GymCats Ready for Pac-12 Championships
TUCSON, Ariz. — The GymCats are set for Session 1 of the Pac-12 Championships in West Valley City, Utah. Session 1 is scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. MST and will be aired here on the Pac-12 Networks.
"We are looking forward to competing at the championships," said head coach John Court. "It will be an electric environment and we are excited to have fans return to the event. This will be this rosters' first experience at the championships and they take great pride in representing Arizona."
Five GymCats posted career high scores between Arizona's two meets last week. Sophomore Caroline Herry impressed on all her events and shattered her career high scores. She posted a 9.825 on vault, a 9.90 on beam, and a 9.95 on floor at BYU.
"The team and I are looking forward to this weekend," said Herry. "We've been focusing on the details in practice, and this is a great opportunity to show what we've been working towards all season."
In addition to the Pac-12 Network broadcast, every gymnast and every apparatus will be available via the Pac-12 Now app and Pac-12.com/now. For more information on how to watch the championship, visit Pac-12.com.
A complete preview of Saturday's meet can be found below.
PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS: Arizona is set to compete in the Pac-12 Championships on Saturday, March 19. The GymCats will face Stanford, UCLA, and Washington in Session 1 of the Championship.
LAST WEEK: The GymCats hosted Sacramento State for Arizona's final home meet of the season and won with a 196.375. Then, Arizona traveled to BYU and scored a 196.300, but fell to the Cougars. Sophomore Caroline Herry stunned on floor with a career best 9.95 at BYU.
IN THE RANKINGS: Overall, Arizona is ranked No. 32 heading into the final week of competition.
- Vault: No. 44
- Uneven Bars: No. 34
- Balance Beam: No. 30
- Floor Exercise: No. 27
COACHES CHOICE: Sophomore Elena Deets earned her first Pac-12 weekly honor with the Coaches Choice award following her standout performances on bars, beam, and floor against Utah.
FABULOUS FRESHMEN: Freshmen Alysen Fears and Emily Mueller have made huge impacts in the lineups for the GymCats. Fears holds season highs 9.80 on vault, 9.85 on beam, 9.90 bars and floor, and 39.350 in the all-around. Mueller has hit every routine so far this season and holds season highs of 9.850 on vault and 9.825 on bars, 9.90 on beam and floor, and 39.350 in the all-around.
FRESH FACES: The GymCats welcomed four newcomers to the team this season. Alysen Fears, Elizabeth LaRusso, and Emily Mueller are all freshmen. Lara Burhans transferred to the program from Utah State.
FAMILIAR FACES: Arizona returns 13 gymnasts from last season. MacKinzie Kane enters her senior year and helped the GymCats finish the 2021 season ranked No. 35 on the uneven bars. Six juniors and seven sophomores will return for the Cats. Malia Hargrove enters her junior season following her individual appearance on floor at the NCAA Championships.
G-PAC: Malia Hargrove and Sirena Linton will represent Arizona in the student-athlete driven organzation "Gymnasts for Peace, Action, and Change." G-PAC's mission is to foster diversity and inclusion. Linton was a member of G-PAC during the 2021 season.
COACHING STAFF: The GymCats have a very accomplished coaching staff. John Court enters his fourth year as head coach and 24th year on staff in Tucson. Taylor Spears, the 2014 NCAA individual beam champion, is in her fourth season as assistant coach and has helped the beam team improve every year. Peter Jansson enters his second season as an assistant with the GymCats, bringing his nearly 30 years of coaching experience.
PRESEASON POLLS: Arizona was picked to finish sixth in the preseason Pac-12 coaches poll. In the WGCA preseason poll, the GymCats were picked to finish 27th.