University of Washington
Pac-10 Championships
Huskies Tie For Best Finish Ever At Pac-10's
March 19, 2011 | Gymnastics
March 19, 2011
LOS ANGELES - After a rocky start on the floor, the Huskies finished the meet with a 49.275 on the beam, their first 49+ score on the event this year to end the meet with a 196.025 and finish third at the Pac-10 Championships at UCLA Saturday night.
Oregon State won the meet with a 197.200. UCLA finished second at 196.750. UW beat No. 3 Stanford and snapped an 11-meet losing streak to the Cardinal.
It is the second 196+ of the year for the Huskies and their highest score on the beam this season. UW has finished third at the Pac-10 Championships four previous times, the last in 2001. The 196.025 is the best team score by the Huskies since 2004 in the championships.
"This does not surprise me," said head coach Joanne Bowers. "Coming into this event we felt prepared and confident. I'm ecstatic with how we finished because of starting rough on floor and for our team to do so well and end the way we did on beam just showed so much mental toughness. It's going to give us that much more confidence going into Regionals. We feel like we are going in with nothing to lose at Regionals I'm just so proud of the team and I'm happy for the seniors to be able to enjoy this."
Senior Samantha Walior (Prior Lake, Minn.) tied with five others for the bars championship with a career-best 9.90. She is the first individual champion on any event for UW since 2007 and the third-ever bars champion. The Huskies got a 49.000 on bars.
The Huskies started on floor where as a team they posted a 48.675. Senior Kristen Linton (Edmonds, Wash.) led the team with a 9.850 to tie for fifth at the meet. It is the highest finish by a Husky since 2008.
UW was strong on vault as freshman Aliza Vaccher (Eugene, Ore.) posted a 9.85 new career-best. She tied with junior Amanda Cline (Aurora, Colo.) for the team-best score on the event. They tied for fifth, the best by any Husky since 2009. As a team, UW posted a solid 49.075 on vault.
Sophomore Paige Bixler (Rowlett, Texas) led off on the beam for the Huskies in the seventh and final rotation, posting a season-best 9.850. Vaccher followed up with a new career-best 9.90 to place second in the event, the highest finish for a Husky on beam since 2004.
Sophomore Meg Whitney with a 9.875 (Mesa, Ariz.) and junior Ruby Engreitz (Kirkland, Wash.) with a 9.825 also posted a new career-bests. Senior Haley Bogart (Woodside, Calf.) tied a season-high with a 9.825.
Vaccher led the team in the all-around with a 39.050 to finish eighth overall.
The NCAA Regionals are in two weeks and the Huskies will find out on Monday where they are headed. Stay tuned to ww.gohuskies.com to find out more information.
Final Team Standings
1. Oregon State - 197.200
2. UCLA - 196.750
3. Washington - 196.025
4. Stanford - 195.975
5. Arizona - 195.475
6. Cal - 191.575
7. Arizona State - 190.450
Players Mentioned
