March 11, 2010
NORMAL, Ill. -
The Illinois State gymnastics team will travel to Lexington, Ky., to take on nationally-ranked Kentucky on March 12 at 7 p.m. in the Memorial Coliseum.
The Redbirds (9-5 overall) have not competed against the No. 15-ranked Kentucky since 2006, when the `Birds fell to the Wildcats.
Head coach Bob Conkling sees this meet as an opportunity for individuals to shine as the season closes.
"I see this meet as a chance for a lot of the student-athletes to really break out," Conkling said. "The vault has been a solid event for the team, but we're looking to build up difficulty. Tori Sarantakis is very close to qualifying for regionals and Hannah Deutsch is improving greatly in the event. Andrea Orris and Lisa Mulchek are wrapping up their careers at ISU, so they have both been putting forth tremendous effort. Kim Caron is getting better and better on the floor and bars and has been battling for spots on the vault and balance beam."
In their last meet against Alaska-Anchorage, the Redbirds defeated the Seawolves by a score of 193.825-187.600. Orris performed strong routines on the uneven bars (9.825), balance beam (9.725) and on the floor exercise (9.725). Her uneven bars score marked a career-high. Erica Schick also posted career-highs on the uneven bars (9.875) and in the all-around (39.075).
Schick, Orris and Kim Genereux took the top three places on the uneven bars. Deutsch, Orris and Schick all tied for first on the balance beam, with a score of 9.725. The three also took the top spots on the floor exercise, with Schick leading the way (9.825), followed by Deutsch (9.825) and Orris (9.725).
This meet at Kentucky marks the Redbirds' final regular-season meet on the road. Conkling is excited to return to Kentucky and compete against such a strong program.
"Competing against Kentucky was on the schedule when I first started coaching at ISU, so I am looking forward to returning," Conkling said. "It's a great experience to compete against such a highly-ranked team. The team rose to the challenge when competing against Missouri when they were ranked, so I know they'll perform their best in front of a big crowd at Kentucky."
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