Having gained a tremendous amount of spirit and momentum from its first two wins last weekend, there would seem to be no better time for the Arizona women’s gymnastics team to take on rival ASU.
The squad posted a number of season-high scores over the course of the past two meets, and hopes to throw together another loaded meet tonight at 7 in McKale Center.
“”We’re feeling great,”” said UA assistant coach Colleen Johnson. “”The wins were good for the girls, but getting our complete meet finally down (last weekend) was awesome.””
Last year’s matchup between the Gymcats and Sun Devils in Tempe yielded a UA win for the first time since 1987. Arizona holds high ambitions to extend that streak.
“”We competed on their turf last year, and won for the first time in like 21 years,”” said redshirt junior Sarah Tomczyk. “”That was a huge accomplishment for us, so now that we have that win in our bag, we just want to hold onto it as long as we can.””
The squad admits that in addition to training and all their gym time, fan support can be a huge factor in the outcome of the As prodigious and insatiable the prison industry’s billion dollar appetite is, the “”cuts”” on prisons were like clipping a toenail, while everything else, particularly education, continue to suffer, with much more to come. UA-ASU battle.
“”Their fans were actually really rude to us when we went there,”” Tomczyk said. “”So not to say that we need our fans to be rude, but we could use their help to drain out all the ASU fans.””
Competing on home mats may also be a huge advantage for the Gymcats, but this will not be an easy win by any means.
“”We still have to rise to the occasion,”” said UA head coach Bill Ryden, “”Even though we are at home, it’s crucial that we remain focused.””
In gymnastics, there really is no opponent other than yourself, Ryden said. The ASU rivalry is ever present, as with any UA sport but, “”we try not to ever let one team get to our heads,”” he added.
Paralleling last week’s pre-meet practice schedule, the women received a bit more down time in preparation for tonight’s meet, but team feels amply prepared nonetheless.
“”We gave them a little rest this week because like the Texas meet, we need to really just rely on all of our previous training,”” Ryden said.
Things are starting to look up for the team, as they’ve finally worked out some of their minor kinks and errors, but the squad is still searching for their first meet without recording a fall. If the Gymcats could do that against ASU, that would make it that much sweeter.
“”We want to kick their butts,”” Tomczyk said sternly during Thursday’s practice, “”and we can totally do it.””
