Central Michigan Life

Issue date: 3/14/08 Section: Sports

Senior Danielle Espinoza performs her balance beam routine during CMU's loss to Kent State on Feb. 23 at Rose Arena. Espinoza will compete at home for the final time Saturday at 7 p.m. against Ball State. [Click to enlarge]

Saturday marks the final time two gymnast seniors will compete at Rose Arena.

And the rest of the Chippewas feel it's their responsibility to make it memorable for Danielle Espinoza and Jenna D'Alie.

"Everything we do will be for Jenna and Danielle because they're our seniors," said sophomore Kyla Krygier. "There's pressure regardless of if it's the last meet, but we're just going to go out and do gymnastics. That's why you compete in a team sport - for your teammates."

There are two meets left before the Mid-American Conference championship meet, but Saturday's 7 p.m. meet with Ball State holds special significance.

"I think that's the team's responsibility - they're members of a team that have a responsibility to those seniors to lift them up in their last appearance in Rose Arena," said coach Jerry Reighard. "As coaches, we're just going out and hoping to get solid performances from all our athletes."

While it is possible for D'Alie to come back for a fifth season, the team is approaching this meet as though it will be a send-off to both gymnasts.

Although Ball State (1-10 overall, 0-5 MAC) has struggled thus far, the Cardinals are coming off a week in which they recorded their first win of the season. BSU scored 193.175 in and placed second in a three-team meet at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

It was the first time all season the Cardinals had scored higher than 190. The performance helped make Cardinals senior Erika Gilkerson the MAC Gymnast of the Week.

Despite holding the better record, the Chippewas (5-11, 3-4 MAC) insist they will not look past their opponent.

"We still treat them the same. We're not really going against our opponent; we're going against ourselves," D'Alie said. "We're coming out and trying to do well in every meet so we can go to (NCAA) regionals."

Reighard said his team has more immediate goals, such as developing consistency and beginning a winning streak. CMU travels to Western Michigan Feb. 15 in preparation for the following weekend's MAC Championships.

"These next two meets, No. 1 we need some wins to give us some confidence," he said. "We're not going to add (routines) this year. We have in the past, but we're not in that position this year."


sports@cm-life.com

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