2008 Woodie Awards
Gymnastics ties for second place at Rutgers
Kayla Panu
Issue date: 2/29/08 Section: Sports
02/29/08 - The University of Rhode Island gymnastics team tied Rutgers University for second place last Saturday night with a score of 189.900.
"I think it was a huge accomplishment," head coach Chelle Kassabian said. "We really wanted to do well. It was a big competition with so many schools. We had our athletes take second or third in many of the events. It was really satisfying for individuals and the team."
West Virginia University won the competition with a score of 193.925. The University of Bridgeport placed fourth (187.625) with Ursinus College in last place (185.250).
URI came out without any falls, just a few wobbles, Kassabian said. "We actually had a really good bar set," she said. "It was the highlight. Two athletes set career-highs. It was really exciting."
Rams freshman Danielle Riportella tied for second on the bars with senior Erica Heaney. They both scored a 9.825. Senior Emily Rinaldo tied for sixth place with her score of 9.725.
"It was [exciting] just seeing URI represented as top finishers," Kassabian said. "Recognition of those athletes was very rewarding for the team."
Junior Jordana Ginsburg finished second on the balance beam with a score of 9.725. Riportella finished behind her in a four-way tie for third with a score of 9.700. Senior Casey Pereira also finished in the top 20 with her score of 9.125. She placed 18th.
Riportella also took third in the all-around competition with her score of 38.650.
In the vault competition, sophomore Ananda Fraser tied for second with her score of 9.775, while seniors Kara Machado and Heaney tied for 11th place with their score of 9.525.
"We just had some wobbles, but we could have done better," Kassabian said.
Riportella was named Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Rookie of the Week this past week for her performance. Heaney was named ECAC Specialist of the Week.
"They've been spectacular all year," Kassabian said. "It's nice to see them getting rewarded for that."
The Rams will be hosting the University of Bridgeport on Saturday at 1 p.m. They are also holding the "Purple-out" Fundraiser for Leukemia and Lymphoma.
"We want to give the home crowd another good show," Kassabian said. "We trained real hard all week. We want no falls and to improve upon the little errors from last week. We want more team and career-highs for individuals and the team."
"I think it was a huge accomplishment," head coach Chelle Kassabian said. "We really wanted to do well. It was a big competition with so many schools. We had our athletes take second or third in many of the events. It was really satisfying for individuals and the team."
West Virginia University won the competition with a score of 193.925. The University of Bridgeport placed fourth (187.625) with Ursinus College in last place (185.250).
URI came out without any falls, just a few wobbles, Kassabian said. "We actually had a really good bar set," she said. "It was the highlight. Two athletes set career-highs. It was really exciting."
Rams freshman Danielle Riportella tied for second on the bars with senior Erica Heaney. They both scored a 9.825. Senior Emily Rinaldo tied for sixth place with her score of 9.725.
"It was [exciting] just seeing URI represented as top finishers," Kassabian said. "Recognition of those athletes was very rewarding for the team."
Junior Jordana Ginsburg finished second on the balance beam with a score of 9.725. Riportella finished behind her in a four-way tie for third with a score of 9.700. Senior Casey Pereira also finished in the top 20 with her score of 9.125. She placed 18th.
Riportella also took third in the all-around competition with her score of 38.650.
In the vault competition, sophomore Ananda Fraser tied for second with her score of 9.775, while seniors Kara Machado and Heaney tied for 11th place with their score of 9.525.
"We just had some wobbles, but we could have done better," Kassabian said.
Riportella was named Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Rookie of the Week this past week for her performance. Heaney was named ECAC Specialist of the Week.
"They've been spectacular all year," Kassabian said. "It's nice to see them getting rewarded for that."
The Rams will be hosting the University of Bridgeport on Saturday at 1 p.m. They are also holding the "Purple-out" Fundraiser for Leukemia and Lymphoma.
"We want to give the home crowd another good show," Kassabian said. "We trained real hard all week. We want no falls and to improve upon the little errors from last week. We want more team and career-highs for individuals and the team."