University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Florida
Tar Heels Fall To Florida In Dual Meet
February 22, 2008 | Women's Gymnastics
The University of North Carolina gymnastics team faced elite competition Friday, February 22 against the University of Florida. The No. 3 Florida Gators proved to be a top-notch team, as the Tar Heels fell 194.125-196.650. The competition at Carmichael Auditorium in Chapel Hill attracted a great crowd of 1,257 fans, friends, family and gymnastics enthusiasts.
"We were excited to have the University of Florida here in Carmichael Auditorium," said head coach Derek Galvin. "We were certainly pleased with the size crowd we had. The spectators were treated to a very high level of gymnastics tonight; Florida is an amazing team. We struggled a little bit on uneven bars tonight. Teri Diamond had an injury during warm-ups on bars, so we had to change around the bar line-up. On the last two events, beam and floor, the girls came out strong and I was very proud of the way they re-focused and put forth a solid effort. We've been battling with some illness this week, so I am very pleased with the way the girls put everything they had out there."
The UNC gymnastics team began the meet competing on vault, scoring 48.750. Senior Sarrie Rubin and sophomore Christine Nguyen tied for 7th place on vault with a score of 9.800. Junior Jennifer Valby and sophomore Kara Wright also tied, scoring 9.750 on the event and placed 9th.
The Tar Heels then proceeded to bars where they scored 47.725. Christine Nguyen led the team, scoring 9.750 and placing 7th on bars. Freshman Karli Jones took 8th for the Tar Heel (9.700) and sophomore Kara Wright placed 9th (9.650). The UNC gymnasts faced tough competition on bars, falling to Florida on the event by 1.575 points.
The Tar Heels took to the balance beam for their third event of the dual meet. Christine Nguyen had an exceptional performance on beam, scoring 9.875 and tying for 1st place with three Florida gymnasts. Nguyen continues to lead her team on beam, giving the Tar Heels motivation to perform well. The team totaled 48.725 on beam.
The team competed on floor exercise for their last event, scoring 48.925. Christine Nguyen led the Tar Heels on floor with a 9.825, tying for 4th with three Florida gymnasts. Teri Diamond also had a strong performance on floor, scoring 9.800 and placing 8th. Carolina suffered an injury on floor, as Sarrie Rubin stopped her routine due to a knee injury when she landed. When asked about Sarrie Rubin's status, Coach Galvin had this to say:
"We are not sure exactly what her injury is yet. She had a great vault tonight, a solid balance beam routine, and floor started off great. However, after she landed she felt pain in her knee and had to stop. So we'll find out soon, but we hope it's nothing too serious. She's worked so hard and she's been such a great leader on this team, so we hope to see here back out here soon."
Carolina is now 9-2 thus far in the season and is looking forward to improving their performance as the season continues. The UNC gymnastics team will host Maryland, New Hampshire and William & Mary in the Tar Heel Invitational at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 1. This meet will mark the Tar Heels' third and final home meet of the season.
Players Mentioned
