Gymnastics team looks for fifth-straight MAC title season

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Teammates look on with anticipation as Preslee Harrald, a sophomore from Owasso, Okl. performs her floor routine, Friday Jan. 10, 2013 at McGuirk Arena.

[wzslider autoplay="true" interval="5000" height="600" transition="'slide'" info="true" lightbox="true"] (EDITOR'S NOTE: In the January 13th issue of CM-Life, senior Emily Heinz was improperly spelled Hines. We apologize for the mistake.)

Gymnastics has won the Mid-American Conference title the last four years, and plans to make it a fifth.

Winning five straight will not be an easy task, as the Chippewas will face many teams in the NCAA top-25. The depth of the roster will prove to be a vital factor, with a core of veterans supplemented by a talented crop of freshmen and sophomores.

"I think it’s a huge honor," said senior Brittany Petzold. "I love being a Chippewa. Being part of a four-time, going for five-time MAC Championship team is amazing."

Co-captains Petzold and Emily Heinz make up the only seniors, whose leadership will be highly valued as the season progresses.

Last season, Petzold led CMU with 42 scores of 9.700 or better for the season, 24 of which were higher than 9.800. She will be returning after ranking No. 1 in the MAC in the all-around and in the top-10 in the vault, uneven bars and floor exercise.

Hines was a mainstay in the vault, balance beam and floor exercise, ranking No. 4 in the MAC in balance beam. She totaled 14 top-three finishes last season.

Junior Halle Moraw set all of her personal records in 2013. She scored a 9.950 for her floor routine last season, which puts her ninth in CMU history.

Moraw is a 2013 MAC champion on floor, earning a place on the All-MAC second team.

Junior Kylie Fagan scored multiple 9.9’s on the bars in 2013 and a 9.875 on beam for the Chippewas. Fagan has be the best on the team in her two events and, in 2013, she showed that in every meet.

Another key component to the team will be Brittany Petzold's younger sister, sophomore Kirsten Petzold. Kirsten is known predominately for her vaulting skills, but in her first meet in 2014 she showed she deserves a spot after her exhibition on floor.

The Chippewas have a schedule that graces them with their first five meets at home. CMU has the luxury of staying in McGuirk Arena until early February, where they have won their first two meets against Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Maryland already.

"I am very excited about it; it took a lot of schedule juggling over the last four years," said head coach Jerry Reighard. "Mount Pleasant is an area where no one is ever just passing through. Ball State, Ohio State, for those schools in the middle of the country, it's much easier for other schools to get to your location. We have to really plan ahead."

The schedule

CMU faces MAC opponent Ball State on Jan. 26. The Chippewas were ousted last year by fractions of a point by the Cardinals when freshman Denasiha Christian scored a pair of 9.8’s to win the meet at home for Ball State.

Arguably the toughest challenge for CMU will be their matchup with No. 16 University of Illinois. The mid-February meet is in the midst of the conference season for the Chippewas.

"I am most excited for the meet against Maryland," Reighard said. "They are a top-25 team and we didn't get a nod this year. We never do, although we always finish in the top-25, and this is our opportunity to prove ourselves."

The final home meet for CMU is against rivals Western Michigan. The Broncos, along with the Chippewas, were voted for the NCAA top-25, barely missing the cut. WMU gave CMU a run for its money in the MAC championship in 2013. Through a tie-breaker, the Chippewas took the trophy.

The MAC championship will be held in Ypsilanti this year on March 22.

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