| Alison Akers |
 |
|
 | Class:
Senior
|
| Hometown:
Springfield, MO
|
| High School:
Hillcrest
|
|
| Birthdate:
09/26/1978
|
| Experience:
3L
|
| Club Team:
Springfield Gym Center/Missouri Valley Gymnastics
|
|
|
|
|
MISSOURI RECORDS HELD:
Vault by a Freshman — 9.825 at Iowa, 1997
Beam by a Sophomore — 9.875 vs. SE Missouri, 1998
Will be expected to provide leadership for the Tigers in three events this season — vault, balance beam and floor exercise ... a very powerful gymnast who exudes her personality and plays to the crowd.
JUNIOR YEAR (1999): Won two balance beam championships in 1999, in dual meet at Oklahoma where she scored a career-best 9.875, and in the Corvette Cup in Columbia (9.85) ... also tied her career high on beam with a 9.875 score in the Big 12 Championships which tied her for fifth place — one place shy of All-Conference status ... started slowly while recovering from a dislocated elbow suffered during the off-season ... competed only on vault and beam ... picked up steam down the stretch on beam and scored 9.8 or better seven times ... ranked 9th in NCAA Region 3 on balance beam.
SOPHOMORE YEAR (1998): Had a standout year before taking a nasty fall late in the season at LSU and missed the Big 12 Conference Championships ... won Big 12 “gymnast of the week” honors after starring in dual win over SE Missouri State when she set a school beam record (9.875) and also won the floor with a career-best 9.85 score ... also won the beam in season-opening meet at Texas Woman’s (9.8) ... topped 9.6 on the vault seven times.
FRESHMAN YEAR (1997): Burst on the scene as a freshman and was one of the Tigers’ top vaulters, and also gave superior performances on beam and floor ... won the vault with a Missouri freshman record of 9.825 in win at Iowa ... ranked 39th in the Central Region in vaulting ... also scored a season-best 9.8 on beam in that meet ... posted her best floor score in Artistic Challenge vs. Iowa State (9.65).
CLUB/HIGH SCHOOL: A four-time, level 9 Missouri state champion ... competed for Springfield Gym Center along with former MU gymnast Amy Bowles, and also competed for Missouri Valley Gymnastics ... USGF career-bests: vault (9.25), bars (9.55), beam (9.65), floor (9.45) all-around (37.6) ... club coaches — Darrell and Sarah Jackson (until Jan. 1995), along with Dwan Parkyn and Debbie Ward.
PERSONAL: Majoring in environmental design ... parents — Warren and Carol Akers ... born Sept. 26, 1978 ... nickname — “Ali” ... other interests include art and music ... career goal to open her own design firm.
