Burdette Earns 600th Win
January 31, 2009 10:45 PM | General
January 31, 2009
| Maryland 194.475 #19 West Virginia 193.925 George Washington 191.775 Rutgers 187.850 wvu coliseum morgantown, w.va. |
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Meet Results
Photo Gallery
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| Stat Comparison | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Vault | 48.350 | 48.875 | 47.700 | 49.025 | ||||||||||||||
| Bars | 48.400 | 48.750 | 46.000 | 48.775 | ||||||||||||||
| Beam | 46.675 | 48.350 | 46.125 | 46.775 | ||||||||||||||
| Floor | 48.350 | 48.500 | 48.025 | 49.350 | ||||||||||||||
| Top WVU Gymnasts | ||||||||||||||||||
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Five career best floor scores fueled the No. 19 West Virginia University gymnastics team to a second place finish with 193.925 points in its Alumni Meet this evening at the WVU Coliseum.
Maryland finished first overall with 194.475 points, while George Washington took third with 191.775 points and Rutgers finished fourth with 187.025 points.
The victories over the Colonials and the Scarlet Knights pushed Mountaineers’ coach Linda Burdette past the 600-win mark (601-240-4). She is the first WVU coach to earn 600 wins with a Mountaineer team.
Despite relinquishing their lead to the Terrapins following a 46.775 beam showing in the third rotation and trailing 145.600-144.575, the Mountaineers (4-4 overall, 3-1 EAGL) almost pulled out the win, totaling a season best 49.350 points on the floor.
The Mountaineers finished the meet with five 9.80-plus floor scores. Senior Mehgan Morris again anchored the squad’s strong lineup, matching a career-best with a meet best 9.950 score. The mark is the Belle, W.Va., native’s first 9.95 score of the season. Morris last achieved the point total when she won the floor title at the 2008 EAGL Championships.
Sophomore Amy Bieski nabbed her third-career 9.90 floor score, and first of the season, with her second-place performance, while junior Kiersten Spoerke and sophomore Naja Johnson each tallied career best 9.85 scores. Sophomore Jessica Young opened the Mountaineers’ rotation with a 9.80 career-best mark.
The Mountaineers led after the first rotation, as the team scored its second consecutive 49.000-plus vault total, tallying 49.050 points. Maryland stood in second place, as the Terrapins scored 48.750 on the uneven bars. Rutgers positioned itself third with a 48.025 floor score, while George Washington was fourth, netting 46.675 points on the balance beam.
Junior Chelsi Tabor continued to pace WVU on the vault, scoring her second 9.875 score of the season. Freshman Tina Maloney finished second on the team and third overall with a career-best 9.825, while sophomore Emily Kerwin totaled 9.80 points.
WVU maintained its lead through two rotations, edging UM, 97.800-97.100. The Mountaineers scored 48.775 points on bars, while the Terrapins netted 48.350 points on beam. Rutgers remained in third place with 95.725 points, including a 47.700 showing on floor, while GW totaled 48.350 points on floor and stood in fourth place through two rotations with 95.025 points.
Freshman Nicole Roach followed in classmate Maloney's footsteps, registering her own career-best score with a 9.850 on the bars for a first place finish. Senior Erica Watson finished third overall with a season best 9.825 score. Morris finished third for the Mountaineers with 9.725 points.
UM wrestled the lead from the Mountaineers with a strong third rotation, scoring 48.500 points on the floor for 145.600 total points. GW moved into third place with 143.375 points, including 48.350 points on the vault, while RU, following a 46.000 bars showing, fell to fourth with 141.725 points.
Spoerke salvaged a rocky beam rotation for the Mountaineers and anchored the lineup with a career- and meet-best 9.90 score. The mark is the first overall 9.90 score for the Suwanee, Ga., native. Freshman Jenn Sharon was the third WVU rookie to register a career-high score, finishing second on the team with 9.775 points.
MU’s Brandi George and Michele Brenner took the top two all-around finishes with respective 39.225 and 38.475 scores. Morris finished third with 38.425 points.
The Mountaineers break for a week before repaying the Colonials’ visit, traveling to George Washington on Monday, Feb. 9, for a 6 p.m. meet.
