Photo by: Adam Hammerman

The No. 14 Pioneer gymnastics team was selected last Monday to compete at the NCAA Regional at the University of Illinois this Saturday after claiming the Western Athletic Conference Gymnastics Championship on March 24 with a score of 196.35.

Denver’s Regional Qualifying Score of 196.09 at the end of the regular season marks the second highest RQS in Pioneer history. The Pioneers have also scored a 196 or higher in five of their last six meets. Last season, the Pioneers finished 4th at the NCAA Regionals, sending senior Brianna Springer and sophomore Jorie Hall to the championships.

“It’s exciting,” said freshman Ellese Sakai-Hart. “We all have that same sense of purpose we’ve had all season, just maybe even more.”

At their first ever WAC Championship, Denver was led by sophomores Moriah Martin and Melodie Pulgarin-Linero and Sakai-Hart, who finished 2nd, 3rd and 5th, respectively, in the All-Around. Denver out-scored Sacramento State (195.675), Southern Utah (195.0250), San Jose State (194.800) and Utah State (194.775) to claim the championship.

“The team showed tremendous character, teamwork and excellence.” said head coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart.

Denver is working to polish their routines  for Saturday, where they face off against No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 11 Stanford, No. 22 Illinois, No. 24 Kentucky and Illinois-Chicago.

“I’m really pleased with how the team performed to close out the regular season,” said Kutcher-Rinehart. “We have room for improvement in training this week, but I’m pleased that this team is peaking at the right time of the season. We are looking forward to what should be a tremendous competition.”

The top two teams from each six-team regional will advance to the NCAA Championships in Duluth, Ga., on April 21.