Gymnastics: WVU Opens Official Practice
September 21, 2009 01:21 PM | General
September 21, 2009
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| Amy Bieski |
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The 2010 West Virginia University gymnastics team opens its season on Tuesday, Sept. 22, with its first official practice at 2:30 p.m. at Cary Gym.
“I’m looking forward to starting practice, and I think the team really is too,” coach Linda Burdette says at the onset of her 36th season with the squad. “I think the team is ready to get down to business, and the coaching staff is prepared to lead them towards a successful year.
“As far as open gyms have gone, this has been the best preseason the team has had in recent years. The four freshmen have come in and worked hard on their gymnastics under the upperclassmen. I’m very motivated by the effort I have seen thus far.”
The Mountaineers return to the gym following a strong 15-8 2009 campaign, in which they finished fourth at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championship. The squad also went 10-2 in East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) competition and finished second overall at the conference championship. Four Mountaineers won six league titles, a program-best mark.
Fourteen letterwinners return for WVU this season. Tops among the returnees are seniors Shelly Purkat and Kiersten Spoerke, and juniors Amy Bieski and Naja Johnson.
Purkat is the reigning EAGL beam champion, winning the 2009 title with a score of 9.875 points, while Spoerke paced the squad in the event last season with a 9.805 regional qualifying score (RQS), the 15th-best mark in the Southeast Region.
Bieski looks to fill the place of graduated national-qualifier Mehgan Morris. The Nanticoke, Pa., native finished second on the squad in points earned the last two seasons, including a 456.15 point effort last year.
Johnson returns as a bars and floor specialist, having excelled in her sophomore season and earning first team all-EAGL honors in both events.
Burdette enters the 2010 season with a 612-244-4 career record and a résumé that includes 26 NCAA regional appearances, six EAGL titles and three invitations to the NCAA National Championship.
The Mountaineers’ 2010 schedule is expected to be released within the next few weeks. The team will host the NCAA Southeast Regional Championship at the WVU Coliseum on Saturday, April 10.
