Women's Gymnasts Ready For New Year
1/4/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
Jan. 4, 2000
Health and success go hand and hand in the gymnastics world. In 1999, the Michigan State Spartans began the season with both and ended with neither. For the year 2000, the Spartans, returning a full complement of healthy gymnasts, look to return to the form that saw them ranked in nearly every poll in 1998.
?Our goal this year is to regain the success that we?ve experienced in the past years.? said Spartan head coach Kathie Klages. ?To put that in perspective, it would be to return to the top 15 in the country, finish in the top three at the Big Ten Championships, and, if all things go well, really concentrate on trying to qualify to the national championships.?
Leading the team this season will be senior captain Polly Kiker and fifth-year senior Erin Mullen. Kiker attained All-Big Ten status in 1998 and was one of the team?s anchors last season. Mullen returns as a fifth-year senior, very unusual in the sport of gymnastics. She was one of MSU?s most consistent performers in her first three seasons, earning All-Big Ten honors as a freshman, but sat out last season after undergoing shoulder surgery.
Juniors Melissa Green, Elisabeth Forshier, Toni Duce and Lori Ruane are all keys to MSU?s fortunes. All three competed in every meet last season and stepped up their performances as more was asked. Green returns as the Spartans? top all-arounder. She advanced as an individual to place seventh at the NCAA Regionals in 1999. Forshier is MSU?s top vaulter, while Ruane, the 1999 Spirit Award winner, provides solid scores on the floor and vault. Duce gained experience as an all-arounder and is a solid performer on all four events. She is slated to be MSU?s leadoff person.
Sophomores Jane McIntosh and Meredith Reavill filled key spots in the lineup in their first year of collegiate competition. McIntosh turned out to be one of MSU?s top performers on three different events.
?Our sophomores were able to compete in every competition as freshmen last season,? said Klages. ?I think they gained a lot of confidence and truly understand the team concept of college gymnastics which will definitely aid our quest this year.?
Michigan State welcomes seven freshmen to its roster in 2000. All are competent, well-rounded gymnasts who have performed at a high level in club competition.
?This year?s freshmen have an immense wealth of experience at the national level in club gymnastics,? said Klages. ?That?s very beneficial to us. Because they come from competing at a national level it is easier for them to use that experience to excel at the collegiate level. All seven freshmen, nearly half of our team, are healthy, trained in all four events and very excited to be Spartans.?
Determination is at the core of the Spartan mission for 2000. Each gymnast who was on the team in 1998 desires a return to that success.
?We as a team and a coaching staff are really focused on the future of this program, returning to one of the top programs in the nation,? said Klages. ?Last year?s rough season is over and we are focusing on what we learned and how it can help us this year.
?I believe that we have the potential, if all things go right, on the given day of March 18th to win a Big Ten championship,? said Klages.
?Our focus is to stay healthy. We are going to do everything in our power to create that health, such as good sleep habits, good eating habits and really focusing in on our practices. We will do what we can to prepare for a successful season.?
Several of the Spartans are prepared to make 2000 a season to remember. Green showed she has matured into a leader and a solid all-arounder. Kiker has improved upon the already strong leadership qualities she exhibited as a co-captain last season and Mullen is an inspiration to all the young gymnasts after winning her battle with injuries. Having said that, who is the strongest athlete on the team?
?I don?t think it?s just one person,? said Klages. We have several very strong athletes in this program. Melissa Green, after having such a successful season last year, is one that everyone is looking to continue her rise to national prominence.
?Polly Kiker is focused and determined to make her last year her best year and it shows every day in practice.
?Having fifth-year senior Erin Mullen back also adds to the experience level of this program.
?Sophomore Jane McIntosh gained so much experience last year as a freshman and was invaluable to us with the ability to perform routines of 9.8 or better on three events.
?From the newcomers, I see Christy Linder and Lindsay Trainham really standing out and being able to make an immediate contribution to the team.?
Michigan State opens its season on January 8 at The Summit in Lansing, Mich., hosting LSU, Ohio State and Oregon State.
MSU hosts Pittsburgh on Feb. 19 and rounds out its home schedule with the Country Markett Spartan Invitational on Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Next, MSU travels to Columbia, Mo., for its annual meet with the Missouri Tigers. The team will also take trips to Illinois, Devner, Pittsburgh and North Carolina State this season. The Big Ten Championships will be held in State College, Pa., on March 18. Tough Big Ten competition will come from Ohio State, Penn State, Minnesota and Michigan, all of which were ranked in the top 15 last season.
