Michigan State University Athletics
Spartans Host Flip for the Cure Meet
1/27/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
Jan. 27, 2012
'Flip for a Cure' Video Preview
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State gymnastics team will host its annual "Flip for a Cure" meet when it welcomes Illinois State to East Lansing on Saturday (Jan. 28). The sixth annual Jan Howard Memorial Flip for a Cure Breast Cancer Awareness meet will be held in Jenison Field House with competition beginning at 7 p.m. (ET).
"The Jan Howard Memorial Flip for a Cure meet is very special for us, because it was named after a former gymnast`s mother. We will be honoring breast cancer survivors and raising money for breast cancer awareness," said head coach Kathie Klages. "We are hoping to bring one of our injured athletes back into the lineup this weekend, so hopefully we will have a stronger performance and improve our score. Our goal is to see a big jump in the national rankings. Since we will be home the next three weeks, we are hoping to see a marked improvement within that time."
The Spartans will once again be dressed in their pink leotards and fans wearing pink will receive free admission to the event. Representatives from Spartans for a Cure, a student-led organization committed to raising Breast Cancer Awareness throughout campus and the community, will also be collecting donations.
This marks the first time MSU will compete at home since the opening weekend, having been on the road for two consecutive meets. MSU enters the weekend with an average team score of 191.642 and are 4-3 in Flip for the Cure competition.
The Spartans are 27th in the nation on the vault with a team average of 48.642. Redshirt sophomore Taira Neal leads MSU in the event while ranking 27th nationally and eighth regionally with an average score of 9.867. On the uneven bars, Michigan State is averaging 47.883 points, which ranks 40th in the country. Senior Jackie Berg is currently tied for 22nd in the central region on the bars with an average mark of 9.700. Sarena Bumbarger is averaging 9.725 on the balance beam, putting the sophomore at 15th in the region.
The Green and White also sees members ranking in the top-20 within the Big Ten. On the vault, Neal is sixth in the conference with her 9.867 average score. Bumbarger is tied with two others for 19th in the Big Ten on the beam after averaging a 9.725 in three meets.
Last weekend, the Spartans traveled to University Park, Pa. and faced stiff competition in No. 5 Alabama, No. 9 Penn State and Cornell. MSU improved their team score to 192.875 and finished third overall. Dani Levy led the Green and White in the uneven bars and the floor exercise. The sophomore tied for ninth on the bars with a 9.750 mark and earned a team-best sixth place finish on the floor with a 9.800 score.
Illinois State has averaged 191.442 on the year and is coming off a 192.200-186.775 victory over rival Southeast Missouri State on Saturday (Jan. 13). Freshman Sami King led the Redbirds with a career-high score of 38.600 and a first place finish in the all-around competition. King also earned third-place on the uneven bars (9.650) and second in the balance beam (9.650) and floor exercise (9.725).
Illinois State's highest team average is on the balance beam with a 48.017, they are ranked 34th nationally and first in the Midwest Independent Conference. Individually, junior Apollonia Barrientos is tied for fourth in the conference on the vault with a 9.700 average and is sitting in eighth place on the uneven bars (9.625). Senior Melissa Mann and King are in second and third place on the beam with scores of 9.708 and 9.683, respectively.
The Spartans will host Southeast Missouri State in the annual alumni meet next Saturday (Feb. 4) in Jenison Field House at 7 p.m. Michigan State will welcome back several former members of both the men's and women's squads to the floor following the meet to be introduced to the crowd.
