March 29, 2010
LOGAN, Utah - Three Utah State gymnasts were selected to the NCAA North Central Regional Championships on Saturday, April 10 at Salt Lake City, hosted by the University of Utah at UU's Huntsman Center.
Senior Heather Heinrich and junior Lyndsie Boone were selected in the all-around while junior Jackie Dillon was selected on bars. Four alternate positions were filled by USU gymnasts, as Dillon is the alternate on vault, freshman Amanda Watamaniuk is the alternate for both the all-around and bars while fellow freshman Amelia Montoya is the floor alternate.
This is Boone's third regional trip after qualifying on beam as a freshman in 2008 and in the all-around last season as a sophomore. It it Heinrich's second regional appearance after qualifying in 2008 in the all-around her sophomore season. Dillon will also be making her second regional trip, after also qualifying on vault last year.
"It's tremendously rewarding to have three individuals qualify for regionals," USU head coach Jeff Richards. "We had a few struggles in the team success with all of the injuries, but our girls kept working hard and kept battling and to be rewarded for all their hard work by qualifying for regionals is very exciting."
Utah State ended team competition at Saturday's Western Athletic Conference Championships at Fullerton, Calif., placing third and matching the Aggies' best WAC finish ever, equalling the third-place finish in 2007. USU is ranked No. 54 in this week's rankings and only the top 36 teams advance to the NCAA Regionals. This is the third year in a row and fourth in last five that USU did not qualify for regionals as a team, but the Aggies have sent at least three individuals in each of the last three years.
"It's unfortunate that we can't go as a team. Our team performance at the WAC Championships was the most memorable of the season, so to end on that high note is rewarding, but it would have been nice to qualify for regionals. We'll just hope to stay healthy next year and continue that hard work that we had this year so we can advance to regionals," Richards said.
Heinrich, a native of Littleton, Colo., has a regional qualifying score (RQS) of 38.930 in the all-around, with a season-average of 38.508 and a season and career-high of 39.250. Saturday at the WAC Championships, Heinrich earned second-team all-WAC honors by finishing fourth in the all-around with a 38.950, her third year in a row earning all-conference honors. Heinrich has season-averages of 9.779 on vault, 9.429 on bars, 9.612 on beam and 9.696 on floor. This season she matched or set career-highs on vault (9.850), bars (9.75) and all-around (39.250), while posting season-highs of 9.825 on both beam and floor, missing her career-bests on both by .025. Heinrich competed in the all-around in 12 of USU's 13 meets.
Boone, a Winthrop Harbor, Ill., native, has an all-around RQS of 38.225, with a 38.903 season-average and a season and career-high of 38.850. Boone, who missed a month of action with an injury, was in the all-around in seven of nine meets competing, but did not do the all-around Saturday at the WAC Championships. She was tied for eighth on vault with a 9.825, while placing 19th on floor with a 9.750 and finishing 29th on beam with a 9.525 score. Boone has season-averages of 9.636 on vault, 9.493 on bars, 9.489 on beam and 9.581 on floor. This season Boone either tied or set career-bests on vault (9.825), beam (9.775), floor (9.850) and all-around (38.850).
Dillon is an Anderson, S.C. native, and has a 9.725 RQS on bars, with a 9.565 season-average and a season-high of 9.775. Saturday at the WAC Championships, Dillon was in a five-way tie for seventh on bars with a 9.775 score. She matched her bars score on vault, as the 9.775 placed her tied for 15th, while finishing tied for 26th on beam with a 9.550. This season Dillon has had six scores of 9.700 or higher on bars in 10 meets, missing three competitions due to injury. Dillon's vault RQS is 9.625, with a 9.569 average and a season-high of 9.775.
Watamaniuk, a Centerville, Ohio native, has an all-around RQS of 37.305, with a season-average of 37.332 and a career-high of 38.500. Her bars RQS is 9.585, with a 9.523 season-average and a career-high of 9.625.
Montoya, a native of Mission Viejo, Calif., has a 9.605 RQS on floor, averaging 9.593 with a career-high of 9.725.
Tickets for the NCAA North Central Regional Championships range from $5-13. For more information, contact the Utah Athletics Ticket Office at 801-581-UTIX (8849) or www.utahtickets.com
The top two teams and the top two all-around competitors (who are not on an advancing team) from each regional will receive an automatic berth to the national championships in Gainesville, Fla., April 22-24, hosted by the University of Florida.
In addition, the event winners at the regional championships will advance to the national championships (in that event only) if they are not part of a qualifying team or the all-around qualifiers.
For more information regarding the National Collegiate Women's Gymnastics Championships, log on to www.NCAA.com.
Fans can follow the Aggie gymnastics program at twitter.com/USUGymnastics, and can get score updates. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program at twitter.com/USUAthletics.
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