Gymnastics: Eagle Classic Next Meet for WVU
March 11, 2005 09:44 AM | General
March 11, 2005
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University gymnastics team will travel to Ypsilanti, Mich., on Saturday, March 12, to compete in the Eagle Classic, a four-team meet hosted by Eastern Michigan beginning at 7 p.m. In making their first-ever trip to EMU, the Mountaineers will also compete against No. 18 Kent State and No. 20 Southern Utah.
West Virginia (9-5) has already faced Kent State (8-4) twice this year and Southern Utah (5-3) once. On Sunday, March 6, Kent State placed third in a quad meet at the WVU Coliseum with a score of 193.725, while the Mountaineers placed second behind then 20th-ranked Auburn with a sum of 194.6 just shy of the Tigers’ 194.9. WVU has since defeated Pitt, 194.925-193.35, on Tuesday, March 8, in Morgantown for its final home meet of the season.
The Mountaineers’ first meeting with Southern Utah this season came at home on Feb. 4 when WVU registered a season-high team score in a 195.875-194.7 win. They are 1-1 against Kent State this year including a win in Sunday’s quad meet and a season-opening loss at Kent, Ohio, 190.875-190.525, on Jan. 16.
West Virginia, with a regional qualifying score (RQS) of 194.035, and Eastern Michigan (6-8) with an RQS of 190.745 are unranked, while Kent State owns an 18th-rated RQS of 194.705 and Southern Utah a 20th-ranked score of 194.57.
Sophomore all-arounder Janáe Cox and senior all-arounder Jessica Bartgis lead the Mountaineers, as Cox is coming off consecutive wins in the all-around and Bartgis winning the uneven bars in eight of her last nine meets. Senior Kari Williams, the 20th-ranked vaulter in the country with an RQS of 9.88, has won seven of her last nine meets on vault.
After Sunday’s meet, WVU closes out its regular season on March 18 at North Carolina State, the top-ranked team in the East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL), before returning to Raleigh, N.C., on March 25 for the EAGL Championships.
