This week in Pac-12 gymnastics

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SAN FRANCISCO-- This weekend, Pac-12 teams will complete regular season competition before heading to Seattle for the Pac-12 Championship on March 19. Last weekend, the Conference grabbed two high-profile non-conference wins as No. 5 UTAH traveled to Ann Arbor and defeated No. 6 Michigan and No. 13 STANFORD defeated No. 9 Georgia.

This week, seven Pac-12 squads are ranked among the top 21 teams in the nation,  matching the SEC for the most teams in that group. In this last weekend of the regular season, the Pac-12 will face five top-10 teams in No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 3 LSU, No. 7 Auburn, No. 9 Georgia, and No. 10 Denver. 

Pac-12 Championship Credentials: The media credential application site for the 2016 Pac-12 Gymnastics Championship is open. Credential requests are due by March 16. The event will take place at Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle with session 1 starting at 1 p.m. PT and session 2 starting at 6 p.m. PT. The event will be televised live by Pac-12 Networks. To apply for credentials click here.

Pac-12 vs. the rest of the top 10: This week Pac-12 teams will take on five different members of the current top-10. No. 8 UCLA will host No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 16 OREGON STATE will meet with No. 3 LSU in Texas, ARIZONA STATE will travel to No. 7 Auburn, No. 5 UTAH will take on No. 9 Georgia, and No. 19 WASHINGTON will host No. 10 Denver. The only members of the top-10 that aren’t facing Pac-12 competition this weekend are Alabama, Florida, and Michigan--all of whom have already competed against Pac-12 teams this year and gone 1-2 against the Conference of Champions. UTAH defeated No. 6 Michigan last week and UCLA defeated No. 4 Alabama to open the 2016 season. 

Danusia Francis grabs Pac-12’s first perfect score of the season: For the first time this season, a Pac-12 gymnast scored a perfect 10.00. Danusia Francis got the perfect score for her unique beam routine in UCLA’s meet with STANFORD and Georgia last weekend. She currently leads the nation on the beam.

Senior Standouts: Many Pac-12 teams recently hosted senior nights or will this coming weekend. Some of the highest performing seniors that will be saying goodbye to the Pac-12 this season include UTAH’s Breanna Hughes (currently 17th in the all-around, 9th on the vault, 18th on bars, and 15th on floor), UTAH’s Kassandra Lopez (currently 12th on bars), UCLA’s Sadiqua Bynum (4th on floor), UCLA’s Danusia Francis (1st on beam), and WASHINGTON’s Allison Northey (16th in all-around and 20th on beam).

Upcoming Schedule:
Fri., Mar. 11
ARIZONA STATE at #7 Auburn              SEC Network    5 p.m. PT
BYU at #21 ARIZONA                                                       5 p.m. PT
#14 CALIFORNIA at UC Davis                                          7 p.m. PT

Sat., Mar. 12
#9 Georgia at #5 UTAH                            P12N, M          4 p.m. PT
#16 OREGON STATE at Texas Women’s                       4 p.m. PT
    with #3 LSU and New Hampshire
#19 WASHINGTON vs. #10 Denver, Seattle Pacific       6 p.m. PT

Sun., Mar. 13
#1 Oklahoma at #8 UCLA                       P12N, LA         2 p.m. PT