Michigan State University Athletics
Gymnastics Opens Season With Home Quad-Meet
1/7/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
Jan. 7, 2009
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State gymnastics team begins the 2009 season on Friday night in Jenison Field House, as the Spartans host a quad-meet beginning at 7 p.m. The Spartans will face Big Ten foes Illinois and Michigan, along with Western Michigan.
MSU is ranked 17th in the preseason coaches poll released by GymInfo. This is the second-straight year the Spartans have been ranked in the preseason poll, as they were No. 22 in 2007. The ranking is also the second-highest since 1998, when the Spartans were ranked 16th. The Spartans return 10 letterwinners from the 2009 squad that placed third at the NCAA West Regional and finished fourth in the Big Ten Championships. Junior Rochelle Robinson returns after competing at the NCAA Championships for the second-straight season.
No. 16 Illinois returns 11 letterwinners from 2008 and is led by senior Julie Crall and sophomore Allison Buckley. Crall took home the beam title at the 2008 Big Ten Championships and Buckley became Illinois' first All-American after tying for sixth on the beam at the NCAA Championships. Buckley was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and South Central Regional Gymnast of the Year. The Illini finished second in the Big Ten and third at the NCAA South Central Regional.
Eighth-ranked Michigan opened the season last week at the Cancun Classic, finishing third in the afternoon session behind No. 7 LSU and No. 19 Boise State. Senior Tatjana Thuener-Rego and junior Jordan Sexton led the Wolverines after sharing the floor exercise title, and Sarah Curtis placed third on the beam. Michigan returns 11 letterwinners from last year, including All-Americans Becky Bernard, Kylee Botterman and Thuener-Rego. The Wolverines are defending Big Ten Champions and earned a trip to the NCAA Championships after finishing second at the West Regional.
Western Michigan compiled a 6-17 overall record and placed fifth at the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championships last season. The Broncos are led by senior Andrea Perini, who earned Second Team All-MAC honors in 2008 after finishing fourth in the all-around at the conference championships. Michigan State has yet to lose to Western Michigan in the 53 meetings of the two teams.
The meet will be aired via tape-delay on Jan. 16 at 8 p.m. by the Big Ten Network. It marks the first time the Spartans will have a home event broadcast by the network.
