Jan. 15, 2010
DeKALB, Ill. - The Northern Illinois women's gymnastics team welcomes Mid-American Conference foe Western Michigan to the Convocation Center Sunday as the Huskies open the 2010 MAC campaign beginning at 2 p.m. at Victor E. Court.
Northern Illinois (1-0) is coming off a season-opening victory over Wisconsin-La Crosse in which the Huskies posted a team score of 188.450 while competing without several key members of the team who were sidelined by injury. With 2009 MAC Gymnast of the Year Holly Reichard out of the line-up, the Huskies sustained another blow when senior Rachel Adams went down during warm-ups.
"Last week, it felt like we were going out there with two hands tied behind our back, and we got to the meet and Rachel went down in warm ups, so it was a huge mental challenge for our team right off the bat," said NIU Head Coach Mark Sontag. "But that is the advantage of having everyone work hard throughout the fall and in training, and we had people ready and able to step in. The great thing about this team is that everyone on the roster has the potential to step up and contribute with a solid routine and we saw that last week."
Natalie Blum was one of the Huskies who stepped up. Competing as an all-arounder for the first time in her career, she won not only that event but also the vault and floor exercise competitions while taking second on the uneven parallel bars and third on balance beam. Sophomore Ashley Guerra, junior Jessica Watanabe and freshmen Natalie Sutter were also called to perform like veterans and they responded. Guerra, who was named the MAC Specialist of the Week, won the bars competition with a 9.725 while Watanabe and Guerra went 1-2 on balance beam with scores of 9.775 and 9.625, respectively. In her first collegiate competition, Sutter was second on vault with a 9.425 and on floor exercise at 9.500.
"Natalie [Sutter] had a great showing in her first meet and she'll have a much better idea and appreciation for what it takes to compete at the collegiate level," Sontag said. "With a meet under our belt, I expect our line-up will be stronger than when we competed last week."
A year ago, Northern Illinois defeated Western Michigan in Kalamazoo while posting a team score of 194.300, their second-highest score of the year. But Sontag knows that 2010 is a new year and the MAC is always unpredictable.
"The MAC is going to be very, very competitive as it usually is," Sontag said. "We've got to concentrate on what we can do, get our younger gymnasts more experience and hold it together until we can get some of our gymnasts back."
Reichard is tentatively scheduled to compete on uneven parallel bars for the Huskies versus Western Michigan while Adams is day-to-day.
Sunday's meet will be held at Victor E. Court in the Convocation Center. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for seniors and youth. Fans who bring a ticket stub from Saturday's NIU men's basketball game can see the gymnastics meet for just $1 and NIU students are admitted free with a valid OneCard.
Following Sunday's home meet, the second of four for NIU this year, the Huskies will take on Bowling Green next Sunday, Jan. 24, in their first road competition of 2010.
-- NIU -
Keep up with all the latest news and information on Northern Illinois Athletics, read "Huskie Happenings" daily on www.niuhuskies.com.
