Now that the University of Denver gymnastics team has made its first trip to the NCAA Championships, the team is ready for more.

"Our goal is to improve," said Denver Head Coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart. "We want to go and not just finish in twelfth. We want to finish higher than twelfth."

Not that twelfth is bad. The team was excited and happy with its 2001 season. In fact, Kutcher-Rinehart noted, this is the highest finish a small, private college has ever had at the NCAA Championships. But, this year's program seems to have the drive to not only make it to the Big Show, but to reach their goal. "We just have a lot of energy and potential," Kutcher-Rinehart said.

That potential might come from the fact that the team returns nine veterans and is bringing in five freshmen. Though sophomore Ashley Shible earned second-team All American honors on the vault at Athens and classmate Emily Bankhead is a strong all-around gymnast, Kutcher-Rinehart contends the strength of the team lies in the fact it does not have to depend on one person.

"There is not one particular person who carries our team," she said. "This is an all-team effort."

Kutcher-Rinehart joined the Denver program only three years ago. In her second season, the team missed the national championship by just .025. That year, three of her gymnasts qualified in the all around. The team took that missed opportunity and used it to its advantage, Kutcher-Rinehart said. "I really believe positive things come out of adversity," she explained. "Being so close was definitely a driving factor throughout last year."

Though Kutcher-Rinehart cannot predict the team's top events, she can predict her team's more difficult competitions. In addition to traveling to Alabama for the first time, the Pioneers will also be facing Michigan, Stanford and Penn State. Moreover, Denver was also selected to host the 2002 North Central Regional Championships. This raised level of competition will make the team stronger in the post-season, Kutcher-Rinehart said.

There will be improved height, amplitude and depth this year, the head coach explained. Fans should see double layouts on the floor exercise and new dismounts on the uneven bars. One of her gymnasts, Shible, has a vault named for her. "It's a half-on, half-off, front tuck with a half," Kutcher-Rinehart explained.

Prior to joining the Pioneers, Kutcher-Rinehart was an assistant coach at the University of Michigan, serving alongside the Alabama assistant coach, Bryan Raschilla, at one point. And before that, she was with the University of Florida, not as a coach, but as a gymnast. There she was a four-year letterwinner and helped the Gators to the 1989 Southeastern Conference Championship title her freshman year.

As a former SEC gymnast, Kutcher-Rinehart understands what competing in Coleman Coliseum is all about, and she is looking forward to bringing her team here. "Alabama has an incredible program, and we can't wait to compete in front of the fans," she said. "It is going to be a first-class event."