CEDAR CITY, Utah – Junior Moriah Martin (Lake Mary, Fla.) recorded a 39.425 in the all-around, but the No. 13 University of Denver gymnastics squad finished second with a 196.125 at the Western Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday night at the Centrum. No. 24 Boise State won the meet with a 196.225. Sacramento State finished third with a 195.550, Utah State finished fourth with a 195.100, host Southern Utah finished fifth with a 194.925 and San Jose State rounded out the field with a 194.700.
“I thought it was a very exciting Championship, I thought all the teams performed well tonight,” head coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart said “We still have room for improvement, but it’s encouraging that we still went above a 196 with a fall. We just need to put it all together at Regionals in two weeks.”
Martin was named First Team All-WAC in the all-around with her second-place finish. Junior Kaitlin Moorhead (Palo Alto, Calif.) won the WAC vault title with a 9.950, while sophomore Nina McGee (Cincinnati, Ohio) won the bars and floor titles with 9.925s in the events. Martin also earned All-WAC First Team honors on vault and Moorhead received All-WAC First Team honors on floor.
Denver opened its evening with a 49.075 on bars. Redshirt-senior Brianna Springer (Arvada, Colo.), Martin and McGee turned in important routines in the fourth, fifth and sixth spots to put Denver over the 49.000 mark for the eighth time this season. Springer scored a 9.825, followed by a 9.875 from Martin and a 9.925 from McGee.
DU counted a fall on beam on Saturday night in the second rotation, setting the squad back to fourth place at the midway point. Denver still managed a 48.475, thanks to a pair of 9.825s from Springer and Martin. Sophomore Ellese Sakai-Hart (Aptos, Calif.) added a 9.775 and McGee earned a 9.750.
The Crimson and Gold would go on to combine for a 49.275 on floor, led by a 9.925 from McGee. Moorhead’s meet finally got started in the night’s fifth rotation, as the Pioneer junior posted a 9.875. Classmate Jorie Hall (Denver, Colo.) turned in a 9.850, Sakai-Hart gave Denver a 9.825 and Martin scored a 9.800.
Trailing Boise State by 0.200 heading into the final rotation, the Pioneers were led on vault by Moorhead’s 9.950. Martin added a 9.925 and senior Simona Castro (Santiago, Chile) and Springer inked matching 9.825s to help Denver to a 49.300. BSU managed a 49.200 on bars to win the meet by 0.100.
“We need to get back in the gym and continue to focus on the little details to make sure that we are doing a really good job practicing under pressure,” Kutcher-Rinehart said. “Finals are over and Spring Break is over, so we’re looking forward to getting back into our normal routine.”
The Pioneers will now await the NCAA Selection Show that will air on Monday at 1 p.m. MT. More information on the section show will be released Monday. DU will be the 15th-ranked team in the nation heading into Regionals.
Freshman of the Year: Maddie Krentz, Boise State
Gymnast of the Year: Caitlin Mann, Boise State
Coach of the Year: Tina Bird and Neil Resnick, Boise State
2013 WAC Gymnastics Championship
March 23, 2013
Team Results
1. Boise State - 196.225
2. Denver - 196.125
3. Sacramento State - 195.500
4. Utah State - 195.100
5. Southern Utah - 194.925
6. San Jose State - 194.700
All-Around
First Team All-WAC
1. Caitlin Mann, Boise State - 39.475
2. Moriah Martin, Denver - 39.425
3. Kelsey Black, Boise State - 39.325
Second Team All-WAC
4. Sarah Landes, Utah State - 39.175
4. Kelsey Morris, Boise State - 39.175
6. Bekah Gher, San Jose State - 39.100
Vault
First Team All-WAC
1. Kaitlin Moorhead, Denver - 9.950
2. Brittney Jensen, Southern Utah - 9.925
2. Moriah Martin, Denver - 9.925
2. Kelsey Black, Boise State - 9.925
Second Team All-WAC
5. Caitlin Mann, Boise State - 9.900
5. Ciera Perkins, Boise State - 9.900
Bars
First Team All-WAC
1. Nina McGee, Denver - 9.925
2. Paige Jones, Utah State - 9.900
2. Caitlin Mann, Boise State - 9.900
Second Team All-WAC
4. Moriah Martin, Denver - 9.875
4. Nicole Meiller, Sacramento State - 9.875
4. Kelsey Morris, Boise State - 9.875
Beam
First Team All-WAC
1. Cayla Beutler, Sacramento State - 9.850
1. Caitlin Mann, Boise State - 9.850
1. Cami Guyer, San Jose State - 9.850
Second Team All-WAC
4. Michelle Yasukochi, Utah State - 9.825
4. Moriah Martin, Denver - 9.825
4. Brianna Springer, Denver - 9.825
Floor Exercise
First Team All-WAC
1. Nina McGee, Denver - 9.925
2. Cassandra Harrison, San Jose State - 9.900
3. Michaela Chernoch, Southern Utah - 9.875
3. Kaitlin Moorhead, Denver - 9.875
3. Kelsey Black, Boise State - 9.875
Second Team All-WAC
6. Jorie Hall, Denver - 9.850
6. Julia Greer, San Jose State - 9.850
-EXPERIENCE DENVER ATHLETICS-
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Gymnastics on Facebook
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_Gymnastics on Twitter
