GymDawgs Host Pac-12 Championships
March 17, 2016 | Gymnastics
SEATTLE – Coming off the GymDawgs' season-high, UW gymnastics will host the Pac-12 Championships this Saturday, March 19, and will compete in the meet's first session at 1 p.m. The GymDawgs are the No. 5 seed in the conference championships and will be the top seed in Session #1.
“Our mentality is to keep doing what we have been doing,” UW head coach Joanne Bowers said. “We've prepared for the timing and potential differences with this meet, but we want to keep our mentality the same – to go out and do our jobs and hit out routines. We are peaking at the right time but we feel like we can be even better, and we've focused on those details in practice.”
The GymDawgs are enjoying their best stretch of the season, having scored over a 196.325 in the last three meets and posting season-highs in the last two to run their Regional Qualifying Score to 196.360, good for No. 17 nationally. The GymDawgs hope to ride that momentum and continue their upward trend.
“We're not going to change the recipe,” Bowers said. “We are happy with where we are and what got us here, but we are looking to continue to improve.”
Stanford, Arizona and Arizona St. will join the GymDawgs in Session #1. Session #2 begins at 6 p.m. and consists of top-seeded Utah, along with UCLA, Cal and Oregon St.
Tickets are still available here.
Meet Information
Pac-12 Championships – Alaska Airlines Arena - TICKETS
March 19, 2016 – Session 1: 1 p.m. PT
TV: Pac-12 Network
Pac-12 Live · Live Stats · Follow on Twitter
Scouting the Field
The Pac-12 boasts seven teams in the nation's top-25, including four in the top-15 and six in the top-20. Four of the nation's top-20 all-arounders hail from the Pac-12, including Northey at No. 15.
UW Event Previews – Overall Ranking: No. 17, 196.360 RQS
Vault, No. 20, 49.030 – Northey has won the three vault titles in the GymDawgs' last four meets and is ranked No. 38 in the country on the event. She has nine top-3 finishes. Alexandra Yacalis has four top-3 finishes and has posted scores over a 9.7 in all 11 meets this season. Hailey Burleson has been equally consistent, with two top-3 finishes and scores over 9.725 in all 11 meets. Goings has been improving her scores all season, and has scores of 9.8 or higher in each of the last six meets.
Bars, No. 24, 49.020 – Duranczyk leads the GymDawgs as the No. 21-ranked bar worker in the country. She has won four bars titles in a row and six overall, finishing in the top-3 eight times this season. Northey has seven top-3 finishes and one bars title. Burleson, Goings and Zoey Schaefer each have top-3 finishes as well and have been mainstays in the lineup all season. Junior Jessica Nesis has steadily increased her scores and posted a personal-best 9.85 in the GymDawgs' last meet.
Beam, No. 15, 49.175 – Northey is ranked No. 24 nationally on beam and has five event titles this season to go with eight top-3 finishes. Goings has also been phenomenal on beam, winning two titles and finishing in the top-3 five times. Stephanie Stowe has been a steady contributor since her insertion into the lineup, with 9.85s in her last three meets and over a 9.75 in all six meets that she's competed on beam. Duranczyk and freshman Malory Rose have two top-3 finishes apiece. Rose is currently enjoying her best stretch of the season, with a 9.825 or better in four of the last five meets.
Floor, No. 24, 49.135 – With five floor titles and seven top-3 finishes, Northey leads the GymDawgs on floor. Duranczyk, Schaefer and Yacalis have three top-3 finishes apiece. Schaefer has 9.85s in the last two meets and Duranczyk has 9.85s in the last three. Yacalis has had a great season on floor, scoring a 9.8 or above in all but two meets.
All-Around – Northey is the GymDawgs' leader in the all-around, with five all-around titles this season. She has scored a 39.500 or better four times this season, a feat she had yet to accomplish coming in to this season. She is ranked No. 15 nationally and No. 3 in the Pac-12. Goings has competed in the all-around for the majority of the season and has three titles. She has scored over a 39.000 in seven of eight meets completing in the all-around.
Last Time Out
The GymDawgs posted a season-high 196.650 to beat No. 10 Denver and cross-town rival SPU. Northey won her third straight vault title and the all-around with a 39.500, while Duranczyk won her fourth straight bars title and Goings won her second beam title of the year.
Next Up
Following the Pac-12 Championships, the GymDawgs will await the announcement of NCAA Regional placements and seedings. The GymDawgs have mathematically clinched a spot in the NCAA Regional meet.
Notes:
- The GymDawgs have just one senior on the 2016 squad, two-time All-Pac-12 First Team all-arounder Allison Northey. Fellow senior Sheridan Metcalf is serving as a student coach for the GymDawgs this season.
- UW's freshman class consists of three gymnasts: Malory Rose (Orlando, Fla.), Kristyn Hoffa (San Marcos, Calif.) and Monica Riley (Irving, Texas).
- UW head coach Joanne Bowers is in her 10th season with the Huskies.
- The Huskies added assistant coach Stephen Buckner, who was previously serving as the strength and conditioning coach at the University of Alabama. He helped the Crimson Tide to back-to-back national championships in 2011 and 2012 when he was on the staff. Former assistant coach Elise Ray was promoted to associate head coach. The addition of Buckner and promotion of Ray followed the departure of former UW associate head coach David McCreary, who is now an assistant at the University of Arizona.
- The Huskies took seventh place at the 2015 Pac-12 Championships with a 196.000, their highest score at the conference championships in the last four years. UW gymnastics team-high in 2015 was 196.600, recorded at UC Davis.
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