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Stanford Gymnastics Wins Fifth Pac-10 Team Title
March 30, 2008 SEATTLE, WASH. -- The Stanford women's gymnastics team tied its second-highest score of the season en route to claiming its fifth Pacific-10 Conference team title Saturday night at Bank of America Arena. Stanford placed first on three of four events to defeat Pac-10 rival Oregon State 197.000-196.550. Defending Pac-10 champion UCLA finished third with 196.200 after having to count a fall on floor exercise. "This team has worked so hard all year and this is a shining moment for them, and they should celebrate," Stanford head coach Kristen Smyth said. Stanford's last Pac-10 championship came in 2006. The Cardinal pulled out the victory despite an injury to freshman Allyse Ishino on vault, the Cardinal's last event of the night. With only two Stanford vaulters remaining to compete, the redshirt freshman from Santa Ana, Calif., twisted her knee landing her Yurchenko full. The injury did not become apparent until after Ishino had saluted the judges, signifying the end of her routine. Ishino's 9.8 counted toward Stanford's 49.100 team total on the event. Ishino's injury did make the victory somewhat bittersweet, Smyth added. "After that happened and the team finished vault, my mind was in one place and one place only," she said. "I didn't even know we'd won the meet." Ishino will have an MRI when the team returns to California to determine the extent of the injury. Oregon State showed solid performances on all four events. The team's intensity was highlighted by junior Tasha Smith on floor exercise, where she delivered a 9.95 with a crowd-pleasing hip-hop routine that captivated the entire arena.
Smith's score was good enough for the Pac-10 floor title over Washington's Ashley Houghting, who scored a 9.925. Smith, a junior from also captured first-place honors on vault. Smith also won the Pac-10 titles on vault and floor in 2006. "It's a great warmup for Regionals," said OSU head coach Tanya Chaplin, who was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year. "You want to build for the post-season and this is a good stepping stone." Stanford senior Tabitha Yim scored a 39.550 to capture first place in the individual all-around competition, ahead of Oregon State's Jami Lanz, second with a 39.425. UCLA's Ariana Berlin was third with a 39.400. Yim, who finishes her career with four individual Pac-10 titles, was also named Pac-10 Gymnast of the Year. Stanford senior Liz Tricase collected her third Pac-10 title on bars with a 9.9, tying for first with UCLA's Tasha Schwikert. Oregon State's Jami Lanz tied for first on balance beam with Stanford's Carly Janiga. Both scored 9.9. Based on their Regional Qualifying Score, the nation's top teams advance to the NCAA Regional Championships, which will determine NCAA Championship qualifiers. Regional selections will be announced Monday, March 31 at 2 p.m. E.T.
Team scores:
All-around:
Vault:
Uneven Bars:
Balance Beam:
Floor Exercise: 2008 Pac 10 Conference Awards Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Karin Wurm, Arizona Freshman of the Year: Brittani McCullough, UCLA Gymnast of the Year: Tabitha Yim, Stanford
Coach of the Year: Tanya Chaplin, Oregon State
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