Nebraska Closes 2007 Season with Strong National Finish

The <?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>Nebraska women’s gymnastics team gave a strong finish to the 2007 season at the NCAA Championships in Salt Lake City, Utah, placing sixth in the team competition and taking away and overall record of 26-12 on the year. Four Huskers earned six All-America honors at the event, while three competitors qualified for individual event finals. Nebraska’s appearance at the NCAA Championships was its ninth in a row and 18th overall.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

 

Emily Parsons continued her dominance through her junior year, as she was named a first-team All-American on vault and floor exercise, bringing her career total to nine All-America awards. Parsons finished third on vault and fourth on floor in the NCAA Event Finals after being named the 2007 South Central Regional Gymnast of the Year for the second straight season. The 2007 Big 12 Co-Gymnast of the Year captured two regional event crowns on vault and floor and four individual Big 12 titles in the all-around, vault, beam and floor.

 

A native of St. Charles, Mo., Parsons has claimed 85 individual event titles in her two years at Nebraska, including 35 in her third-year campaign. The 2007 season saw Parsons run away with six all-around crowns, as well as 10 titles on vault, nine on beam and eight on floor ? a total which helped her become Nebraska’s all-time event titles leader, passing NU’s two former NCAA champions, Richelle Simpson (77) and Heather Brink (70).

 

Parsons achieved her first career 10.0 with a perfect score on vault at NC State on Feb. 17, as well as a career-best 9.975 on beam against Kentucky on March 23. In addition, Parsons set a career best in the all-around (39.65) at the Big 12 Championships and tied her career high on floor (9.95) twice during her junior year.

 

Sophomore Tricia Woo earned first-team All-America honors on beam, giving her a career total of three All-America nods. The two-event competitor from Milpitas, Calif., completed her second season with two individual titles on beam. Woo tallied a career-high 9.925 beam score on March 4 against Utah.

 

Senior Michele Zabawa was the third Husker to take first-team All-America honors, being named to the vault team, and also earning a second-team spot on bars. A five-time All-American, Zabawa capped a strong career that saw her take a share of her second Big 12 bars crown. The three-time All-Big 12 selection claimed two bars title over the course of her final season.

 

Junior Desire’ Sniatynski garnered second-team All-America status on bars for the third consecutive year, tying for eighth (9.85) in the first preliminary session at the NCAA Championships. Sniatynski emerged as one of Nebraska’s top all-around competitors in 2007, achieving a career-high 39.375 all-around at Missouri and being named Big 12 Gymnast of the Week for the first time in her career. In addition to taking the all-around crown, Sniatynski finished first on bars against the Tigers, and grabbed her third event title on floor against Oklahoma.

 

Senior Stephanie Carter capped her Husker career with a solid performance at nationals, posting a pair of 9.775 scores on vault and floor in preliminaries to help Nebraska to the Super Six Finals. In her final competition, Carter added another 9.775 on floor and an outstanding 9.875 on vault. Carter, the 2007 Nebraska Female Student-Athlete of the Year, was a three-event contributor for the Huskers throughout the year, as she also saw considerable time in the bars lineup and was an All-Big 12 selection on bars. Carter graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in May 2007.

 

Freshman Kathryn Howard, who joined the Huskers at the end of the fall semester after graduating early from high school, earned All-Big 12 honor on beam at the Big 12 Championships. The beam specialist stepped into a crucial leadoff role for NU and shined the brightest for the Huskers at the NCAA Super Six Finals, where she earned a career-high 9.90 on the event.

 

Sophomore Kylie Stone had a solid season for Nebraska, earning All-Big 12 honors on vault. The 2004 Canadian Olympian provided a solid one-two punch in the all-around with Parsons and shattered her career highs on every event this season, including a 39.425 all-around mark at NC State on Feb. 17. Stone won a total of six individual event titles, finishing first on bars twice and four times on floor.

 

Junior Brittney Williams turned in a strong year to help NU, emerging as a bars specialist in 2007 after competing on vault, bars and floor for her first two years as a Husker. One of Nebraska’s most dependable contributors, she won her first career bars title with a career-high 9.90 against Kentucky. At the Big 12 Championships, Williams earned All-Big 12 honors on bars for the first time in her career, and also filled in for an injured Woo in the floor lineup. In a last-minute decision by Coach Dan Kendig, Williams tallied a clutch 9.575 on the event to save Nebraska three-tenths on its team score on the way to the conference title.

 

Freshman Maria Scaffidi filled a number of roles for Nebraska in her first season, contributing as an all-arounder, a two- and three-event specialist and as a strong, dependable leadoff on every event. Scaffidi shined the brightest in NU’s final home meet against Kentucky, finishing third on floor with a career-high 9.875 and a fifth-place 9.80 on vault. At the NCAA Championships, Scaffidi returned to her three-event position, contributing scores of 9.85 on vault, 9.775 on bars and 9.725 on floor in the preliminary session. The Sussex, Wis., native added a 9.825 on vault, 9.75 on bars and 9.725 on floor the following night at the Super Six Finals, helping NU to a sixth-place national finish.

 

Sophomore bars specialist Vanessa Meloche started the year strong, capturing three event titles in five meets before her second-year campaign was cut short due to tears of her ACL and medial meniscus suffered at Michigan on Feb. 9. Meloche, a 2006 first-team All-American on bars, had surgery to repair the injuries later that month and plans to rehabilitate her nee in hopes of competing in 2008.

 

Sophomore Sabrina Long and freshman Molly Ohnoutka were slowed by injuries in 2007, as the duo made no appearances due to rehabilitation of injuries.

 

With the Huskers’ 26-12 record, head coach Dan Kendig finished his 14th season at Nebraska with a program-best 341-127-4 record, continuing his impressive career as the winningest coach in NU women’s gymnastics history. The 2007 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Kendig has taken the Husker program to new heights, guiding his teams to 11 conference championships. During Kendig’s tenure, Nebraska has qualified for the NCAA Championships 12 times, making nine appearances at the Super Six Finals. He has coached 27 All-Americans to 94 first- or second-team honors.

 

2007 Season Highlights

• NU finished with a 26-12 record and placed sixth at the NCAA Championships after making its ninth Super Six Finals appearance in program history.

• Nebraska captured its eighth Big 12 championship and 20th overall conference title.

• Four Huskers earned a total of six All-America awards: junior Emily Parsons (V, FX), freshman Tricia Woo (BB), senior Michele Zabawa (V, UB) and junior Desire’ Sniatynski (UB).

• Seven Huskers earned All-Big 12 honors: Parsons (AA, V, UB, BB, FX), Zabawa (UB), Sniatynski (UB), senior Stephanie Carter (UB), junior Brittney Williams (UB), sophomore Kylie Stone (V) and freshman Kathryn Howard (BB).

• Parsons was honored as the 2007 South Central Regional Gymnast of the Year, becoming just the second Husker to win two regional gymnast-of-the-year awards.

• Parsons was named Big 12 Co-Gymnast of the Year with <?xml:namespace prefix="u1"?>IowaState’s Janet Anson.

• Parsons was named one of four finalists for the Honda Award, joining Anson, Courtney Kupets of Georgia and Tasha Schwikert of UCLA.

• Parsons became Nebraska’s all-time event titles leader with a total of 85 over her career, passing former NCAA champions Richelle Simpson (77) and Heather Brink (70).

• Carter was honored as the 2007 Nebraska Student-Athlete of the Year.

• Carter and Zabawa earned first-team academic All-Big 12 honors, while sophomore Vanessa Meloche was named to the second team.

• Two Huskers were named Big 12 Gymnast of the Week at least once in 2007: Sniatynski (Jan. 31) and Parsons (Feb. 20, Feb. 27, March 7, March 13).

• Three Huskers were named Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week at least once in 2007: Parsons (Jan. 9, Jan. 23, Feb. 6), Carter (March 13, March 27) and Stone (Feb. 13).

• Six gymnasts were named to the Big 12 Commissioner’s Fall Honor Roll: Carter, Zabawa, Meloche, Woo, freshman Molly Ohnoutka and former Husker Jamie Saas.

• Head coach Dan Kendig was named Big 12 Coach of the Year for the seventh time in his career.

• Associate head coach Danna Durante was honored as the 2007 National Assistant Coach of the Year.