The Traveler

Issue date: 4/15/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Jonathan Gibson

Making the Super Six championship round has been the goal all season for the No. 10 Arkansas Razorback gymnastics team.

After making it to the NCAA Championships last year, the Razorbacks fell short of the Super Six by placing in the bottom two of the opening session.

But with another year of experience, Arkansas co-head coach Rene Cook said the team is ready for the challenge of advancing to the second round of the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history.

"They are so motivated," Cook said. "They want to go get it. They have been training for the opportunity to go out there and lay it all out there. That's their focus. They will be clawing their way to try to make it happen."

After the season ended last year, Cook said it was difficult for the team to stay out of the gym. The Razorbacks, who hoped for another chance at the meet, wanted to keep working and improving.

One year later, the Razorbacks now have the opportunity to show how much they've improved when Arkansas competes Thursday at the NCAA Championships in Lincoln, Neb., for the second year in a row and for the third time in program history.

Cook said the team gained invaluable experience and confidence from the last championship meet.

"They learned that they were competitive with almost every team there," Cook said. "They came away with a confidence level that showed they were as good as three-quarters of the teams there. They competed well, so they know they can do it again."

After winning a regional for the first time in program history, Cook said Arkansas is excited to keep the season goal alive.

"The girls are just pumped," Cook said. "After a great regional meet, they have high hopes and expectations. We are just trying to stay steady to get there and do it."

Cook said the Razorbacks thought they could win the regional meet, despite the level of talent in the competition.

It's that type of fearlessness that could help set the team apart from the field at the national championship meet, Cook said.

"They don't fear anything," Cook said. "That's what is so great about this team. They really embrace the challenge. We will be able to go in there with that in our back pocket. I think it will set us apart from the other teams."

The regional win over a field that included No. 4 Stanford last week helped increase the confidence of the team, Cook said.

"It showed that they can compete well when they need to," Cook said. "We feel like if we go do our job, we have a decent shot at making Super Six. That's the focus now. We need to go out there and leave nothing behind."

Arkansas, which is coming off a 196.300 performance that included what Cook said was the best beam rotation of the year, looks to be putting everything together at the right time.

"It's a long season," Cooks said. "We definitely had a bit of a valley. But I think we have been coming out of it. The beam last

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools