Arkansas dominates TWU Quad

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DENTON, Texas – The 11th-ranked University of Arkansas gymnastics team dominated quad meet action at Texas Woman’s University winning every event and setting school records in the final regular season event of the season. Arkansas (8-4, 3-3 SEC) went 1-2-3 in all four events and the all-around winning with a 196.550. Bowling Green was second with a 193.275, followed by Texas Woman’s University with a 193.00 and Pennsylvania with 190.350. Junior All-American Casey Jo Magee tied the school record on vault with a 9.95 and tied the all-around record winning with a 39.525. It is her sixth all-around title this year. Junior All-American Michelle Stout was second in the all-around with a 39.375 followed by freshman Jaime Pisani with a 39.30 and junior Sarah Nagashima with a career-best 39.275. Arkansas took the top four spots on vault behind Magee’s 9.95. Pisani was second with a 9.90, followed by Stout with 9.875 and Nagashima who tied for fourth with a season-best 9.85. Stout, Pisani and Nagashima tied for the win on bars with 9.825s, and Magee won the beam with a 9.925, followed by second-place Nagashima with a 9.825 and third-place Stout with a 9.80. Pisani won the floor exercise with a 9.90 with Stout second, Magee third, senior Alex LaChance was fourth and Nagashima fifth. “The team started a little shaky on the first two events,” said Arkansas co-head coach Mark Cook. “It was a different format and we were distracted. This was great preparation for SECs next week. I thought we settled in well in the last two events and rocked floor and vault. It’s a great away score and I’m happy with the outcome.” The Razorbacks opened on bars and rallied the troops after a slow start. Amy DeFilippo was solid in her first routine scoring a 9.80 but a fall by the second performer put the pressure on Arkansas early. The Razorbacks would finish with three consecutive 9.85s from Pisani, Nagashima and Stout en route to a 49.05 on the opening event. Arkansas’ 49-plus score was good for first place in the four-team event after the first rotation. The Razorbacks led second-place Bowling Green by more than five-tenths of a point, 49.050-48.475 heading to the balance beam. The Razorbacks were able to maintain the lead after beam with a less-than-perfect performance. Arkansas scored a 48.875 with low scores from the first three gymnasts including a fall which did not count toward the team score. Again, the final three performers stepped up with a 9.80 from Stout, a career-best tying 9.825 from Nagashima and a meet-winning season-best 9.925 from Magee. “It’s tough to answer the call after a fall but that’s exactly what our last three performers did tonight,” said Rene Cook. “We needed big scores from them and they performed. Although we’re disappointed I’m also pleased that we performed under pressure.” Arkansas began to widen the gap after the third rotation scoring a 49.250 on floor behind a 9.90 from Pisani in the final performance. Stout and Magee both posted 9.875s and senior Alex LaChance added a 9.825 for Arkansas. At the conclusion of the third rotation, Arkansas held a 147.175-145.325 lead over second-place Bowling Green with TWU (144.70) and Pennsylvania (142.500) in third and fourth, respectively. Arkansas continued to improve as the meet came to a conclusion. Magee tied the school vault record winning with a 9.95 and tied the all-around school record that she holds with a 39.525 in the win. Nagashima tied her season-best with a 9.85 and Pisani added a 9.90 for the Razorbacks in the win. Friday’s meet was the final tune-up prior to the SEC Championship March 21, in Nashville, Tenn. Arkansas returns home hosting the 2009 NCAA South Central Regional Championship in the final home meet in Barnhill. For more information or tickets please contact the Razorback Ticket Office at 575-5151 or log on to ArkansasRazorbacks.com.