuals on uneven bars by just .025 of a point.
Denver will be losing four seniors this season, Huffaker, Goerlitz, Dobyns and Andrews. All had an integral part in helping the Pioneers become a top 10 team for the first time and putting DU “on the map.”
“We always talk about how the other team’s have the tradition and I think we (the seniors) started it and the team’s of the future can build from where we are which is top ten,” said Huffaker.
“The seniors helped build the future, they helped put us in this position and now the people returning can take us further,” said Kutcher-Rinehart.
The Pioneers have signed four talented student-athletes to letters of intent for the fall of 2007 and look forward to having them help continue to improve the program.
“Now it is obvious were we need to continue to add skill level and add depth to really challenge to be a top-six program and we will get there,” said Kutcher-Rinehart.
It has been a season that has had its ups like going undefeated at home (7-0) and advancing to the NCAA Nationals and its down’s of starting the season with a fifth place finish and injuries to key personal. Although the four senior’s may be sad that their career as a Pioneer is over, they will always remember the team they helped become a top 10 team.
