Jan. 25, 2008

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By Matthew C. Worthington, Gymnastics Contact

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - The Southeast Missouri State Redhawks continue to shine as they picked up a win in the Midwest Independent Conference season opener against the ever-tough Illinois State Redbirds, 194.050-192.200.

"Illinois State is a much improved team this year," said head coach Tom Farden. "It made for a great meet."

The Redhawks began the night on vault where they cracked into the Top Ten All-Time Record Book at Southeast with a ninth-place score of 48.725. Two gymnasts shared the individual title as Illinois State's Meaghan Koshman and Southeast gymnast Brianna Gaddie (East Grand Forks, Minn./Red River Valley) tallied a remarkable 9.850. Following close behind the winners were Starlyn Schwartz (Pensacola, Fla./First City Gymnastics), who finished second with 9.750, and Jennifer Dinan (Doniphan, Neb./Grand Island Twisters) who finished with a third place 9.725.

"We had a great vault," said Gaddie. "We trained really hard and were able to stay consistent and focused."

Southeast's weak spot of the night came on the bars as they were only able to finish with a score of 48.450. The bright spot on the bars came as Southeast gymnasts Lauren Dinan (Doniphan, Neb./Nebraska Twisters) and Jacqueline Heath (Minn./St. Cloud Technical) shared the individual title with two Illinois State gymnasts (9.775).

On beam, Southeast gymnast Jena Nguyen (Sioux Falls, S.D./All-American) had a stellar night, earning the individual title with a score of 9.825. Tying for second, were gymnasts Sandra Blake (Tri-Cities, Wash./Mid-Columbia) and Rikara Turner (Hastings, Minn/Twin City Twisters) as they tallied a 9.775.

As the Redhawks moved to the floor exercise, they trailed Illinois state by .025 points. The ladies pulled together once again and finished with a team total of 48.650. Blake led the way for Southeast as she shared the individual title with two Illinois State gymnasts, scoring 9.800. Southeast took the next three spots on floor as Turner earned a 9.775, Amber Garlotte (Lee's Summit, Mo./Eagle Gymnastics) scored a 9.750 and Nguyen tallied a 9.725.

On the all-around, Blake captured her first sole individual title of the season as she barely edged out teammate Turner, 38.950-38.925. The score was a season-high for Blake and tied a career-high for Turner.

"We had a really solid meet tonight, but we're not quite there yet," said Farden. "We've got a lot more upswing and need to be firing on all cylinders."

The Redhawks will again be tested as they host current No.25 University of Iowa. The meet is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 2nd at Houck Field House. Special events going on are "Girl Power" and "Alumni Night". The Southeast gymnasts look forward to seeing their fans come cheer them on in what should be another crowd pleaser.

GO REDHAWKS!!!