and Florida will be in town on the 30th of January, so be here or be square. Roll Tide and goodnight from Coleman Coliseum.

the balance beam of .05 (Mari Bayer's routine from a 9.75 to a 9.80). PBAs thought that score was a little low.

David Patterson noted that Stephanie's fall on her first tumbling pass occurred because she planted her legs too far apart on her front handspring, which reduced her punching power into the double full punch front sequence. She knew right away what she had done wrong so the adjustment will be made by her next week. Such small but very important details in the rush of tumbling can determine a successful versus unsuccessful performance. Regarding Dana Filetti's floor, David noted that she was given credit on the third tumbling pass for a 1 1/2 though she originally was planning a double full.

Lisa Clark is in second with a 38.325.

Bars also is won by the Tide (Rice, Comeaux and Miles).

Balance Beam honors are shared by: Reeser and Stopper of PSU, Jeana Rice wins it with a 9.90.

Rice also wins the floor, followed by Brion and Bayer.

Lauren Holdefer exhibits her floor routine with a new opening tumbling pass of a running double front, landed with a little bend at the knees. Second pass had a rough execution on the third element (front handspring, front full to front punch) but she stood it up and finished with a double tuck, nice and high. She received a 9.75 for this exhibition routine.

Alabama finishes with a 49.325 on the floor and a 197.075. There may have been a .05 score increase after the third rotation, so we will check this final score.

We need another one just like that one. Come on Brion!

dangerously thrown close to the edge of the beam. She receives a 9.125 but the rest of the Lions are doing well. Stopper comes right after her and gets a 9.875.

She opens up with a beautiful double pike, nailed it! Gorgeous dance and the second pass is landed well (front-front full-front punch). She finishes with a front handspring to two front layouts and the crowd roars their approval.

Stephanie Kite is up next for the Tide. She falls on her front through to a double full punch front so Filetti's score will be counted. She finishes up nicely. Stephanie has not fallen in three years and she was the headline in the Tuscaloosa News today, so this may be tantamount to showing up on the cover of Sports Illustrated as the preseason number one pick. She had a great showing last week so no need to worry.

(front handspring to front full to front pike) and the final pass (whip through to a double twist). What a performer.

routine. Jeana Rice will hopefully show us the way.

She throws the second pass this week without any problem but again bails on the third pass (supposed to be a double twist but ends up being a rather loose 2 1/2 twist).

series (bhs-bhs-layout). She dismounts with a double twist, piked down with loose form, one step to the side.

Michelle Reeser is through her first pass of the double back (deep step back) and her second pass. The crowd loves her new music. She finishes with a fury and throws her arms to the sky. The crowd follows with a huge roar. Mighty Mouse delivers.

is 8,941.

with the gymnasts on the floor. Old and young alike. Ten Troupe and football recruits in the stands alike!

Alabama leads by over two points.

UA has a 49.100 on the balance beam and a running total of 147.75.

Lisa Clark of PSU is also throwing the difficulty tonight but is not yet in top form. She also has a low and forward landing of the tuck full in and the double tuck at the end is landed low and she bunny hops back on the tape line a few times to keep from stepping out. Erin Rightley is exhibiting on the beam and misses that flight series layout but everything else looks very nice. Freshman nerves are over.

Jeana Rice is looking her usual savvy self on the beam, rocking through that great flight series (bhs-layout-layout), wolf full and she fights for the stuck landing (double twist) but ends up taking a small step forward. Way to go!

very low (split legs as well mid-air). She follows with a double pike tumbling pass that she lands much better. Whip to double tuck at the end is also very loose in her form and landed forward but she is sure not afraid to throw the difficulty in this first meet. The main thing is that she stood all passes up. High five to her from her team mates.

hug of congratulations. Mari Bayer is through her unique flight series, the front aerial to immediate back handspring to Korbut. She is also through her front walkover to back leg extension (split). Leap series of switch leap to straddle is landed two-footed but she finishes strongly with the switch leap to immediate gainer back pike, small hop forward on the landing. We have five in the can!

Mari Bayer is up next and wants a bigger score but we just want her to stay on.

and Hoover opens with a double pike, landed very well.

We need a big score to drop the lower score. Shannon is looking very good so far with her flight series and her gymacro series but she ends up losing bonus when she fails to combine the final leap series (switch leap but does not throw the wolf).

of her leap series that she covered nicely. Huge amplitude on the running split jump (side) and the flight series (two-footed back handspring to layout). Mehrer gets a 9.50 and Pierce gets a 9.75. She might have missed an element so we will review the tape closely on this one.

Dana Pierce is up next. PSU's Ashley Mehrer struggles with her first and final passes. Double pike was stumbled backwards and the final pass was landed almost forward onto her hands, so these will be deductions.

She had a few deductions perhaps on the leap series that had limited amplitude (wolf full combination).

She also does a cartwheel down onto the beam and finishes with a 3/4 straddle before dismounting with the gainer backpike, another nailed landing. Roll Tide!

She opens with a double pike, landed solid. Front-front full-front pike. She closes with a front handspring to front layout to front tuck (landed a little low).

She is doing her routine to "Lady Marmalade". She is through her flight series (bhs-layout-Korbut); switch leap to wolf jump combo is right on, cartwheel down onto the beam and then a switch leap to two straddle jumps, nicely done. She will dismount with a bhs to a full twist and nails it!

week. They were solid at the Super Six Challenge but not as polished as they have appeared in pre-season. Time to hit tonight!

and Jeana Rice a 9.90 for her bars routine. Bama has a 49.30 on the uneven bars and a running total of 98.65.

on the bars landing of the very high full twisting double back. Filetti gets a 9.30 for her bars routine.

routine going until she under-rotated that dangerous double front and sat it down. Argh! Hrozek got a 9.850 for her stupendous bars routine, nailing the double tuck out of a half turn (right on top of the bar).

and Hoover just vaulted a solid Yurchenko 1/1.

double front dismount but she got amazing distance on the landing!

and Stopper completes a pike 1/2 twist.

and she was deducted during the transition to low bar (leg split)but the two inverted giants were very smooth and tight and the Tkatchev as well.

with one step forward on the landing for a 9.700. Perhaps they deducted for limited height and distance.

Every element executed very well, the double layout landed chest high arms extended upwards. She receives a 9.875!

stands it up! A 9.60.

before signaling they are ready to rumble. And it looks like we're ready to go!

a toe-on to immediate giant full to Tkatchev combination tonight on the bars and dismount with a double layout.

Penn State has a score of 47.925 on the uneven bars to UA's 49.350 on the vault.

a 9.95. Stick the landing gal and stay on, it'll be there.

of movement on the landing for a 9.775 (exhibition). The Tide finishes with a 49.350 on the vault. Great start!

stood up that tucked full in dismount. Streicher (9.125) of PSU ends up falling forward on her dismount, so PSU will have to count at least one of the falls.

pretty much stuck. She gets a 9.95!

and Ilg of PSU gets a 9.850 for her bars routine.

Allen of PSU gets a 9.55. Michelle Ilg of PSU is throwing lots of difficulty (pak salto, Tkatchev)and completes her routine to nice applause from the Tide fans.

Pierce follows behind and simply nails hers, just like last week. Big smile for hopefully a big score.

Shannon Hrozek is next and she fell slightly to the left. Not enough push off the vault and off to the left side.

She receives a 9.850. Filetti follows with an almost stuck Yurchenko full twist on back pike off.

Sarah is wearing our favorite shantung silk pantsuit in cranberry. Coach Shephard is in black pants and a crisp white shirt with a dark patterned tie. Penn State is in blue and white with sequins outlining the Nittany Lion image on the chest. Alabama is wearing the 2002 Super Six Nationals outfit, deep crimson swirls on the bodice with contrasting white at the shoulders and sleeve (crimson cuffs at the wrists).

so we will estimate it at around 7500 to 8000. More are coming through the portals with food in hand.

to line up. Jeana gets the biggest applause for all of her accolades and the strongest hug from Big Al (he literally swallows her). The 2003 SEC Gymnastics Champion Banner is unfurled with fireworks and the crowd cheers loudly.

after they are introduced.

Vault: Ashley Mehrer, Michelle Ilg, Jennifer Orlando, Kate Stopper, Meredith Hoover, Lisa Clark

Bars: Corissa Pirkl, Stephanie Sullivan, Cecile Allen, Michelle Ilg, Lisa Clark, Kelly Streicher

Beam: Genavieve Shingle, Ashley Mehrer, Stephanie Sullivan, Lisa Clark, Kate Stopper, Meredith Hoover

Floor: Michelle Ilg, Ashley Mehrer, Genavieve Shingle, Meredith Hoover, Jennifer Orlando, Lisa Clark

cheerleaders but only gets her five inches off the ground. He goes back to boogeying, his forte.

On vault: Jeana, Dana Filetti, Shannon, Dana Pierce, Alexis, Ashley

On bars: Ashley, Dana Pierce, Brittany, Shannon, Dana Filetti, Jeana

On beam: Michelle, Rachael, Dana Pierce, Shannon, Mari, Jeana

On floor: Michelle, Dana Filetti, Jeana, Stephanie, Lauren, Alexis

from Johnna Gay (vault), Erin Rightley (beam) and Mari Bayer (bars).

as we have 20 minutes until the teams are introduced.

the crowd and a high five from Bryan. Warm-ups are almost over and the teams will retire to prepare for the main event shortly.

running double front. Now we get to see Johnna! Dance gal dance. She opens with a double pike and closes with a 2 1/2 twist.

And then she throws a perfect one! Awesome says Coach Patterson.

while Filetti, Kite, Rice, Bayer, Brion, Reeser, Gay, and Holdefer will be among the chosen for the line-up. Gay is looking wonderful on that 2 1/2 twist, nice and high.

superb first week showing (49.60). Yes, that's Michelle Reeser's music that will start us off in long warm-ups, so maybe she is ready to either compete or exhibit her new routine.

as she is struggling with this element.

Rachael Delahoussaye,our sophomore from Louisiana, is intent on securing her spot in the beam line-up with superb warm-ups as well.

Mari Bayer, Jeana Rice, Dana Pierce, and Shannon Hrozek are warming up the beam. And Alexis Brion!

It looks like we may see Erin Rightley tonight on the balance beam as she begins warming up on this apparatus. Ashley will go through one more routine on the bars. Mari Bayer may be taking a break on the bars tonight as she is warming up beam at this time.

Brittany Comeaux nailed that double front dismount with such definition that even Coach Patterson's eyes flew open with admiration!

as the shrimpers finish up for the Tide on the warm-ups. Nice landing of the double front by Filetti. Nice full routine by Brion, reaching all of her handstands. She may exhibit tonight, along with Pierce and Reeser.

release move next. Hrozek has that Gienger down pat as well.

inverted giants)but is not quite hitting that transition handstand on the low bar.

Nice full routine in warm-ups on the bars by Jeana Rice, our ace-in-the hole.

Alexis Brion, Michelle Reeser, Ashley Miles and Brittany Comeaux warming up on the bars.

of practice. Then he recalled how Larissa got poked in the eye by one of the gymnasts during a "high five" in practice following a great routine. Larissa just can't find any luck avoiding these freaky accidents!

we continue with the long warm-ups.

on her Yurchenko 1/1. She seems to be twisting either a little too soon or too late, because they are having to spot her more than the other gals. That last run pleased them all, so whatever they told her seemed to work.

that we will have to wait until the first few rotations to become more familiar with them. Some of their dismounts being warmed up include a full in, double layout and a double tuck.

full twist on back pike off. Jeana Rice just nailed another Y-1/1 warm-up and Johnna Gay followed her with the same vault, tucked.

We are in Coleman Coliseum preparing for a 7:30 pm meet between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Penn State Nittany Lions. Penn State is warming up on the uneven bars while the Tide starts on the vault. Lisa Clark, a transfer from Auburn, is warming up on the bars for her new team. Ashley Miles, Shannon Hrozek, Jeana Rice and Dana Pierce just threw their Yurchenko 1/1 vaults, landing them well. Alexis Brion is warming up her front pike 1/2 twist and landed it very well.