Bowling Green State University Athletics
Oestreng Earns Double Honor From MAC
March 20, 2001 | Gymnastics
March 20, 2001
Cleveland, Ohio - For the fourth time this season BGSU junior Marny Oestreng was named MAC Gymnast of the Week, and was named MAC Female Scholar Athlete of the Week as well. Oestreng holds a 3.25 GPA in management information systems.
MAC Co-Gymnasts of the Week
Jenny Gantt Ball State (Jr., Kettering, Ohio)
Gantt registered her eighth first-place finish of the year on the floor with a 9.925 on Friday, March 16 against Western Michigan and Southeast Missouri. She also tied for first on the vault with a career-tieing high 9.750 and placed seocnd on the bars with a career-high 9.850 to help BSU extend its home-winning streak 21.
Marny Oestreng Bowling Green (Jr., Trogstad, Norway)
Oestreng won her fifth all-around competition of the year against Ohio State On Saturday, March 17. She tied for second on the floor (9.900), third on the vault (9.900) fourth on the bars (9.850) and fifth on the beam (9.675) for an all-around score of 39.325.
Other Nominees
Gina Black (CMU, Sr., Palatine, Ill.) won the all-around against NIU with a 38.900. She also finished third on the floor exercise (9.875) and tied for third on the beam with a 9.750. Her other scores were a 9.65 on the vault and a 9.625 on the bars.
Jessie James (KSU, Fr., Reynoldsburg, Ohio) was the high all-arounder for the Golden Flashes with a four-event total of 38.625 in Kent State's 194.400-193.350 victory over Pittsburgh March 17. She finished third on the vault with a 9.750 and was the high finisher for Kent State with a third-place mark of 9.825 on the floor exercise. James has had an exceptional freshman year and helped Kent State to the regular-season conference crown with a 5-1 record and an 11-6 overall record.
Kristen Maul (WMU, Jr., Clinton Township, Mich.) was the Broncos' top finisher on beam (9.775) and floor (9.900) at Ball State. She also posted a 9.725 on bars. Maul,s floor score marked a personal career best.
Past MAC Gymnasts of the WeekMarch 20 Jenny Gantt Ball State Marny Oestreng Bowling Green March 13 Jenny Eckel Kent State March 6 Marny Oestreng Bowling Green February 27 Gina Black Central Michgian February 20 Ann Marie Kassouf Bowling Green Amy Bodus Ball State February 13 Natalie Hashimoto Eastern Michigan February 6 Jenny Eckel Kent State January 30 Marny Oestreng Bowling Green Natalie Hashimoto Eastern Michigan January 22 Natalie Hashimoto Eastern Michigan January 16 Marny Oestreng Bowling Green January 9 Amy Bodus Ball State
MAC Scholar-Athlete of the Week (Gymnast winners only)
March 20 Marny Oestreng Bowling Green March 13 Renee Planck Ball State March 6 Laura Chow Central Michigan January 20 Laura Chow Central Michigan January 9 Amy Bodus Ball State
Team Notes
Ball State rallied from behind to continue its home winning streak (21) with a first-place finish of 194.075, ahead of Western Michigan (193.675) and Southeast Missouri (191.250). The win gave BSU its third-successive undefeated home record. The Cardinals posted the second-highest marks in school history on the bars (49.150) and floor (49.350) and took top honors in all four events on the way to victory. Four Cardinals placed in the top five on the bars and three took top-five honors on the floor and vault. Jenny Gantt turned in her eighth first-place finish of the year on the floor (9.925), edging teammate Amy Bodus who tied her career high of 9.900. Gantt also tied Kim Cromer for first place on the vault, while Quina Williams gave BSU a 1-2-3 finish in the event. Courtney Vojtasek posted a career-high 9.875 to take first on the bars. Renee Planck rounded out BSU,s sweep of the events with her 9.800 winning score on the beam. The Cardinals have finished second at the past three MAC Championships.
Bowling Green established a new season-high on the bars with a 48.875 in a 196.525-194.950 loss to Ohio State. Marny Oestreng led the Falcons by winning her fifth all-around competition of the year. She tied for second on the floor (9.900), third on the vault (9.900) fourth on the bars (9.850) and fifth on the beam (9.675) for an all-around score of 39.325.
Central Michigan rallied to win its last three MAC matchups to even its conference mark at 3-3 after opening the season 0-3. CMU made it a clean sweep against NIU, winning all of the individual events. Tammy Verrinder won the vault and bars, Laura Chow won on beam, Michele Orloski finished first on the floor exercise and Gina Black won the all-around. The Chippewas are looking to win their fourth straight MAC title this weekend at Kent State.
Kent State picked up a 194.400-193.350 victory over the University of Pittsburgh (2-8) on March 17. The meet marked the end of the regular season for Kent State, host of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championships March 24 at 2 p.m. Freshman Jessie James was the high all-arounder for the Golden Flashes with a four-event total of 38.625. She finished third on the vault with a 9.750 and was the high finisher for Kent State with a third-place mark of 9.825 on the floor exercise. Junior Heather Langham and sophomore Katie Pokrana tied for the top spot on the beam with a 9.775. Senior co-captain Kelly Lovejoy also had a first-place finish on the beam with a score of 9.825. Senior co-captain Jill Mackey tied for fourth on the floor with a 9.800. Her score marks the 11th straight meet she has scored a 9.800 or above this season.
Northern Illinois picked up its best road mark of the year with a 192.000 at the State of Illinois Classic. The score was NIU's best mark away from Chick Evans Field House since that same meet three years ago as NIU posted a 192.100 on March 14, 1998. Sophomore Anna Gardina had the best Northern Illinois score on all-four events, leading up to her all-around total of 39.125 that tied her for second place. Gardina set a new career high with a 9.800 on the uneven parellel bars. Fellow sophomore Kristie Woodin scored a personal best on the balance beam, nailing a 9.800 to improve on her previous mark of 9.500. Sunday against Central Michigan, the Huskies got a boost from junior Rosa Marafioti. Marafioti had the top NIU scores on both the beam and vault, setting a career-high with a 9.675 on vault, on her way to a personal-best 38.400 in the all-around. Once again Gardina led the charge for the Huskies, finishing third in the all-around with a 38.750 including three of the Huskies' six top-five scores.
Western Michigan split with Ball State and Southeast Missouri on Friday, March 16, but fell to 3-3 in MAC competition to end in a four-way tie for third place. Host Ball State won the triangular with a score of 195.075, just ahead of WMU,s 193.675. Southeast Missouri scored 191.350 for third place. Junior Kristen Maul posted a personal-best 9.900 in the floor exercise at Ball State. WMU continues to improve with has seven MAC dual wins in the past two seasons. Broncos haven't competed at home since Feb. 18. Sophomore Annie Adkins has posted a 9.825 on bars in three straight meets. WMU hasn't had an individual compete in the all-around since Adkins competed in all four events in a key win over Central Michigan. Redshirt freshman Kara Cretsinger, recently inserted into the vault lineup, continues to post scores that count toward the team total.
