Jan. 12, 1998
ASU Women's Gymnastics Travels to Westwood
The Arizona State women's gymnastics team, fresh off its first-place finish at the Maui Invitational, will hit the road for the second straight week when it travels to Los Angeles, Calif., for its second-straight quad-meet to face defending national champion UCLA, UC Santa Barbara and Denver January 18 at 2 p.m.
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| Head Coach John Spini |
HEAD COACH JOHN SPINI: Arizona State women's gymnastics has become synonymous with excellence, and the person largely responsible for that is John Spini. Entering his 18th year as head coach at ASU, Spini has established a nationally prominent program and a tradition of excellence. Boasting a 212-76-1 career record, Spini is among the finest gymnastics coaches in the country. His career winning percentage stands at 73 percent. During his previous 17 seasons, the Sun Devils have captured four conference championships and have placed among the top eight at the natioanl championship 10 of the 18 years it has been held, including runner-up finshes in 1985, '86, and '97.
LAST WEEK: The ASU women's gymnastics team, runner-up at the 1997 NCAA Championships, picked up right where it left off to end last season as it took first place in a field of four teams at the Maui Invitational. ASU, buoyed by junior Lisa Vincijanovic, who took first place in two events (floor and beam) and Amy Shelton who took second in the bars and vault, coasted to a 191.0 to better Nebraska (189.350), Oklahoma (185.225) and Iowa (184.975). Vincijanovic and sophomore Elizabeth Reid both scored a 9.9 in the floor exercise to capture first-place honors. For Vincijanovic the 9.9 was a career high. Also placing in the top three for the Devils was Elizabeth McNabb who scored a 9.7 in the beam to take second place.
THE DEVILS VERSUS THE COMPETITION: Arizona State holds a favorable advantage in the all-time standing versus each of the squads it will be facing this week. The Devils have overcome the Bruins 13 of 24 times, and have never lost to UC Santa Barbara (3-0) or Denver (5-0).
ASU NOTES ENTERING THIS WEEK'S MEET: Junior Lisa Vincijanovic won the floor competition at the Maui Invitational (Jan 12) with a personal-best 9.9. Tying Vincijanovic was sophomore Elizabeth Reid ... sophmore Amy Shelton recorded a pair of second-place finishes in the bars and vault competiton at the Maui Invitational ... Arizona State returns this season as one of the favorites to capture this year's NCAA Championship. The Devils lost only one member from last year's NCAA runner-up squad that was second only to UCLA.
ABOUT ASU'S OPPONENTS: Arizona State is all too familiar with the UCLA Bruins and the potential they have. The Bruins have four returning all-Americans -- Stella Umeh, a seven-time all-America, Lena Degteva, a two-time all-America last year, Kiralee Hayashi, a second-team all-America last year, and Luisa Portocarrera -- who will make UCLA a favorite to repeat as NCAA champions. UCLA enters this match 0-1, losing to Georgia in its opener 195.675-194.025 ... Denver enters this match looking to improve on its 10-9 record from last year. The Pioneers will look to have a great year in 1998 as they lost only one letterwinner from last year's squad with 12 returning. The Pioneers are coached by Dan Garcia who is entering his 18th year at the helm ... UC Santa Barbara enters the 1998 season with new coach Megan Fenton who was formerly a gymnast at UCLA. The Gauchos are trying to improve on a 2-22-1 record from last season, and like the Pioneers the Gauchos only lost one letterwinner from last year with eight returning.
DEVILS ON THE TUBE: FOX Sports Net has chosen to televise the ASU/UNO's Classic on Friday, February 20. The meet features the Devils, Brigham Young, Nebraska and Illinois.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME: The Sun Devils have been on a roll at home over the last two years. Arizona State has won its last seven home meets going back to February of 1996. The last time the Devils were upended at home was when then-defending national champion Utah defeated the Devils by a count of 193.875-193.250 at the University Activity Center.
ASU HOSTING 1998 MIDWEST REGIONAL: Arizona State has been chosen as the site for the 1998 NCAA Midwest Regional. The Midwest Regional is comprised of the top-six teams from the Midwest region competing for a berth in the NCAA Championships. The Midwest Regional will take place Saturday, April 4 in the University Activity Center.
UP NEXT: The Devils open up their 1998 home campaign when they host the Stanford Cardinal Friday, January 23 at 7:30 p.m. in the University Activity Center.