FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas’ gymnastics team found some of its old mojo Saturday and advanced to the NCAA Championships for the fifth consecutive year.
No. 10 Arkansas, which topped the nation’s rankings earlier this season, finished second to No. 3 UCLA at the NCAA South Central Regional in front of 2,713 fans at Barnhill Arena. UCLA and Arkansas advance to the 12-team national meet, which will be held April 20-22 in Duluth, Ga.
The Razorbacks were led by senior all-around standout Jaime Pisani and were helped immensely by the return to form by Kelci Lewis and Katherine Grable.
UCLA won the six-team meet with 197.225 points and Arkansas was second with 196.825. Arkansas’ point total was its second-highest of the season. The Razorbacks scored 49.175 or more points in each of the meet’s four disciplines.
“We were the old team tonight,” Arkansas co-Coach Mark Cook said. “I don’t mind finishing second as long as we advance to nationals. It’s a sweet moment.”
No. 15 Boise State was third with 196.050 and No. 19 Missouri was fourth with 195.450. Maryland and New Hampshire finished well back at 194.400 and 193.900, respectively.
Pisani sparkled in all four events, just as she has done all season. Pisani, ranked No. 1 nationally in the all-around, scored 39.625 points, scoring 9.90 on the vault, bars and floor exercise and a 9.95 on the beam.
Junior Amy Borsellino finished sixth in the all-around competition with 39.300 points, highlighted by 9.90 on the floor and 9.85 on the vault.
It has been proved late in the season that Pisani isn’t enough for the Razorbacks, who slumped down the stretch after injuries to Grable, Lewis and Jordan Salsberg, who is out for the season. Grable, once the top all-around competitor, has missed the past three meets with a badly sprained ankle.
“Kat is still a little sore,” Cook said. “She did well, especially on bars and the beam. She really calmed the team down quite a bit.”
Grable returned to compete in three events, skipping the vault, and scored 9.85 or better in all three. Lewis had a 9.8 in the vault and a 9.75 in the floor.
“We showed recovery,” Cook said. “We showed who we were early in the season. We’re very proud to have overcome some obstacles.”
The Bruins, the six-time national champions, gained a measure of redemption from one of the program’s losses.
In 2006, UCLA had finished third, behind Florida and Arkansas at the South Central Regional at Barnhill Arena. It ended a string of 14 consecutive NCAA appearances for UCLA, which had won four of the previous six national titles.
There was little doubt which were the best two teams Saturday. UCLA and Arkansas started strong, quickly leaving the Broncos and Tigers behind.
“We started on floor and had great momentum,” Pisani said. “We had a lot of fire and will to win. We kept hitting routine after routine.”
UCLA finished its meet in the fifth rotation, having clinched its spot in the national meet. Arkansas entered the last discipline, the fall-dangerous beam, with a nearly one-point lead over Boise State and 1.450 points ahead of Missouri.
Boise State had a solid vault, scoring 49.275 points, and needed Arkansas to slip up on the beam. It didn’t happen as Scarlett Williams, Samantha Kolbas and Shelby Salmon — all freshmen or sophomores — opened with 9.70 or better routines.
Arkansas ended any upset chance when Pisani and Grable closed the competition with routines of 9.95 and 9.90.
“We were a force,” Cook said. “We were in the zone.”
NCAA South Central Regional
Saturday At Barnhill Arena, Fayetteville
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
FAYETTEVILLE — Team individual results from the NCAA South Central Regional held Saturday at Barnhill Arena:
UCLA
VAULT (49.450) Baer 9.825, Hopfner-Hibbs 9.850, Peszek 9.950 Courtney 9.925, Frattone 9.825, Zamarripa 9.900. BARS (49.075) De La Torre 8.975, Courtney 9.825, Larson 9.775, Peszek 9.850, Zamarripa 9.900, Gerber 9.725. BEAM (49.225) Gerber 9.725, Baer 9.775, Larson 9.800, Zamarripa 9.900, Hopfner-Hibbs 9.850, Peszek 9.900. FLOOR (49.475) Frattone 9.825, Zamarripa 9.850, Courtney 9.900, Pritchett 9.875, Peszek 9.900, Hopfner-Hibbs 9.950. ALL-AROUND Peszek 39.600, Zamarripa 39.550.
ARKANSAS
VAULT (49.200) Lewis 9.800, Zumwalde 9.800, Williams 9.825, Howdeshell 9.800, Bosellino 9.875, Pisani 9.900. BARS (49.225) Borsellino 9.8, Canizaro 9.825, Salmon 9.850, Grable 9.85, Pisani 9.875, Howdeshell 9.825. BEAM (49.175) Williams 9.750. Kolbas 9.800, Salmon 9.800, Bosellino 9.725, Pisani 9.925, Grable 9.900. FLOOR (49.225) Zumwalde 9.825, Canizaro 9.750, Lewis 9.775, Bosellino 9.900, Pisani 9.925, Grable 9.800. ALL-AROUND Borsellino 39.300, Pisani 39.625.
BOISE STATE
VAULT (49.275) Black 9.775, Oswalt 9.775, Otuafi 9.850, Perkins 9.850, Potvin-Green 9.850, Glass 9.950. BARS (48.975) Black 9.700, Perkins 9.775, Morris 9.800, Glass 9.850, Potvin-Green 9.700, Mann 9.850. BEAM (48.625) Mann 9.475, Cinfio 9.700, Gher 9.825, Kazandjian 9.675, Potvin-Green 9.675, Glass 9.750. FLOOR (49.175) Mann 9.675, Otuafi 9.825, Black 9.775, Perkins 9.825, Potvin-Green 9.850, Glass 9.900. ALL-AROUND Glass 39.450, Potvin-Green 39.075.
MISSOURI
VAULT (48.775) Howard 9.700, Price 9.700, Landreth 9.525, Burke 9.675, Updike 9.850, Trevino 9.850. BARS (48.800) McGill 9.700, Medrea 9.675, Mulcahy 9.700, Updike 9.725, Burke 9.775, Heizelman 9.725. BEAM (48.800) Kappler 9.700, Medrea 9.625, Aliceaacosta 9.500, Howard 9.750, Updike 9.875, Burke 9.850. FLOOR (49.250) Medrea 9.800, Trevino 9.775, Howard 9.850, Updike 9.900, burke 9.875, Conkle 9.825. ALL-ALOUND Burke 39.175, Updike 39.500
MARYLAND
VAULT (48.875) Giameo 9.675, Skochko 9.650, Cofsky 9.800, Phillips 9.850, Dodds 9.800, Krikorian 9.750. BARS (48.650) Manzi 9.755, Black 9.750, Dodds 9.750, Phillips 8.900, Cofsky 9.650, Tang 9.725. BEAM (48.025) Giameo 9.775, Pang 9.525, Skochko 9.500, Krikorian 9.200, Melander 9.575, Manzi 9.650. FLOOR (48.850) Giameo 9.700, Skochko 9.475, Walters 9.750, Cofsky 9.750, Krikorian 9.800, Dodds 9.850.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
VAULT (48.875) Hill 9.750, Connors 9.800, Barile 9.725, Hudson 9.775, Carr 9.800, Fobes 9.750. BARS (48.450) Hudson 9.575, Rudiger 9.675, Carr 9.700, Reibold 9.750, Fobes 8.900, Aucoin 9.750. BEAM (47.675) Minichiello 9.500, Aucoin 9.425, Fobes 8.275, Gray 9.750, Reibold 9.175, Carr 9.825. FLOOR (48.900) Percevecz 9.725, McGeever 9.775, Gray 9.750, Barile 9.775, Machado 9.800, Fobes 9.800. ALL-AROUND Fobes 36.725
Sports, Pages 23 on 04/08/2012