IOWA CITY, IOWA – The No. 6 Florida Gators gymnastics team attempts to qualify for its fifth straight NCAA Championships this Saturday night at 7 Eastern in the North Central Region competition at the University of Iowa’s Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
The Gators are the top seed in the region and hope to be one of the top two teams to advance to this year’s NCAA Championships April 16-18 at Lincoln, Neb., the home of the University of Nebraska. (Also qualifying will be the top two all-around competitors who are not on an advancing team)
Florida has advanced to the nationals 26 times in the 27-year history of the championships. Last year, Florida won the NCAA Southeast Region in Gainesville – its fourth regional title in a row – and placed fourth in the NCAA Championships at the University of Georgia.
Joining the Gators in the field at No. 8 UCLA, No. 18 Minnesota, No. 20 Denver, No. 23 Iowa State and No. 28 Iowa. UCLA is the alma mater of current Florida head coach Rhonda Faehn, who earned All-America honors competing for the Bruins.
Despite a rash of injuries this season, Florida managed to finish third in the 2009 SEC Championships March 21 in Nashville, Tenn. Florida competed in that event minus five of its 12 team members.
Florida is without junior All-American Amanda Castillo, who will require surgery for a partially torn Achilles tendon, and sophomore Alicia Goodwin, who sprained a knee during practice March 18. Castillo is the fourth Florida gymnast to have a season-ending injury, joining Nicole Ellis (hip), Kalley Tissue (knee) and Rebekah Zaiser (broken foot). Goodwin is questionable for the bars and beam lineup this Saturday.
Florida is led by senior All-American Corey Hartung, who came back from a third-degree sprain of her left soleus muscle to finish fourth in the all-around at the SEC Championships. Hartung also placed second with teammate Melanie Sinclair in the bars Sinclair was fifth in the all-around and freshman Elizabeth Mahlich finished 13th.