Jan. 9, 2009

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East Lansing, Mich. - The 16th-ranked Illinois women's gymnastics team started off the 2009 season with an impressive second place showing at the Michigan State Quad meet Friday night in East Lansing, Mich. The Illini put up a solid score of 193.950 to finish behind only No. 8 Michigan (194.850) and ahead of No. 17 Michigan State (192.325) and Western Michigan (187.900).

"I'm very pleased all-around with our performances tonight," head coach Bob Starkell said. " We talked this week about starting strong and using this meet as a stepping stone toward our goals later this year, and I couldn't be happier with how we competed. Our mistakes are all fixable, so we should get stronger as the year goes on."

Senior Marijka Botterman and freshman Kelsey Joannides each won event titles for the Orange and Blue. Botterman tied her younger sister, Kylee, and Sarah Curtis, both of Michigan, for the vault crown with a 9.825, while Joannides, competing in her first collegiate meet, scored a 9.850 on beam to win the title outright by a full tenth of a point. The duo also excelled in the all-around, as both Botterman and Joannides posted scores of 39.100 to tie for third place. Junior Nicole Cowart finished fifth in the all-around with a 38.800.

"Kelsey and Marijka were both outstanding tonight," Starkell said. "I knew Kelsey would have to overcome some nerves for her first meet and she fought through it and had some great performances. Both she and Marijka stepped up and competed in the all-around and took care of business for us."

Led by Joannides' winning score, the Orange and Blue posted the top team score of the night on beam with a 48.875. Sophomore Lashlee Morris tied for second on the event with a 9.750, while Botterman and sophomore Melissa Fernandez both tied for fifth with solid scores of 9.725.

Another top performer for the Fighting Illini was junior Sarah Schmidt, who took third on bars with a 9.800 and fifth on floor with a career-high tying 9.825. In addition to her stellar beam performance, Joannides finished fourth on vault with a 9.750 and sixth on floor with a 9.800, while Botterman placed fifth on beam with a 9.725 and sixth on bars with a 9.775.

Illinois posted the second best team score of the night on vault with a 48.500 and had the third best scores on both bars (48.575) and floor (48.125).

Fernandez injured her ankle on floor and did not compete on vault in the final rotation. The Illini were also without sophomore All-American Allison Buckley for the entire meet, as she is recovering from off-season surgery. Buckley is expected to ease back into competition as the season progresses.

Tonight's meet will air tape-delayed on the Big Ten Network next Friday, Jan. 16, at 7 pm CT.

The Illini will now return to Champaign for their home opener at Huff Hall on Saturday, Jan. 17, against 13th-ranked Penn State at 7 p.m.