CLUB GYMNASTICS: Irish win national title in TX
By CHRISTIE BOLSEN
Sports Writer
The Notre Dame gymnastics club proved to the nation that it really isn't size that matters — it's how well you perform.
With only six women comprising one of the smallest of the thirty-three teams competing in Austin, Texas at the 2003 National Association of Intercollegiate Gymnastics Clubs (NAIGC) National Championships, the Irish gymnasts brought home a spectacular first place finish. The competition included some college gymnastics powerhouse teams, including Texas A&M, Ohio University, Ohio State, Miami of Ohio, Purdue, Virginia Tech, University of California Berkley and the defending 2002 national champs University of Texas.
The Irish pulled off an exciting victory over the Longhorns by only four tenths of a point, with impressive performances from senior Emily Smith, sophomores Mary Blazewicz, Susan Jennings and Caitlin O'Brien and freshmen Liz Maher and Anne St. Clair.
St. Clair led the Irish with a first place win on vault, also winning fifth place on floor and seventh place on the uneven parallel bars. Her standout scores led St. Clair to capture the national championship in the all-around competition.
Smith, co-president of the club, won the national championship on bars with a score of 9.35. She also had a seventh place finish in the all-around, seventh on vault and ninth on the balance beam. O'Brien earned sixth place on floor and ninth on bars, while Blazewicz walked away with a top 20 vault performance. All six gymnasts contributed to the season high team score of 140.775.
Blazewicz, who was at nationals last year when the Irish took fifth place at Ohio State, said that the returning champions from Texas were in the same rotation as the Irish and had several talented upperclassmen. She said she did not think about taking the national title away from them as much as she just focused on hitting her own routines and helping her teammates hit theirs.
"It was really special to take first place, especially with our graduating senior, Emily Smith, on the team," Blazewicz said. "She has been an irreplaceable part of the team for the past two years, and our whole team was thrilled that she was able to help us win the team competition and take the individual title on uneven bars.
St. Clair has won the individual all-around title at every meet the Irish have competed in this year, making her a huge factor for Notre Dame gymnastics in the next three years.
"It was also very exciting for one of our freshmen, Anne St. Clair, who has only been here one season but whose consistent high performances and high level of difficulty were instrumental in our victory," Blazewicz said.
O'Brien and Blazewicz both showed their ability to consistently perform clean, solid routines with their second excellent showing at Nationals. With only six gymnasts, every competitor was important in the Irish win.
"Caitlin O'Brien also had an awesome meet, qualifying for two event finals at nationals for the second year in a row," Blazewicz said.
The mens gymnastics team took home an 11th place team finish, with senior Pete Blouin, junior Todd Moffat, sophomore Dana Collins and freshmen Mike Garter, Aaron Roberts and Andrew Roberts competing for the Irish.
The team turned in season-high scores on still rings and floor, with co- president Blouin qualifying for the individual event finals on floor as the top Irish gymnast.
Since only one senior from the women's team and one from the men's will be graduating, the fairly young teams can expect to see many more big wins for Irish gymnastics in the future.
All Sports Stories for Tuesday, April 29, 2003
