2006 Women's Gymnastics Outlook

12/17/05 6:05PM

Williamsburg - Two seasons have passed now since William and Mary’s reign over the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference was halted, as the Tribe’s streak of three consecutive conference championships was snapped in 2004. Perhaps a drought between league titles some programs could live with, for 12th-year head coach Mary Lewis and the 2006 Tribe it has been two years two many since the College was the class of the ECAC.

“There’s no question that our goal this season is to win the conference championship,” proclaimed Lewis, 2003 ECAC coach of the year. “We want the title back and our girls are very excited about this season.”

With each event’s lineups shuffled and basically incomplete for much of the season, in large part due to injuries, W&M struggled through an inconsistent and sub-par season. Last year’s conference meet was almost a perfect caption of the entire 2005 season, as the College posted, by its standards, a disappointing sixth-place finish in the newly expanded nine-team ECAC.

However, with a renewed commitment to hard work in the practice gym and several key performers recovered and returning from injury, Lewis and the squad are optimistic they can leave the program’s two-year slump in the past.

“The girls’ work in the off-season has really stood out,” states Lewis, who has welcomed 2003 West Virginia graduate TeShawne Jackson to the College as an assistant coach this year. “TeShawne has already made a big impression on our program. She brings an impressive resume of both competition and coaching experience to our program and her energy and enthusiasm has inspired this team.”

Despite the tough finish, the 2005 campaign still provided some very encouraging performances and individual accomplishments that W&M will look to build upon this winter. The Tribe had six all-conference award winners at the championship meet last season, four of which return, including the league’s rookie of the year, Tricia Long.

At the top of the Tribe’s returning group, however, is its four-member senior class. The quartet will not only be counted on for scoring contributions, but the class, which includes the squad’s three captains, brings the leadership and motivational skills, both in and out of the gym, to keep W&M on its path back to the top of the ECAC.

Joining the mix of W&M’s veteran corps is a deep, talented freshman class of six gymnasts, who will bring strong routines and an eagerness to compete at the college level in the Tribe line-ups.

Even with the promise that both the Tribe’s returners and newcomers bring to the gym this season, the path to the ECAC meet will be a difficult one, as W&M’s traditional challenging schedule has been upgraded to an even higher level in 2006. Out of conference, joining annual rivals North Carolina, North Carolina State and George Washington will be 2005 NCAA Championship participant Florida, along with regional qualifiers West Virginia and Auburn. Both the Tar Heels and Wolfpack also competed in NCAA Regionals last season.

Within the ECAC, W&M will see 2005 champion Towson on three different occasions, and the Tribe will also face longtime state rival James Madison four times. Despite the ominous track ahead, Lewis is confident the early season challenges will only prepare her squad for the championship stage, which will be lit on March 25th at the University of Rhode Island.

“The schedule is tough as usual,” remarked Lewis. “But, we are really excited about some of the new opponents we will see this year, to go along with our regular rivals. I think it will definitely give the girls an idea of what it takes to compete at a national level and will be an advantage to us in the highly competitive ECAC meet.”

The following is a closer look, class-by-class, of the 2006 Tribe women’s gymnastics team:

The Senior Class

As mentioned, the senior class stands at four, although Lewis originally was to welcome back a quintet of seniors, before Annie Carroll opted for an early retirement after struggling with injuries during the latter part of the 2005 season and off-season. Carroll has remained with the team, however, and has been a positive influence in the gym during preseason workouts.

“Each member of the senior class brings a different personality, but they all blend together perfectly. Everyone in the group does their part, and I can’t say enough about the leadership they provide.”

Lewis cites Kristen Gaidish (Abington, Pa.) as one of the team’s top motivators and an excitable personality in the gym as reasons for her selection as a team captain. Hoping for an entire season free of injury, Gaidish will again assume the leadoff role in the beam line-up. A solid, consistent scorer in the event, Gaidish earned Second Team All-ECAC honors last season after posting a 9.500 at the championship meet. She matched the team’s third-highest Regional Qualifying Score (RQS) at 9.400, and scored no lower than 9.500 in the season’s final three meets. Gaidish, if healthy enough, will also train on vault, an event she has not competed in since her freshman season, and could provide depth to the line-up.

Joining Gaidish as a team captain is Brittany Gibbs (West Chester, Pa.), who Lewis calls the glue of the team for her ability to keep everyone together and in line. An enthusiastic and organized leader, Gibbs is a former conference champion on vault who will return to all-around training in 2006. Slowed by a foot injury, Gibbs could only compete on bars last season, but was the team’s most consistent performer with a team-high 9.735 RQS and three individual titles as the line-up anchor. A regional alternate on bars in 2004, Gibbs will once again anchor the event but should also provide a significant boost to each event, as she holds school records on both beam (9.925) and vault (9.900).

The third team captain is Kate Magee (McLean, Va.), one of the team’s hardest workers who is often the first one in the gym and the last one out. Magee came on strong toward the end of last season and finished with the team’s second-highest RQS on floor (9.44). She will again train floor, beam and vault, and Lewis is looking for increased consistency in all three events. Magee has upgraded to a 10.0 difficulty on vault and worked on improving her other two routines, including beam, in which she captured her first individual event title against JMU on March 3.

Rounding out the senior class is Jess Baker (Brookville, N.Y.), who may be sidelined through the early portion of the season with a foot injury. Baker has battled injuries throughout her entire career but can provide depth to both the floor and vault line-ups when healthy. Baker had been working on a new vault in the preseason and Lewis was hoping for a more consistent campaign, but again Baker’s health will dictate her availability.

The Junior Class

The Tribe’s junior class is made up of five talented gymnasts who will undoubtedly play a significant role in the team’s success this winter.

Christine Carwell (Austin, Texas) has grown a lot in Lewis’ estimation over the past two years and continued to progress on beam last season. With increased confidence in her routine and skills, Carwell has a shot of making the beam line-up this season and will also train on floor, where new skills have been in the works.

A steady performer in her first two collegiate seasons, Andrea Dochney (Westmont, N.J.) will be a key figure in both the bars and beam line-ups in 2006. Last season, Dochney continued to improve on bars and thrived in a leadoff role, where she will most likely find herself once again with new skills added to an already strong routine.

Finally at full strength and free of injury is Janelle Greene (Fairfax, Va.), who is now training as an all-arounder after being limited to bars competition in her first two seasons. Greene has focused particularly on improving her floor routine, where her work on front tumbling and double backs could pay off in a line-up spot in the event. Greene also has a good shot at working her way into the vault line-up and should continue to build upon her improvement on bars in 2005.

Lewis cited Christina Padilla (Sterling, Va.) as the team’s most consistent gymnast last season, and the 2005 ECAC Vault Champion will certainly be counted on for much of the same in 2006. Padilla’s scores on vault and bars counted in every meet last season, as she held the squad’s top RQS on vault (9.725) and second-highest on bars (9.665). She captured three individual titles in 2005 and also earned her second NACGC national scholar athlete citation. Even with a 10.0 difficulty on vault, Padilla has added a half twist, which Lewis says will separate her from the competition in 2006, in addition to the 1-2 punch she provides with Dochney in the bars line-up.

First Team All-ECAC selection Jess Randall (West Hartford, Conn.), who Lewis called a pleasant surprise in 2005, completes the junior class. Randall’s consistency in all four events improved as the season progressed, culminating with a fifth-place all-around finish (37.775) at the league championship. She held the squad’s top RQS on beam (9.625) and is working to improve her skills in all four events. Lewis was particularly pleased with Randall’s emergence on floor, where she stepped into the line-up midway through the season and improved her scoring in each meet.

The Sophomore Class

Though few in company, the Tribe’s two sophomores’ contributions to the team’s overall success could prove to be immeasurable in 2006, as both are coming off dynamite debut seasons for the College.

Last season, Tricia Long (Humble, Texas) turned in one of the finest seasons by a freshman in school history and was rewarded with the ECAC Rookie of the Year award, becoming the first W&M gymnast to win the award since 1993. A NCAA Regional qualifier, Long more than exceeded Lewis’ expectations last season, holding the team’s top RQS on floor (9.52) and in all-around (37.500), where she also earned Second Team All-ECAC honors. Long was consistent in all four events for the Tribe last year, coming through with clutch performances when the team needed it most, especially on bars. Long is working on a new vault for the 2006 season and has trained hard on polishing both her floor and beam routines.

Stevie Waldman (Downingtown, Pa.) emerged as a rookie of the year candidate herself in 2005, anchoring both the beam and floor line-ups for the Tribe before sustaining a season-ending knee injury late in the year. Waldman had the team’s third-highest RQS in three different events (beam, bars, floor) and posted the squad’s best individual all-around performance of the season, tallying a total score of 38.650 at North Carolina on Feb. 19. She captured three individual titles last season, taking first place on floor, beam and all-around at JMU on Feb. 4. Waldman has polished her high-scoring beam routine for 2006 and has also worked on upgrading her vault, while her overall presentation and lines, especially on floor, will undoubtedly be key elements in each event’s line-up this winter.

The Freshman Class

Lewis has brought in a talented six-member freshman class for the 2006 season and any one of the level-10 rookie gymnasts, who will each train as all-arounders, could make a big impact in their first season.

Becca Bacharach (Lancaster, Pa.) is a hard worker with a clean, polished look, who has a good shot at cracking both the beam and floor line-ups this winter after adding new skills to her routine during preseason workouts.

Working back from a preseason ankle injury, Monica Goldblatt (McLean, Va.) will train all-around when at full strength, but she has primarily practiced on bars and beam for the upcoming season. Goldblatt has nice lines in both events and her major release move on bars could find her a spot in the line-up.

With crowd-pleasing potential on floor, Lauren Jackson (Westwood, Mass.) could make an immediate impression in the event line-up, while she will also challenge for a spot in the beam line-up after upgrading the difficulty of her routine. Jackson has pretty lines and a nice presentation in both events and has continued to progress on both vault and bars in the preseason, which could potentially lead to a role as an all-around competitor this season.

Sarah Jacobson (Brecksville, Ohio) is another rookie who could find herself in all four line-ups at some point this season, as she has been a strong, aggressive worker in all four events during the preseason workouts. Jacobson has powerful routines on both floor and beam and has upgraded her floor routine difficulty for the competitive season.

Recovering from an off-season illness, Ashley Lugo (Central Islip, N.Y.) has the potential to impact all four events, especially on floor with her dancing ability and presentation, but will train and compete as her health improves.

Rounding out the freshman class is Megan Vincent (Newport News, Va.), who is recovering from heel surgery she had done in the spring. Vincent has primarily trained on bars where she could crack the line-up after upgrading her skills in the event. With nice lines on both beam and floor, Vincent will train in all four events as her recovery progresses through the season.