Bowling Green State University Athletics
Gymnastics to host Missouri in first meet of 2002
January 09, 2002 | Gymnastics
Jan. 9, 2002
Gymnastics to host Missouri in first meet of 2002
The 2002 Bowling Green gymnastics squad will kick off its new season by hosting non-conference opponent Missouri this Sunday, January 13, at 2 p.m. in the Eppler Center Complex on the campus of BGSU. Tickets are $4 for adults and $2 for children.
Experienced...
BG will rely on senior leadership from team members Sarah Gaertner, Emily Gray, Mindy Untch, and 1999 NCAA Floor Exercise Champion, Marny Oestrang. She is a three-time MAC All Around Champion and a six-time All MAC performer.
BG has nine returning letterwinners from last season's squad and four newcomers to the program. Included in that list are juniors Kathy Emerson, Rachel Hall, Ann Marie Kassouf, sophomores Katie Carter, Kelly Kropko, Melissa Popovich, Pia Sjovall, and freshmen Kristin DiPietro, Kari Elste, Breanne Metzger, Stephanie Sams.
The Coaches...
Falcon Head Coach Dan Connelly enters his sixth year at the BG helm with a 40-62 overall record. Joining him on his staff for her second season is Emily Henson.
The Competition...
Coach Connelly is optimistic about the first competition of the year. "Our team looks really good. We have been training very hard since we came back from the holidays and they are ready to put on a great show," said Connelly. "Missouri is a very young team. As a matter of fact they have no seniors. They have a very good, relatively new head coach, and I know he is working his team very hard in preparation for this meet. Last year we met them twice at their place and we were 1-1. So this should prove to be a great way to open the season. I am very excited about this team because we have a couple of people ready that were here but did not compete last year and of course three very quality freshman", Connelly said.
Last Year...
The Tigers were 4-14 and finished fourth in the Big 12, while the Falcons finished 9-12 and were fifth in the MAC.
The Series...
BGSU trails the series, 1-2, with both teams winning once against the other a year ago.
Up Next...
The Falcons will host their first Mid American Conference meet on Saturday, January 19, at 7 p.m. against Central Michigan.
2002 OUTLOOK
With the return of nine letterwinners from the 2001 squad, the future looks very bright for the 2002 Falcons.
The Falcons have strong leadership from seniors Sarah Gaertner, Emily Gray, Marny Oestrang, and Mindy Untch. Gray (9th all-time in the vault), returns to the Falcon lineup and will compete on the beam and on the floor after having missed two seasons due to injuries. Fellow co-captain Gaertner will contribute on the floor. Untch will compete in bars (5th all-time) and beam (3rd all-time). The 1999 NCAA Floor Exercise Champion and three time All-MAC All Around Champion Oestrang will again participate in the all around (1st all-time).
The junior class is comprised of Kathy Emerson, Rachel Hall, and Ann Marie Kassouf. Emerson will compete in vault (3rd all-time), beam (2nd all-time) and bars. Hall will be a member of the all-around squad along with Kassouf (2nd all-time).
Sophomores Katie Carter, Kelly Kropko, Melisa Popovich, and Pia Sjovall look to contribute after their impressive freshman seasons. Carter will compete on floor, vault and beam while Kropko will be a memeber of three event squads on the bars (10th all-time), floor and beam. Popovich will also be a member of three squads on the bars (3rd all-time), the floor (2nd all-time) and the beam (6th all-time) while Sjovall will be a member of the all-around squad.
The 2002 Falcons are rounded out by the freshman class. Kristin DiPietro, Kari Elste, Stephanie Sams and redshirt freshman Breanne Metzger look to begin their careers for the Brown and Orange. DiPietro had an excellent year with Buckeye gymnastics and competed in the JO National Championship. Sams also had a stellar high school career making it to the Level 10 Regionals. Elste is looking to make an impact in the all-around. Metzger was a three-time Level 10 State All Around Champion in Pennsylvania, 2000 Region 7 All Around Champion and finished Top 20 at the Level 10 Nationals.
"We should be very deep. We don't have many team members this year, however, the quality of this group is perhaps the best overall in my history here at BGSU," said sixth-year head coach Dan Connelly.
