Region Four Competition
Saturday, April 1, 2000
At 6:00 p.m.
In Coleman Coliseum

The University of Alabama will be hosts for the Region Four Meet this coming Saturday. The top two teams from this meet will go on to the NCAA Championships in Boise Idaho. The top twelve teams in the nation have been paired up at six different sites to compete. Alabama stays home to host, and will be joined by the Iowa State Cyclones, who are ranked eighth nationally. Once the top twelve teams have been assigned, the remaining top four teams from Region Four will also be joining the Tide and the Cyclones. They are Central Michigan, Kent State, Michigan State, and Ohio State.

Alabama's stiffest competition should come from Iowa State. They won the Big 12 Conference Meet with a score of 196.775, edging out their rivals, Nebraska. The Cyclones are strong on the uneven bars and floor, but have had some consistency problems on the balance beam. Junior Betsy Hamm will be the gymnast to watch for on all events. SEC fans may remember her from Florida. She transferred to Iowa State for her first season with the Cyclones this year. She has broken several school records in her short career, so far, with Iowa State. She has scored a season high of 39.6 in the All Around competition twice this year, last at the pressure packed Big 12 competition. Strong vaulters for Iowa State include Sophomore Shelly Kringen, and Freshman Karen Kuplicki. On the uneven bars, Senior Kelli More, Senior Sarah Sanderson, and Junior Jessy Smith have shown their ability to throw strong, consistent routines. The most consistent performer on balance beam has been More, with a regional qualifying score on this event of 9.91. Sophomore Stephanie Sweitzer is also strong on this event. Iowa State shows its greatest depth on the Floor Exercise. Hamm is the strongest of her teammates on this event, however, Kringen, More, Sanderson and Smith, have all shown they can produce high scoring routines. Added to this list is Junior Lauren Goldberg who has competed primarily on the floor exercise this year.

The Central Michigan Chippewas have one of their strongest teams this year, and are ranked 22^nd in the nation. The team score has been broken several times by this year's gymnasts, and they have a season high of 195.825. Senior Nicole Liphardt, Sophomore Bethany Couturier, and Freshman Tammy Verrinder have been strong All Around competitors for the team. Watch for Verrinder particularly on vault. Liphardt strengths lie in the uneven bars and floor exercise. Couturier has been most consistent on floor exercise and balance beam and is ranked 24^th nationally on the beam. Also on balance beam watch for Senior Nicole Bills, who holds the school record.

Kent State University is ranked 25^th in the nation. Sophomore Heather Langham has shown her ability to compete All Around and posted a high of 39.55 earlier this year. Her strengths are on uneven bars and floor exercise. Another All Around competitor is Freshman Jenny Eckel, who has thrown some high scores on beam and floor exercise, but is not as consistent as her teammate, Langham. Junior Melissa Liebling has competed All Around this year, with floor exercise and beam as her strongest events. Also watch for Senior Kristy High on floor exercise, where she broke the school record earlier this year with a 9.975. Freshman Katie Pokrana and Senior Susie Stadelman have been strong vaulters for the Golden Flash team. Stadleman also excels on the uneven bars.

The Michigan State Spartans have three members who have competed All Around. They are lead by Junior Melissa Green who has a high of 39.4 this year. She excels on the uneven bars, and is currently ranked 11^th in the nation. Her floor routine is also strong, scoring a high of 9.975 and is able to perform a 9.9 routine on beam, but is not always as consistent as she needs to be. Freshman Christy Linder has been making a place for herself on the team as an All Around competitor, doing well on bars, beam and floor. Senior Polly Kiker should also be watched on bars, beam and floor exercise as she has had scores of 9.9 or better this year on these events. Junior Lori Ruane has shown she is a capable vaulter and a consistent floor worker for the team. Junior Elisabeth Forshier is one of, if not the most dependable vaulter for the team. On the bars, another freshman, Diana Crea is making herself known on the Spartans team.

The final team to have made it into the Region Four competition this year is Ohio State University. Junior Lindsey Vagedes is a strong and powerful competitor for the Buckeyes, particularly on the vault and floor exercise, where she is ranked 15^th and 24^th respectively in the nation. She has had an All Around score this year of 39.375. Her greatest challenges have been on the uneven bars this year. Sophomore Jill Tucker is also a dependable vault and floor worker, the only two events she competes in. Junior Stephanie Buerkel and Freshman Sarah Spring have also been regular All Around competitors. Senior Elizabeth Jensen competes very consistently for the team on bars and beam. Another potential high scorer for the team on bars is Sophomore Mary Beth Doerr.

There are five All Around competitors, and four event specialists invited to compete. They come from teams that did not qualify for the Region Four meet, but excel in their individual areas of competition. The All Around competitors include Sophomore Marny Oestreng, from Bowling Green, Junior Sally Cantrell, from Auburn, Senior Laura Szczepanski from Ball St., Freshman Julia Gore from Kentucky, and who is also the SEC Freshman of the year, and Senior Lori Gerhardt, from Western Michigan. The event specialists are: Freshman Natalie Hashimoto, from Eastern Michigan, competing on vault, Junior Andrea Ruhe, from Western Michigan, competing on the uneven bars, Freshman Cheryl Lancaster, competing on the balance beam, and Senior Mila Chitwood, from Kentucky, on the floor exercise.

There is a wealth of talent coming to town this weekend. Expect to see some awesome routines from our Bama gymnasts and their competitors. A lot is at stake for these teams, and for the individual competitors. The top two teams from this meet will continue on to the NCAA Championship Competition in Boise, Idaho in April. It will also help determine which of the individuals will advance. Let's give these visiting teams a warm southern welcome with a packed house on Saturday night!