In 2006, the Illinois women's gymnastics team continued to show that it is an up-and-coming program on the national scene. The Fighting Illini qualified for the NCAA South Central Regional Championship for the third straight season and finished fourth, equaling the best regional finish in school history. Illinois finished 25th in the final NCAA rankings, marking the second time in the last three years that the Orange and Blue ended the season inside the top-25. Now, with 21 of 24 routines returning and the addition of a talented freshman class that includes Nicole Cowart, who comes to Illinois as one of the most decorated recruits in recent history, the Illini have set their sights even higher in 2007.

"We feel that as a group, we can contend for a Big Ten title and start making strides toward making it to the NCAA finals," said coach Bob Starkell, who is entering his eighth season at the helm of the Illini. "It will really depend on how well our balance beam team develops, and how consistent our vault and uneven bars can be throughout the season."

This year's talented freshman class of Cowart, Sarah Schmidt, Lori Hamilton and Laura Woolf joins five sophomores on the roster, making the Illini a young team on paper, but one that certainly isn't short on experience. Sophomores Julie Crall, Marijka Botterman, Kim Kruk and Lindsey Smith gained a wealth of experience as freshmen and will be counted on more heavily with a year of collegiate competition under their belts.

"Last year was more or less a developmental year for us because we had so many freshmen," Starkell said. "I think we have an advantage now because the freshmen are sophomores. Since we are bringing in another talented freshman group, I think our aspirations and goals are a little higher than last year."

Despite all the young talent, the 2007 Fighting Illini will only go as far as their upperclassmen leaders take them. Senior tri-captains Danye Botterman, Cara Pomeroy, and Melissa Singer are not only talented in the gym, but their leadership is immeasurable. Juniors Michelle McGrady and Krystal Melcarek, also showed flashes of brilliance last season and are ready to step up as consistent forces in the line-up. With the combination of the tremendous leadership and the talent level of the last two recruiting classes, 2007 is shaping up to be a special year for the Fighting Illini.

"We've made some great strides during preseason, and I think we're a very strong team on all four events. We are looking for 2007 to be one of the best seasons at Illinois in a long time."

Seniors
Cara Pomeroy is the anchor of the squad, and is looking to wrap up her stellar career with a bang. During her freshman season, she scored a perfect 10 on bars at the South Central Regional meet to become the first Illini to advance to the NCAA Championships in 17 years. She is hungry to return, this time with all of her teammates at her side. A back-to-back first team All-Big Ten selection and the winner of 31 career event titles entering 2007, Pomeroy will likely head the bars and beam line-ups this year, and may crack the floor line-up as well.

"Being a senior and a captain, we are looking for Cara to have her best year yet, while also being a key leader for the younger members of the team," Starkell said. "Cara's strengths are definitely bars and beam, but last year she was able to give us a lift on floor exercise as well. I'm confident she will be able to provide big numbers on those three events and help us reach our postseason goals."

The eldest Botterman sister, Danye, has been a huge contributor for the Illini since the start of her freshman season. She was just hitting her stride last season when she dislocated her foot and had to miss the last three meets of the season. She will miss the beginning of this season after having off-season surgery, but will be expected to step in on vault, bars and floor when she returns in February.

"Danye is still coming off an injury from last year, so performance-wise, we're not exactly sure where she's going to be," Starkell said. "But if we can get her on any event, it's going to help us out quite a bit, particularly on vault."

Mainly a vault specialist for most of her career, senior, Melissa Singer, stepped up big last season when the injury bug hit the Illini late in the season. Singer entered into the beam and floor lineups, in addition to her normal vaulting, and counted toward the team score on all three events at both Big Tens and Regionals. She grabbed co-Most Valuable Gymnast by her teammates, along with Pomeroy after the season, rewarding her ability to come through when it was needed most.

"I think Melissa will provide more leadership than anything," Starkell said. "In the past, she has been a key performer on vault as the lead-off competitor. Last season, she really came through for us when we needed her on beam and floor. She certainly gives us quality depth on all three events she competes."

Juniors
The junior duo of Michelle McGrady and Krystal Melcarek made huge strides in 2006, and there's no reason to believe that improvement won't continue in 2007. McGrady was off to a fantastic start last season, winning seven event titles on vault and floor in the first eight meets, before missing the last five meets due to injury. Melcarek won two event titles on bars and also stepped in on floor exercise in six meets. Both gymnasts worked hard on upgrades in the off-season and could crack the lineup in even more events this season.

"Michelle's attributes are mostly with the power events, especially on floor and vault," Starkell said. "She's been spending quite a bit of preseason upgrading her bars, so hopefully she will be able to jump in and lead on those three events. Krystal, meanwhile, has been one of our most consistent bar performers over the last two seasons. This year, she's been training for the all-around and could possibly make the line-up on floor exercise and balance beam."

Sophomores
This year's sophomore class comes into the season with loads of experience. Marijka Botterman, Julie Crall and Kim Kruk each competed in the all-around as freshmen, while Lindsey Smith and Ursula Orozco are expected to step in and contribute on multiple events this year.

Crall started off slowly in her freshman campaign, but finished with a flourish, taking fifth in the all-around at the NCAA South Central Regional meet and narrowly missing advancing to the NCAA Championships. She was named second team All-Big Ten after tying for third on beam at the conference championships, and earned the University of Illinois Female Newcomer of the Year accolade. She has had a great preseason and is looking to pick up where she left off last season.

"Julie had a very successful freshman season," Starkell said. "Her main strengths were floor exercise and balance beam, but I see her starting out doing the all-around in our first meet this year and hopefully continuing where she left off a year ago. Julie is strong and elegant, and is going to be a key factor as to how far we can go this year."

Botterman and Kruk also will be in the mix on all four events, and could see time as all-arounders once again. Botterman should make the most noise on vault and bars, while Kruk can be equally solid on each event.

"Marijka really does not have a weak event, but her biggest impact events will be the vault and the uneven bars," Starkell said. "Kim also has four solid events, and hopefully she will be able to continue the success she had at the end of last season."

Smith was rock solid on vault all of last season and is looking to contribute on more events this year, especially floor exercise and balance beam. Orozco competed in exhibitions several times in 2006, but has worked hard upgrading her routines and is poised to crack the vault, beam or floor lineup as a sophomore.

"Lindsey was one of our main competitors on the vault in 2006, but we'd like to use her a little bit more on the other events this year," Starkell said. "One of her key events in preseason has been floor exercise, and she also will provide depth on balance beam. Ursula had limited opportunities to compete last year but has spent a lot of time and effort upgrading her routines in the preseason. She has a chance to make the lineup on both floor exercise and balance beam this year, while adding depth to our vault team."

Freshmen
There is another talented crop of freshmen suiting up for the Illini in 2007, led by Indianapolis, Ind. native Nicole Cowart, who finished third in the all-around in her age group at the 2006 Junior Olympic Championships. Cowart, along with Sarah Schmidt, a 2005 J.O. Nationals qualifier and 2006 Wisconsin state floor exercise champion, is expected to make an immediate impact for the up-and-coming Illini.

"Nicole is going to come in and compete all-around right away," Starkell said. "She is strong on all four events and doesn't really have a weakness. Coming out of preseason, I see her potentially being our top all-arounder. Sarah, meanwhile, already has big skills and has spent a lot of time trying to perfect those skills. She has been a pleasant surprise since she first set foot in Kenney Gym."

Canadian Lori Hamilton comes in with extensive big meet experience and an instant-impact bar routine, but has been slowed in the preseason by a back injury. While Illinois native, Laura Woolf, is expected to add strength to all events.

"Lori came in with a stress fracture in her back, but she's been progressively getting better," Starkell said. "She's missed some practice time, but hopefully by the first month of competition we can get her on her strongest event, which I believe is the uneven bars. When she gets healthy and strong enough, she will be able to provide some quality routines on the other events as well. Laura, on the other hand, has really shown the most progress on the balance beam this preseason, but will add depth on the other events as well."

Head Coach Bob Starkell's Event-by-Event Breakdown:

Vault
"Until last year, vault was one of the events that we struggled on, but we've been spending a lot of time and effort to get stronger on it. Last year was the best vault team we've had since I've been at Illinois, and we return everyone from that line-up. Our top vaulters from 2006, Marijka and Danye Botterman, Michelle McGrady, Lindsey Smith, Julie Crall, Melissa Singer and Kim Kruk are all back and improved, plus we get to add Nicole Cowart into the mix. Hopefully this group, with a bit more experience, can start our meets off strong."

Uneven Bars
"Bars should be a definite strength for us this year. We lost Emily Earle, however, everyone else from last season's line-up returns. We've also added some talented freshmen with good uneven bar skills. It's such a luxury to have someone like Cara Pomeroy anchoring our line-up, as you know she'll consistently put up a big score. Freshmen, Nicole Cowart and Sarah Schmidt, should give us solid options on the event along with our returnees from last season, Krystal Melcarek, Danye and Marijka Botterman and Julie Crall."

Balance Beam
"Beam will be the one event that will decide our season because it becomes an issue of consistency. We have some very strong competitors with Cara Pomeroy and Julie Crall returning as our top two beam workers from a year ago. Marijka Botterman and Michelle McGrady, both solid competitors last season, will return for the 2007 season. If we can get that core group to consistently perform, we should have a very good season."

Floor Exercise
"Floor exercise is our deepest event. In the past, Michelle McGrady and Danye Botterman have been excellent floor performers, but I anticipate our freshmen and sophomores to step up and join those two as consistent performers on the event. Sarah Schmidt and Nicole Cowart have done well in the preseason, and I expect great performances from them right from the start. Julie Crall, Cara Pomeroy, Kim Kruk, Marijka Botterman, Lindsey Smith, Ursula Orozco and Krystal Melcarek all gained experience on floor last season and will vie for spots in the line-up."