2008 Woodie Awards
CMU looks to beat Western again
Chippewas still looking for first win of season
By: Justin Berndt
Issue date: 2/8/08 Section: Sports
|
Last weekend at the State of Michigan Classic, CMU scored higher than Western. Central finished with a 191.95, while WMU finished with 190.05. As a result, the Chippewas are more confident heading into this weekend's meet than at any other time during the season.
"If we didn't beat them I'd be very disappointed," said sophomore Katie Simon. "We should beat them - that's why we're aiming to score more."
Coach Jerry Reighard has seen the result of last weekend's meet pay off in the team's preparation for Western.
"I see the confidence in practice," he said. "I'm seeing Katie and Jess Neel both getting back to the form that we're accustomed to seeing. Those are real positive things."
Simon's consistency is noticeable. Last weekend she led the team with a 39.025 all-around score. The score was the second highest of the night, and helped her win Mid-American Conference co-Gymnast of the Week with Kent State freshman Christina Lenny.
"The part that we want to maintain is that athletes that had success continue to build on that," Reighard said.
The Chippewas' score last weekend was the first time they eclipsed a point total more than 190.
Saturday's meet with the Broncos (2-2 overall, 1-1 MAC), is the first of five consecutive conference meets for CMU (1-7, 0-1 MAC).
As a result, the team wants to make sure the progress it showed last weekend isn't lost in front of its home fans.
"(This meet is) very critical - it's very important," said senior Danielle Espinoza. "We need this because it's moving forward and we don't want to move backward."
In dual meets, teams begins the meet on either the uneven bars or the vault. If the Chippewas win the conference, they would be able to choose on which event to begin. It's a slight mental advantage that could make all the difference when the MAC Championship meet beings March 29 in Kent, Ohio, Reighard said.
CMU's loss at Eastern Michigan on Jan. 26 added more importance to the rest of its MAC schedule.
"We want to start out on vault in the MAC Championship meet, so we can't have anymore losses," said senior Jenna D'Alie.
Last season's disappointing loss at Western still looms in the minds of each returning gymnast. Reighard said, as always, execution will be important.
"We feel that we've had some success with Western," Reighard said. "We know that it's going to be a really close meet, so consistency and quality are going to be the two things that we're looking for."
sports@cm-life.com
Be the first to comment on this story