It was only the third gymnastics meet of the year, but No. 2 Utah’s unchallenged 197.425?194.900 win over No. 7 Minnesota Friday night drew comparisons to championship teams of years past.
“This is a special team. This is a team we haven’t had at Utah in five or six years,” said coach Greg Marsden.
Former Utah assistant and opposing Gopher coach Jim Stephenson agreed.
“This is one of the best teams Utah has ever had. Before, there were three standouts, but now I’m seeing six kids go up there and perform exceptionally.”
“If they’re not at full capacity [given senior Kylee Wagner’s ankle injury and Theresa Kulikowki’s gradual push for the all-around], that’s pretty scary,” he said.
Deidra Graham became the third different Ute all-around winner in as many weeks and Kulikowski scored her second consecutive 10.0 on bars, as Utah set its sixth-best score of all-time.
However, the team may have yet to reach its pinnacle.
“I don’t think we’re to our full potential yet,” Graham said. “But we don’t want to be to our full potential this early in the season.”
Friday night, the Gophers performed consistently with their season average. Unfortunately for Minnesota, so did Utah.
“Any team that comes into the Utah arena needs to be ready? you can turn to dust pretty quick,” Stephenson said.
In Utah’s first event, vault, the team turned in its first over-49 score of the year (49.150).
Annabeth Eberle won the prize with a 9.900 in her first collegiate vault. Veronique LeClerc added a 9.875, and eventual all-around winner Graham started strong with a 9.850.
“I wanted to start out really well on vault. Hitting the vault just really got me in the mode,” Graham said. In Graham’s previous two meets, she opened with scores of 9.625 and 9.725.
Utah led 49.150 to 48.700 after one event. On the uneven bars, Kim Allan opened with a 9.025, as she missed the bars on a release move.
Her teammates picked it up. Shannon Bowles scored a 9.900 and Graham a 9.800, but the event belonged to Kulikowski.
For the second consecutive week, Kulio performed a perfect 10.0 routine on bars after a nasty fall in the year’s opener.
“I try and get myself in a ritual and do the same thing week in and week out,” Kulio said.
Marsden said it’s only a matter of time until the 1999 NCAA all-around winner includes vault to qualify for the all-around. Kulio won’t go in the all-around in the upcoming meet against Louisiana State, because that is the venue where she suffered her ACL tear at in 2000.
Utah wrapped up with beam and floor, turning in team scores of 49.550 on each. Graham and Kulio tied for the beam title (9.950), and the floor crown went solely to Graham (9.950).
The two scores propelled Graham to the all-around title. Her 39.550 edged out teammates Bowles (39.375), Veronique (39.375) and Melissa Vituj (39.375). Eberle contributed an exhibition all around of 39.350, as she officially competed in just vault and floor.
“The team kind of reminds me of 1991 when we had Missy Marlowe and Shelly Schaerrer, Kristen Kenoyer and Aimee Trepanier [all former All Americans], where we really have more talent than we know what to do with,” Marsden said.
As the Red Rocks prime for a month-long road trip, starting Feb. 1 at LSU, they may need to extract every bit of strength from the talent they possess.
“We’ve got to find a way to create an energy within our own team, and not depend on the crowd [10,596 strong Friday night],” Marsden said.
“How we develop as a team on the road the next five weeks will probably determine what we’re capable of this year?It’s all about how good of a road team we become.”