Jan. 14, 2008

Complete Release in PDF Format

THIS WEEK
Jan. 18 - SJSU, SPRINGFIELD & SEATTLE PACIFIC, 6 p.m.

LAST WEEK
Jan. 11 - CALIFORNIA & TOWSON (2nd, 189.350)

NOTES TO RECAP: Sophomore Tanya Ho (tied, vault), sophomore Lida Gehlen (uneven bars) and freshman Marcy Miller (balance beam) each won events during Aggies' season-opening triangular with California and Towson... UC Davis finished second in the meet at 189.350, nestled comfortably between the winning Golden Bears (192.525) and third-place Tigers (186.350).

Miller was a last-minute addition the beam lineup, having originally been slated as an exhibition performer... She is the 11th gymnast in program history to hit 9.825 or higher on beam, and the first to do so in her collegiate debut... Best UC Davis debut in any event is 9.850, done by Ho on vault vs. San Jose State in 2007, and by Ericka Ruelas on bars in Western Independent Championship in 1999... Gehlen's score picks up where she left off in 2007... She scored 9.800 in the home finale, then won the MPSF bars title at 9.825 to end her freshman season... The Aggie vault squad struck a meet-best 48.525, 10th in school history... Last year, the vaulters retooled the school record book, posting six of the seven best scores.

UP NEXT: The Aggies remain at home in a quad meet with MPSF foe Seattle Pacific and former MPSF member San Jose State... Rounding out the field is Springfield College, from which UC Davis head coach John Lavallee earned his bachelor's (1987) and master's degrees (1992) ... As a student-athlete, he earned USGF All-America accolades on floor exercise as a senior team captain.

San Jose State picked up a 191.050-189.925 win over Cal State Fullerton in its season opener Friday... Alise Blackwell won on bars (9.800), floor (9.850) and the all-around (38.850) to lead the Spartans... Friday's meet is the opener for SPU, which upset UC Davis at last year's MPSF Championship... The Falcons will have a new look after graduating NACGC Div. II Gymnast of the Year Sarah Sullivan and MPSF all-around champion Debra Huss... Brianna Schwartz leads the SPU returners, having won USAG All-America honors in the all-around, bars and floor in 2007... Springfield finished fourth (182.400) in a six-team opener on Sunday... Sophomore Ericca Castagna and junior Jacqui Mazzola placed second and third on vault, respectively.

HEAD COACH JOHN LAVALLEE
"I was extremely pleased with how the entire team conducted itself on Friday night. From a performance standpoint, they were very focused on what they came to do. We really emphasized that it was our first meet, and we didn't expect Superman to show up. It's a long and grueling season, physically, mentally and emotionally. We needed to come out on Friday and do what we had been doing in the gym. The team did that in a manner that was very focused and driven. It was a good sign for the rest of the season."

On the freshman gymnasts: "Marcy Miller came completely out of the blue to us. We know that Marcy will find a lot of success as a collegiate gymnast. But we had no idea that she would find it right off the bat. We were very happy with how she performed. Stacey Nicolini did a great job going all-around in her first meet as a freshman. Ashley Lachman did a very good job as well. You use up a lot more emotional energy than you realize, and all three of them handled the situation very well. They conducted themselves as strong performers."

"I think we're where we need to be to start this season. If you look at other teams around the country and what they scored, we're lined up where we need to be."