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Jan. 25, 2007

COLUMBIA, Mo. - The No. 22 Missouri gymnastics team continues Big 12 Conference competition with a matchup with No. 7 Nebraska on Friday, Jan. 26 at 7 p.m. in the Hearnes Center. The Huskers enter the meet ranked seventh in the nation while the Tigers clock in at 22nd.

Mizzou in the rankings
Missouri improved four spots to 22nd in this week's GymInfo Top 25 with an average score of 193.492. All four Big 12 programs are ranked in the poll, with Nebraska (195.462) coming in at seventh, Oklahoma (195.313) at eighth and Iowa State (195.150) at ninth. Rankings will be based on average score for the first five polls and will then switch to Regional Qualifying Score.

An RQS is calculated by taking the six-highest scores of the season, of which at least three must be from an away meet. The highest overall score is dropped and the remaining five scores are averaged to get the RQS.

On individual events, the Tigers rank 20th on vault, 31st on bars, 25th on beam and 21st on floor. In the South Central Region, Mizzou clocks in at fifth overall and fifth on vault, seventh on bars, seventh on beam and sixth on floor.

Last time out
Mizzou traveled to Norman, Okla., for a meet against the host Sooners and Central Michigan and scored a 193.825 to finish in second place. No. 13 Oklahoma recorded a 196.125 to take first while Central Michigan came in third with a 191.125.

The Tigers opened on bars and scored a 49.125, led by a 9.700 by junior Julie Abaray, who tied for third place. Mizzou struggled on beam in the second rotation as the squad suffered three falls to score a 49.100. On the brightside, sophomore Alicia Hatcher notched a personal best 9.900 to tie for third and senior Amanda Pezzullo recorded a 9.800. Junior Nikki Bowman also tied her career-high with a 9.750 on the event.

Missouri looked impressive on floor as the squad scored a season-high 48.900. Pezzullo and freshman Danielle Guider both tied for third with 9.825s and Abaray posted a 9.775. In the final rotation, sophomore Adrianne Perry tied her career high with a 9.875 to claim the event title and Pezzullo scored a 9.775. In her first vault lineup of her career, freshman Becky Scholle recorded a 9.725.

Beauty and the Beast
On Friday, Feb. 9 the Mizzou gymnastics and wrestling teams will hit the Hearnes Center floor simultaneously in the Tigers' first annual Beauty and the Beast. At the same time the gymnastics team competes against Southeast Missouri State, the Tiger wrestlers will face off against Northern Iowa.

Fantastic Floor
The Tigers scored a meet-high 48.900 on floor against Oklahoma and Central Michigan last week, which was a full half point higher than Mizzou scored against Illinois the previous week. Senior Amanda Pezzullo and freshman Danielle led the way as the duo both scored a 9.825 to tie for third place.

Already one of the team's strongest events, the floor lineup has been without senior Whitney Crater for the start of the season as she continues to recover from an Achilles injury. Crater, who has been a fixture in the lineup the past two seasons, will only add more firepower to the team if she breaks the lineup.

Hit or miss
Despite three falls on beam at Oklahoma, there were positives Mizzou could take from the event: the three Tigers who hit all performed excellent routines. Sophomore Alicia Hatcher set a new personal best with a 9.900 to tie for third place. Senior Amanda Pezzullo followed Hatcher with a 9.800 routine of her own and junior Nikki Bowman led off the lineup with a 9.750, which tied her career high.

Vault on Top
Despite the loss of three routines from the 2006 season, vault has been the Tigers' strongest event thus far. The graduation of 2006 seniors Jodie Heinicka, Lauren Schwartzman and Sarah Zigler stripped Mizzou of half it's vault lineup but the 2007 edition has stepped up. So far this season newcomers, freshmen Danielle Guider and Becky Scholle and juniors Nikki Bowman and Ashley Khederian (who competed vault as a freshman in 2005) have joined 2006 returnees Whitney Crater, Adrianne Perry and Amanada Pezzullo in the lineup.

Tigers ranked nationally...
After three weeks of competition, three Tigers find themselves ranked in the top-100 nationally on different events. Junior Katie Kluga is tied for 27th on the balance beam, sophomore Adrianne Perry is tied for 47th in the all-around and junior Julie Abaray is 85th on floor.s

...and regionally
In addition to their national rankings, fiveTigers are ranked in the top-30 in the South Central Region. Kluga is seventh on beam, Perry is seventh in the all-around and tied for 19th on bars and senior Amanda Pezzullo is tied for 12th on floor, 26th on vault and 30th on beam. Also, Abaray is 17th on floor and 21st on bars while junior Ashley Khederian is 18th on vault and 30th on bars.

Mizzou faces some of nation's best...
During the 2007 campaign, Mizzou will compete against some of the nation's top competition. Six teams ranked in the preseason poll are on the Tigers' schedule, including Michigan, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Iowa State, Arkansas and Auburn. Missouri will also face five teams that received votes in the poll: BYU, Illinois, Iowa, Pittsburgh and Central Michigan.

Mizzou to host Big 12 Championship
For the first time since 2003, the Tigers will host the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship at the Hearnes Center on Saturday, March 31. The last time the meet was in Columbia, the Tigers finished third, which marked the first time since 1994 the squad finished better than fourth.

The Tigers under Drass
In his seventh season as head coach of the Tigers, Rob Drass has revitalized the program and brought Mizzou to new heights. His squads have qualified for six regional championships in seven years, highlighted by third place showings in 2005 and 2006. The Tigers have been continualy ranked in the top 20 since his arrival and earned the program's all-time high of seventh in 2006. For his efforts, Drass was selected 2006 South Central Region Head Coach of the Year. Overall, he has a 71-54 regular season mark with the Tigers.

Tiger Tidbits

Julie Abaray
Notched a 9.775 on floor and a 9.700 on bars against Oklahoma and Central Michigan ... tied for first on beam against Illinois with a 9.800 ... scored a career high tying 9.800 on floor at the Cancun Classic to finish in fourth place ... ranks 17th in the South Central Region and 85th nationally on floor and is 21st on bars in the region.

Nikki Bowman
Led off the beam lineup with a 9.750 at Oklahoma ... recorded a 9.700 on vault against Illinois on Jan. 12 .. posted a 9.675 on bars and 9.625s on beam and floor at the Cancun Classic.

Whitney Crater
Scored a 9.825 on vault to tie for second against Illinois .. in her first competition since suffering an Achilles tear in April, notched a 9.775 on vault at the Cancun Classic.

Danielle Guider
Recorded a career-high 9.825 on floor at Oklahoma to tie for third place ... competed on both vault and floor in her collegiate debut and did not disappoint with a 9.700 on vault .. entered the beam lineup against Illinois and notched a 9.575.

Alicia Hatcher
Scored a career-high 9.900 on beam to tie for third at Oklahoma ... also notched a 9.750 on floor against the Sooners ... finished second on beam against Illinois with a 9.700 ... recorded a 9.700 on floor at the Cancun Classic.

Ashley Khederian
Had a 9.775 on vault at Oklahoma to tie for fifth place ... also posted a 9.725 on floor .. scored a 9.725 on vault, 9.675 on bars and a 9.600 on floor against Illinois .. competed on three events at the Cancun Classic and notched a 9.775 on vault.

Katie Kluga
Posted a career high 9.800 on beam at the Cancun Classic to tie for 10th place .. also notched a 9.675 on bars in Cancun ... tied for 27th nationally and is seventh in the SC Region on beam.

Adrianne Perry
Tied for the vault title with a career-high tying 9.875 at Oklahoma ... picked up the all-around crown against Illinois with a 39.150 on the night ... also won the bars, beam and floor titles against the Illini with scores of 9.775, 9.800 and 9.750, respectively ... notched a 9.825 on vault against Illinois to tie for second .. at the Cancun Classic, recorded a 9.825 on beam to tie for fifth place .. ranks tied for 47th nationally in the all-around.

Amanda Pezzullo
Recorded a 9.825 on floor to tie for third and posted a 9.800 on beam at Oklahoma ... scored a team meet high 9.875 on vault at the Cancun Classic to tie for second ... in her first floor routineo of the season, notched a 9.725 on floor to take second place.

Becky Scholle
In the vault lineup for the first time, did not disappoint with a 9.725 ... tied Julie Abaray for second on bars with a 9.700 against the Fighting Illini .. was in the bars lineup in her first collegiate meet at the Cancun Classic.