ATHENS, Ga.–Utah had mixed results in the NCAA gymnastics event finals Saturday, taking home some hardware as well as new bumps and bruises.
Kristina Baskett tied for second on the vault with a 9.8438 but fell on the first pass of her floor routine, crunching her left ankle. She has been dealing with the same injury on her right ankle all season long and was thankful it didn’t happen earlier this week and that she has plenty of time to heal both before next season.
“If it had to happen, I’m glad it happened on my last event,” Baskett said.
Ashley Postell performed on the uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise for Utah. She finished second on the balance beam with a 9.90 and fourth on the floor with the same score. The meet was the last one in a Utah leotard for the senior, who made her mark on the college gymnastics landscape. She is a 20-time All-American-the most such awards possible-and was named the 2008 AAI Senior Gymnast of the year by the NCAA women’s gymnastics coaches.
“You don’t replace somebody who’s broken every record at your school,” head coach Greg Marsden said.
Kyndal Robarts also competed for Utah on the vault. She fell on her first attempt, eliminating the possibility of her placing in the event. At event finals, each gymnast performs two different vaults and has the score averaged. Robarts didn’t try a different vault the second time.
The freshman showed a lot of promise in her first year with Utah, competing all four events for the Utes, although she never competed in the all-around. Marsden expects Robarts to be a pivotal part of Utah’s team over the next three years.
“It’s hard the third night,” Robarts said. “We haven’t even competed two nights in a row (this season).”
Fatigue was also a factor in Baskett’s fall. After competing in the all-around competition in the national preliminaries on Thursday night and in the Super Six on Friday night, the junior’s legs were worn out going into the event finals.
“I was tired and excited in a bad combination,” Baskett said.Baskett will combine with Nina Kim as the two seniors on next year’s team. She hopes to prepare mentally and physically in the off-season for her final campaign. The team used a captain-by-committee formula this season and Baskett isn’t sure whether that’s not the best route for the team next year. Whether next season’s Red Rocks elect a captain or not, Baskett is ready to be looked up to as a leader by her teammates.
“I think this year was a good prep year for me to kind of follow (Postell) and fall in her footsteps this year,” she said. “I feel ready to take on her role next year.”
The national champions in each event are: Grace Taylor from Georgia on beam, Courtney McCool from Georgia on floor, Susan Jackson from LSU on vault and Tasha Schwikert from UCLA on bars.
Associated PressUtah’s Ashley Postell performs on the beam during the NCAA women’s gymnastics championships Friday, April 25, 2008, in Athens, Ga. Utah finished in second place.