March 8, 2002

Gymnasts Look for Repeat Performance

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The women’s gymnastics team has an exciting weekend ahead as it visits Burlington to compete against the University of Vermont in a dual meet. Being the last gymnastics competition for Vermont ever, the meet has become even more significant for members of both squads.

Cornell is on an amazing streak and has met most of its goals for the season. It won the Ivy Championship at Brown two weekends ago and broke 190 points last weekend against Rutgers. Scoring over 192 points is this weekend’s objective.

The anticipation of Saturday’s competition is evident in the team’s enthusiasm. Freshman Larissa Calka remarked that she is “really excited because it’s the University of Vermont’s last weekend.

“They’re doing away with their program, and I wanted the chance to compete against them. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Her teammate, freshman Allison Betof, reiterated the comments. “We’re really excited. It’s Vermont’s last weekend, so it will be a nice experience. We’ve also been improving a lot and will hopefully be able to break the 192 mark.”

Head coach Paul Beckwith also displayed remarkable enthusiasm about the upcoming meet.

“This is the best year in history of the program. We have a chance to break all the school records this year while having a lot of fun,” he said.

High point values are significant for the team as it tries to qualify postseason tournaments. The women’s gymnastics team is currently ranked third in the ECHOIC, besting its former highest ranking of six. With the continuance of high scoring, the team has the opportunity to raise its ranking higher for better rounds at future competitions.

Archived article by Alisha Hart