All-American Sarah Shire will lead the Tigers against Ohio State as she looks to improve on her impressive 2009 campaign.All-American Sarah Shire will lead the Tigers against Ohio State as she looks to improve on her impressive 2009 campaign.
Gymnastics

No. 16 Tigers Open Season Against No. 18 Ohio State

Jan. 7, 2010

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The 2009 Missouri gymnastics season was one for the record books and the 2010 team is ready to pick up where last year's success left off. The season starts tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. against Big Ten opponent Ohio State in the Hearnes Center.

“Obviously it is our first meet of the year and there are things that we are going to be working and improving on,” Head Coach Rob Drass said. “We want to go out there and put on a good show and hit the routines we put up. We think we are capable of that. Ohio State is going to be a good challenge. They are a Big Ten team and are preseason ranked No. 18. I believe we are opening up with a good opponent.”

Missouri put on a great performance at the annual Black and Gold intra-squad meet in December and is eager to begin facing the competition. This is the first time since 2004 that the Tigers start the season out at home.

“I think it is easier to start at home than on the road because you don't have to travel and worry about all the extra things like that,” Drass said. “Since we always have Black and Gold this is like our second meet at home. I think we will be comfortable and you will see us do a little bit better and be stronger because of it.”

The Tigers are led by senior All-American Sarah Shire (Columbia, Mo.) who won a record-setting 10 all-around titles last year. Shire, the reigning Big 12 All-Around Champion, is joined by sophomore Mary Burke (Inverness, Ill.) who also posted great scores for Missouri in 2009 and was selected to the All-Big 12 Championship Team on vault. The two of them are expected to anchor the squad and compete with one another for the top of the podium at every meet.

Senior Danielle Guider (Nutley, N.J.), who saw action in three of the lineups last year, has been making her case for an all-around spot this season. Guider put up a 39.300 at Black and Gold including a 9.900 on beam. She has looked strong on all four events during preseason practices and is expected to have a great senior campaign.

The four Tiger freshmen will make their official debut against Ohio State giving fans the chance to see how they compete under pressure. Brittany Bendoff (Long Grove, Ill.), Tori Howard (Chesterfield, Mo.) and Lauren Swankoski (Chadds Ford, Pa.) all put up impressive numbers at Black and Gold to garner themselves spots to compete tomorrow. This will be the fans' first chance to see Sandra Ostad (Oslo, Norway) who joined the team at the end of December. Ostad is not expected to compete quite yet, but will be a great addition to the lineups soon enough.

Results and recaps of all Missouri's meets this season can be found at mutigers.com.

News and Notes

Scouting Ohio State: The Buckeyes finished the 2009 season right behind the Tigers at No. 14 with a third place finish at the NCAA Central Regional. Ohio State comes into 2010 preseason ranked No. 18 and just two spots behind Missouri. The team returns nine letterwinners from last year's 7-11 squad and are led by junior All-American Rebecca Best and 2009 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Taylor Jones. Jones finished last season with an all-around Regional Qualifying Score of 39.215, while leading the team in scoring on vault and floor. Senior Beth Ann Ballard and sophomore Casey Williamson return on bars after both posting the team's 2009 season high of 9.850. Sophomore Nicole Krauter is another name to watch for the Buckeyes as she owns a career high 9.900 on beam. Best earned her second-team All-America status on the floor after finishing sixth at the 2009 National Championships.The two teams faced each other in Columbus, Ohio, last season while the Tigers took first in the quad meet 195.375 to Ohio State's 193.825. The Buckeyes lead the all-time series 6-2.

Ostad Joins Team: Tiger fans might notice a new face on the team that was not present during the Black & Gold meet. Sandra Ostad of Oslo, Norway, joined the 2009-2010 team after the holiday break. The 19-year-old brings a load of talent to the squad especially on uneven bars and balance beam. Ostad was the Norwegian National Champion on bars and beam in both 2007 and 2008. Most recently, she won the bars title at the 2009 Northern European Championships.

Heizelman Receives Wooden Cup Honorable Mention: Allie Heizelman (Cypress, Texas) was one of 26 collegiate athletes to receive honorable mention for the 6th Annual Coach Wooden Citizenship Cup. The Wooden Cup is an award given by Athletes for a Better World (ABW) to the most outstanding role model among athletes. The sophomore was one of only two gymnasts recognized as possible recipients of the prestigious award.

Gold Squad Takes Win 156.000 – 155.350: Coming off a record-setting season in 2009, the 2010 Missouri gymnastics squad made its season debut at the Black and Gold intrasquad exhibition meet. The Gold squad took the win over the Black squad, 156.000-155.350, with the help of senior Danielle Guider (Nutley, N.J.) and sophomore Mary Burke (Inverness, Ill.). Senior, and returning All-American, Sarah Shire (Columbia, Mo.) led all competitors with an all-around score of 39.550, as Burke followed with a 39.400. Guider made her first all-around appearance a memorable one with a 39.300. Freshman Lauren Swankoski (Chadds Ford, Pa.) looked impressive in her first meet as a Tiger posting a 38.900.

Tigers Ranked No. 16 in Preseason Poll: The Tigers begin the 2009 – 2010 season ranked No. 16 in the nation, according to GymInfo's 2010 Women's Preseason Coaches Poll. The Tigers finished their 2008 – 2009 campaign ranked No. 13 in the country after posting their highest regional score in program history. This ranking marks the fifth-consecutive year the Tigers have been ranked in the top 20 entering the season. Missouri began the 2006 and 2008 season in the same slot. The Tigers are looking to take home their first Big 12 conference championship and make the trip to Gainesville, Fla., in April to the NCAA National Championships. But the path will not be an easy one as Missouri is set to face six teams also ranked in the top 25. All four Big 12 teams are ranked to start the season with Oklahoma (9) in the highest spot among the four, followed by Nebraska (15) and Iowa Sate (23). Other Tiger opponents ranked in the poll include LSU (6), Illinois (13) and Ohio State (18). Three teams that Missouri will also face this season – Kentucky, Arizona State and New Hampshire – received votes but were just edged out of the top 25.

A Quick Review of 2009:
• Junior Sarah Shire set a single-season Missouri record after winning nine regular season all-around titles. She also took home the Big 12 All-Around title, the second Tiger to do so after Perry's 2008 win.
• Missouri qualified for its eighth consecutive and 22nd overall NCAA postseason appearance. The team placed third at the Northeast Regional with a Missouri Regional record of 196.000. The Tigers finished the season 20-6 overall and ranked No. 13.
• Shire was named Big 12 Gymnast of the Week six times and was honored as Co-Big 12 Gymnast of the Year. She was also named the South Central Region's Gymnast of the Year.
• Senior Adrianne Perry qualified for her fourth consecutive NCAA National Championship with a 39.350 in the Northeast Regional. She is the only Tiger to qualify for Nationals in each of her four seasons.
• Shire was the first Tiger since 2005 to earn All-America first team honors after doing so on vault with a 9.900.
• The National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches/Women (NACGC/W) gave Mizzou Scholastic All-America distinction as the team's GPA averaged 3.4457. Missouri ranked 13th in the nation and first in the Big 12 with their GPA. Seven Tigers were named NACGC/W Scholar Athletes.