Friday, January 17
Fayetteville, Ark.
6:00 PM MT
University of Denver
at
Arkansas
Photo by: Timothy Nwachukwu/Clarkson Creative Photography
No. 3 DU Travels to Arkansas on Friday
1/15/2020 1:02:00 PM | Gymnastics
Denver makes first trip to SEC of 2020 season
DENVER – The No. 3-ranked University of Denver women's gymnastics team will travel to Arkansas on Friday, January 17, for the team's first meet in the SEC of the season. Competition begins at 7:00 p.m. CT/6:00 p.m. MT.
KARR CLOSING IN
Senior Maddie Karr (Stillwater, Minn.) won three titles during DU's meet against Minnesota, bringing her career total to 81. She is now two titles away from tying Jessica Lopez for second-most career titles in program history. Nina McGee owns the school record with 101 titles.
BACK-TO-BACK FOR VASQUEZ
Sophomore Alexis Vasquez (Arcadia, Calif.) captured her second straight Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week honor to begin the 2020 season after scoring a near-perfect 9.975 on beam on January 12. It follows her perfect 10.0 in the season opener, which was just the second on beam in DU history and the first during head coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart's tenure.
STRONG START
Denver continued its momentum from its historic fourth-place finish in 2019 with the strongest first two meets in DU history. The Pioneers' season average of 196.725 through the first two meets of the season is the highest in school history by more than four tenths.
DU's 196.750 against Minnesota and 196.700 at the Collegiate Challenge are the third- and fourth-highest January scores in program history.
POWER 5 SHOWDOWNS
Friday's meet will feature Denver's fifth-consecutive opponent from a Power 5 Conference in Arkansas (SEC). So far, DU has competed against two teams from the Big Ten (Penn State, Minnesota), one from the SEC (Auburn) and one from the Pac-12 (Arizona State).
Nine opponents remaining on Denver's schedule are from Power 5 schools including fellow Big 12 teams: Oklahoma, Iowa State and West Virginia.
This week's meet at Arkansas is Denver's first of two trips to the SEC in 2020. DU will also travel to Florida on February 7.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Vault: Karr has led DU's vault scoring in both meets so far in 2020, capturing a share of the event title with a 9.900 against Minnesota. Junior Lynnzee Brown (Kansas City, Mo.) has recorded a 9.850 in both meets for Denver's second-highest score each time. Juniors Emily Glynn (Longmont, Colo.) and Mia Sundstrom (Boulder, Colo.), and freshman AK Subject (Wayzata, Minn.) have competed on vault in both meets this year while sophomore Alexandria Ruiz (Lake Mary, Fla.) made her season debut on January 12.
Bars: Karr's 9.950 against Minnesota was Denver's top bars score of the season and her second score at or above 9.900. Lynnzee Brown owns scores of 9.925 and 9.875 to have DU's second-highest average on bars. Both Glynn and Subject have recorded scores above 9.800 in each meet this year. Sundstrom and Ruiz have rounded out DU's bars lineup, and each have scored a 9.800 once in 2020. Sophomore Natalie Morton (Waycross, Ga.) competed in exhibition for the first time in her career on January 12.
Beam: Vasquez leads the nation in average scoring on beam in 2020, tallying a perfect 10.0 and a near-perfect 9.975. Lynnzee Brown tied her career high with a 9.900 in the leadoff position against Minnesota, tying with Karr for DU's second-highest score. Denver's lineup has also featured scores above 9.800 from Sundstrom, Ruiz and freshman Amoree Lockhart (Fort Worth, Texas). Freshman Emma Brown (Adel, Iowa) has competed in exhibition on beam in both meets, recording a 9.800 last week.
Floor: Defending NCAA co-champion on floor Lynnzee Brown has won the floor title in both meets this season with scores of 9.950 and 9.925. Karr has tallied a 9.875 in both meets for DU's second-highest average. Lockhart made her collegiate debut with a 9.875 and added a 9.800 against Minnesota. Glynn and Subject both improved their floor scores over the season opener, and Ruiz made her season debut last week. Emma Brown made the lineup on January 4 in her first collegiate meet.
EYE ON THE RANKINGS
Denver is once again ranked in the top three in the country, holding the No. 3 spot nationally. After the first week of the season, DU was ranked a program-record No. 2 in the nation. Prior to this year, Denver had never been ranked above No. 5 during the regular season.
DU is nationally ranked on all four events including in the top 10 on three: No. 3 on beam, No. 5 on bars and No. 10 on floor. The vault squad is ranked No. 19.
For the second week in a row, Vasquez is the nation's top-ranked gymnast of beam with a season average of 9.988.
Karr and Lynnzee Brown are ranked No. 4 and No. 6, respectively, in the all-around. Karr adds national rankings on bars (tied for No. 6), vault (tied for No. 13) and beam (tied for No. 14). Lynnzee Brown is tied for No. 4 on floor, tied for No. 9 on bars and tied for No. 25 on beam.
LAST TIME OUT
Denver hosted Minnesota in its home opener on January 12, topping the Gophers 196.750-196.475. DU gymnasts won at least a share of all five individual titles, beginning with Karr's 39.625 win in the all-around. Karr also won on bars and shared the vault title. Vasquez and Lynnzee Brown each won their second titles of the season: Vasquez on beam and Lynnzee Brown on floor.
DU improved its team scores on vault and bars over the first meet of the season and matched its score on floor.
ABOUT ARKANSAS
The Razorbacks opened their 2020 season at Florida on February 10, finishing second with a 194.400. Sophia Carter finished third overall on floor while teammates Kennedy Hambrick and Jessica Yamzon placed second and third in the all-around, respectively.
Denver is 7-3 all-time against Arkansas. The teams last met at the 2019 Metroplex Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, where DU won 196.350-195.825.
DU last traveled to Fayetteville, Ark., on March 16, 2018, for Arkansas' Senior Night. The Razorbacks won 197.300-196.725.
NEXT UP
The University of Denver women's gymnastics team, presented by Your Hometown Toyota Stores, again competes on the road at the 2020 Metroplex Challenge against No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 9 Alabama and No. 17 Georgia on Saturday, January 25.
DENVER TICKET OFFICE
Tickets for the 2020 DU Gymnastics season are now on sale, starting at $9. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling 303-871-4625.
SHOP PIONEERS
Get dressed for game day! Get your Pioneers gear at ShopPioneers.com, the official online store of University of Denver Athletics.
DONATE
Fans interested in making a donation to the gymnastics program can do so online. Your contribution will make a direct impact on the success of YOUR Pioneers. Thank you in advance for your unwavering support of our student-athletes and their quest for excellence.
2020 DENVER ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME RECEPTION
Denver announced its 2020 Athletic Hall of Fame class in January. The inductees will be honored on the DU campus May 16. For more information, registration for the reception and donation information, click here.
- OUR JOURNEY, OUR TIME –
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Gymnastics on Facebook.
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_Gymnastics on Twitter.
Follow @DenverPioneers and @DU_Gymnastics on Instagram.
KARR CLOSING IN
Senior Maddie Karr (Stillwater, Minn.) won three titles during DU's meet against Minnesota, bringing her career total to 81. She is now two titles away from tying Jessica Lopez for second-most career titles in program history. Nina McGee owns the school record with 101 titles.
BACK-TO-BACK FOR VASQUEZ
Sophomore Alexis Vasquez (Arcadia, Calif.) captured her second straight Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week honor to begin the 2020 season after scoring a near-perfect 9.975 on beam on January 12. It follows her perfect 10.0 in the season opener, which was just the second on beam in DU history and the first during head coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart's tenure.
STRONG START
Denver continued its momentum from its historic fourth-place finish in 2019 with the strongest first two meets in DU history. The Pioneers' season average of 196.725 through the first two meets of the season is the highest in school history by more than four tenths.
DU's 196.750 against Minnesota and 196.700 at the Collegiate Challenge are the third- and fourth-highest January scores in program history.
POWER 5 SHOWDOWNS
Friday's meet will feature Denver's fifth-consecutive opponent from a Power 5 Conference in Arkansas (SEC). So far, DU has competed against two teams from the Big Ten (Penn State, Minnesota), one from the SEC (Auburn) and one from the Pac-12 (Arizona State).
Nine opponents remaining on Denver's schedule are from Power 5 schools including fellow Big 12 teams: Oklahoma, Iowa State and West Virginia.
This week's meet at Arkansas is Denver's first of two trips to the SEC in 2020. DU will also travel to Florida on February 7.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Vault: Karr has led DU's vault scoring in both meets so far in 2020, capturing a share of the event title with a 9.900 against Minnesota. Junior Lynnzee Brown (Kansas City, Mo.) has recorded a 9.850 in both meets for Denver's second-highest score each time. Juniors Emily Glynn (Longmont, Colo.) and Mia Sundstrom (Boulder, Colo.), and freshman AK Subject (Wayzata, Minn.) have competed on vault in both meets this year while sophomore Alexandria Ruiz (Lake Mary, Fla.) made her season debut on January 12.
Bars: Karr's 9.950 against Minnesota was Denver's top bars score of the season and her second score at or above 9.900. Lynnzee Brown owns scores of 9.925 and 9.875 to have DU's second-highest average on bars. Both Glynn and Subject have recorded scores above 9.800 in each meet this year. Sundstrom and Ruiz have rounded out DU's bars lineup, and each have scored a 9.800 once in 2020. Sophomore Natalie Morton (Waycross, Ga.) competed in exhibition for the first time in her career on January 12.
Beam: Vasquez leads the nation in average scoring on beam in 2020, tallying a perfect 10.0 and a near-perfect 9.975. Lynnzee Brown tied her career high with a 9.900 in the leadoff position against Minnesota, tying with Karr for DU's second-highest score. Denver's lineup has also featured scores above 9.800 from Sundstrom, Ruiz and freshman Amoree Lockhart (Fort Worth, Texas). Freshman Emma Brown (Adel, Iowa) has competed in exhibition on beam in both meets, recording a 9.800 last week.
Floor: Defending NCAA co-champion on floor Lynnzee Brown has won the floor title in both meets this season with scores of 9.950 and 9.925. Karr has tallied a 9.875 in both meets for DU's second-highest average. Lockhart made her collegiate debut with a 9.875 and added a 9.800 against Minnesota. Glynn and Subject both improved their floor scores over the season opener, and Ruiz made her season debut last week. Emma Brown made the lineup on January 4 in her first collegiate meet.
EYE ON THE RANKINGS
Denver is once again ranked in the top three in the country, holding the No. 3 spot nationally. After the first week of the season, DU was ranked a program-record No. 2 in the nation. Prior to this year, Denver had never been ranked above No. 5 during the regular season.
DU is nationally ranked on all four events including in the top 10 on three: No. 3 on beam, No. 5 on bars and No. 10 on floor. The vault squad is ranked No. 19.
For the second week in a row, Vasquez is the nation's top-ranked gymnast of beam with a season average of 9.988.
Karr and Lynnzee Brown are ranked No. 4 and No. 6, respectively, in the all-around. Karr adds national rankings on bars (tied for No. 6), vault (tied for No. 13) and beam (tied for No. 14). Lynnzee Brown is tied for No. 4 on floor, tied for No. 9 on bars and tied for No. 25 on beam.
LAST TIME OUT
Denver hosted Minnesota in its home opener on January 12, topping the Gophers 196.750-196.475. DU gymnasts won at least a share of all five individual titles, beginning with Karr's 39.625 win in the all-around. Karr also won on bars and shared the vault title. Vasquez and Lynnzee Brown each won their second titles of the season: Vasquez on beam and Lynnzee Brown on floor.
DU improved its team scores on vault and bars over the first meet of the season and matched its score on floor.
ABOUT ARKANSAS
The Razorbacks opened their 2020 season at Florida on February 10, finishing second with a 194.400. Sophia Carter finished third overall on floor while teammates Kennedy Hambrick and Jessica Yamzon placed second and third in the all-around, respectively.
Denver is 7-3 all-time against Arkansas. The teams last met at the 2019 Metroplex Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, where DU won 196.350-195.825.
DU last traveled to Fayetteville, Ark., on March 16, 2018, for Arkansas' Senior Night. The Razorbacks won 197.300-196.725.
NEXT UP
The University of Denver women's gymnastics team, presented by Your Hometown Toyota Stores, again competes on the road at the 2020 Metroplex Challenge against No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 9 Alabama and No. 17 Georgia on Saturday, January 25.
DENVER TICKET OFFICE
Tickets for the 2020 DU Gymnastics season are now on sale, starting at $9. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling 303-871-4625.
SHOP PIONEERS
Get dressed for game day! Get your Pioneers gear at ShopPioneers.com, the official online store of University of Denver Athletics.
DONATE
Fans interested in making a donation to the gymnastics program can do so online. Your contribution will make a direct impact on the success of YOUR Pioneers. Thank you in advance for your unwavering support of our student-athletes and their quest for excellence.
2020 DENVER ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME RECEPTION
Denver announced its 2020 Athletic Hall of Fame class in January. The inductees will be honored on the DU campus May 16. For more information, registration for the reception and donation information, click here.
- OUR JOURNEY, OUR TIME –
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Gymnastics on Facebook.
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_Gymnastics on Twitter.
Follow @DenverPioneers and @DU_Gymnastics on Instagram.
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