Feb. 7, 2008
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Columbia, Mo. - The Tiger Gymnastics squad has posted season high scores in each of its last two meets and will look to continue that trend on Friday when the Tigers welcome Centenary College to the Hearnes Center for the second annual W.G. Grinders Beauty and the Beast.
The meet will feature the Mizzou Gymnastics team competing simultaneously with the wrestling team on the same floor. Gymnastics will begin a 6:30, followed by wrestling a 7:30. Doors to the one-of-a-kind event will open at 5:30.
The Tigers are coming off back-to-back meets in which they set season high scores, highlighted by a 195.400 against Illinois-Chicago last Friday. The Tigers hit all 24 of their routines against UIC and dominated the Flames, winning the meet 195.400 - 190.500. Sophomore Sarah Shire (Columbia, Mo.) won the all-around with a career high mark of 39.375. Shire leads the Tigers with 10 event titles in the 2008 season.
Juniors Adrianne Perry (Columbia, Mo.) and Alicia Hatcher (Blue Springs, Mo.) have also been keys to the Tigers success in 2008. Perry ranks 15th in the nation in the all-around, while Hatcher has consistently been the Tigers best performer on beam and bars earning her Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week after her performance at Nebraska.
The Tigers have seen vast improvement on both beam and bars in the previous two meets, highlighted by scores of 49.100 and 49.000 on beam in both meets. Bars has been the Tigers Achilles heel all season, but after posting a 48.925 against UIC, the Tigers seem to have but the bar woes behind them.
Centenary enters Friday's meet ranked 53rd in the nation, according to the GymInfo poll. The Ladies bring in a 2-2 record with two wins coming against Air Force. The Tigers lead the series against Centenary 12-0 with their most recent victory coming last year.
The Tigers, already off to the best start since 1993, could move to 4-1 for the first time since that 1993 season.
Admission to the W.G. Grinders Beauty and the Beast is $5 for adults and $3 for children, or, admission is free with two canned food items for the Central Missouri Food Bank. For all the latest on Tiger Gymnastics and Wrestling stay tuned to www.mutigers.com.
News and Notes
Scouting the Ladies...
The Centenary Ladies enter Friday's contest ranked 53rd in the nation and are coming off of a season best score of 191.825 against Illinois State last weekend. Led by Freshman all-arounder Marisa Schneider, the Ladies boast a fine vault a floor lineup, but have struggled mightily on beam and bars. The Ladies beam ranks 59th in the nation.
Led by Head Coach Bill Hardy, the Ladies have put together a 2-2 record heading into Columbia this weekend. With two victories over Air Force the Ladies have plenty of experience and talent.
With a win over the Ladies...
The Tigers would move to 4-1 on the season, their best start since the 1993 season ... Move the Tigers to 3-0 at home ... Bring the Tigers to 2-0 in Beauty and the Beast meets ... Keep the Ladies winless against the Tigers a 0-13.
Steadily Improving...
In each of the Tigers first four meets, the scores have increased showing the team is on the rise and yet to post the scores that they are capable of. After setting as season high 195.350 at Nebraska, the Tigers posted a 195.400 against UIC on Friday. The scores have grown from the 194.100 that the Tigers opened with at Bowling Green to the 195.400 posted on Friday, proving that the Tigers are just starting to click.
Bars sees turnaround...
After struggling on bars in the first two meets, the Tigers have improved their scores, setting season highs in each of the last two meets, highlighted by the 48.925 put up against UIC. Sarah Shire set a personal best 9.875 and won the event, while two other Tigers, Alicia Hatcher and Adrianne Perry posted 9.800 or better. Senior Ashley Khederian finished just behind them with a 9.700.
24 of 24...
One of the Tigers mantra's for the 2008 season has been to hit every routine that they put up in a meet. The Tigers had not done that until Friday when they hit all 24 routines that they put up. The Tigers did not have a fall on any event against UIC, going 24 for 24 for the first time. Even the Tigers who exhibitioned hit their routines, showing the potential that the 2008 Tigers have.
Achilles Heel No More...
One of the pleasant surprises over the previous two meets has been the Tigers performance on the balance beam. Often times, the beam was the Tigers Achilles heel in 2007, but in 2008, the beam has seen a huge turnaround due to Assistant Coach Amy Smith. In each of the Tigers last two meets, they have scored at least a 49.000 on beam, highlighted by a 49.100 at Nebraska. Adrianne Perry tallied a 9.900 against UIC Friday, the highest of any Tiger this season.
Adrianne Perry makes leap in polls...
After resting Adrianne Perry on vault against Bowling Green, Perry has earned huge scores in the all-around in the previous three meets. Averaging a 39.267, Perry enters Friday's meet ranked 15th in the nation in the all-around
Shire ranks among nations elite as well...
Sophomore Sarah Shire has shared the spotlight with Perry all season long as she ranks among the nations best gymnasts as well. Ranking 12th on floor and 21st on vault Shire has consistently been one of the top Tigers in the gym in 2008. Shire also comes in ranked 32nd in the all-around.
Alicia Hatcher becoming a leader on beam and bars...
Junior Alicia Hatcher has become a standout for the Tigers on both beam and bars during the first four meets. Hatcher claimed the title in both events against Iowa State and tied her career high of 9.875 on bars in Lincoln. Hatcher also was inserted into the floor lineup for the first time this season against Nebraska, and was just shy of her career mark, posting a 9.725.
Fabulous Frosh...
After posting a 9.900 on vault at the Black and Gold intrasquad, Tiger fans got a good glimpse of what to expect from freshman Alex Gold. Gold lived up to those expectations in the first three meets, posting a 9.850 in the first two and scoring a 9.800 at Nebraska last Friday. With the consistency, Gold ranks 74th in the nation on vault as a freshman and figures to be one of the top vaulters in the Tiger lineup for years to come.
Hatcher Earns Big 12 Conference Honor...
After one of the best performances of her career at Nebraska, junior Alicia Hatcher earned the Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week award for Jan. 29. Hatcher is the first Tiger to win any of Big 12 accolades this season. The honor is the first of her career.
Milestone Victory ...
After toppling the Cyclones 194.125 - 192.400 at the fourth annual "Pink Out" meet, Mizzou earned its first victory over the Cyclones since 2003. Although the Tigers bested the Cyclones in the post season, the win was the first for Mizzou over Iowa State in the regular season since topping them 192.575 -192.000 in 2003.
Fourth Annual "Pink Out" meet sees record-breaking attendance...
With a lot of hype circling the 2008 squad, the Tigers saw plenty of support in their home opener against Iowa State as 2,766 fans packed the Hearnes Center. It was the third highest attended event other than the Cat Classic at Mizzou. The only two events to top the 2008 "Pink Out" was last years Beauty and the Beast, which saw 6,197 fans file into the Hearnes Center and the 2006 "Pink Out" against Arkansas which had 2,897 fans.
Tigers score in week one ranks among top scores in history...
With a score of 194.100 on opening weekend at Bowling Green, the 2008 Tigers took their place in history. The score is the second highest opening-weekend score in the history of the program, behind only the 2004 team which tallied a 195.350 in its season opener against Iowa State.
Becky Scholle sets a personal best on vault...
As a late addition to the vault lineup at Bowling Green, Becky Scholle posted the best score of her career on the event. Scholle notched a 9.775, besting her previous career high of 9.725 against Oklahoma last season.
Feb. 22 meet vs. Big 12 Rival Oklahoma to be televised...
With Missouri's stock consistently rising in the Big 12 Conference, the match up at Hearnes Center between the Tigers and Oklahoma has become a pivotal match up in determining Big 12 supremacy. The match has been picked up by the Missouri Sports Network and will be televised locally on Fox Sports Midwest and Metro Sports. It will be a tape delayed broadcast with dates and times yet to be announced.
The GAGE Connection...
With a team loaded with talent, the Tigers can trace some of their success to the Great American Gymnastics Express prep team. GAGE, based out of Blue Springs, Mo., has produced four key members of the Tiger squad, starting with juniors Adrianne Perry and Alicia Hatcher. The two juniors were also teammates with sophomore Liz Straatmann and transfer Sarah Shire. Perry has qualified for National in each of her first two seasons, while Hatcher earned All-Big 12 honors on the bars in 2007. The four GAGE athletes will continue to be the cornerstone of the Tiger lineup.
New Coaching Staff has Tigers Geared Up...
The start of the 2008 season has been a little bit easier for Tiger Head Coach Rob Drass, especially in lieu of the 2007 season. Drass and the Tigers have hired two new coaches that will help the Tigers excel in 2008. Associate Head Coach John Figueroa was an assistant at Denver University since 2000 and will be a key member of the coaching staff. Figueroa helped turn the DU program around, taking its bar routine to new heights, ranking 10th. That turnaround helped "Fig" earn the Region 2 Assistant Coach of the Year award in just his first season at the collegiate level. "Fig" will also serve as the recruiting coordinator for the Tigers.
Standout gymnast Amy Smith, a national champion during her competitive days at UCLA will serve as an assistant coach this season. Smith is a proven gymnast that will focus her efforts on beam and floor. Known for her choreography, Smith has reworked almost all of the floor and beam routines, giving the Tigers a fresh look on both events.
Adrianne Perry Starts to Rewrite Record Books...
Entering only her junior season, Adrianne Perry has already started to rewrite the Tiger gymnastics record books. Perry holds five of the top 15 all-around scores in the history of the program. Perry is also the sophomore record holder in the all-around and vault with scores of 39.550 and 9.950, respectively. With another great season, Perry should close in on many of former Tiger standout Alicia Robinson's records in 2008.
Tigers among Highest Attended in 2007:
The continued success of Tiger Gymnastics has earned the program a reputation as one of the highest attended teams in the country. The Tigers ranked 11th out of 86 teams in 2007 and has been steadily increasing since Drass took over the program. With home events such as Beauty and the Beast, Pink Out and the Cat Classic scheduled for 2008, the Tigers should see similar numbers this year.
Staying Close to Home...
The 2008 Tigers feature a pair of homegrown superstars that have helped put the program in the national spotlight this season. Junior Adrianne Perry and sophomore Sarah Shire are leading the Tigers through the 2008 season, and both call Columbia, Mo. their home. Both trained together at GAGE during high school and have helped Missouri get off to its best start in several years.
