University of Illinois
Mixed Pairs Exhibition
Fernandez, Phillips Take Crown at Mixed Pairs Exhibition
December 6, 2009 | Women's Gymnastics
Dec. 6, 2009
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Illinois men and women's gymnastics teams debuted their skills at the annual Mixed Pairs Exhibition Sunday afternoon at Huff Hall. Each group of gymnasts performed their top events in front of more than 600 fans, combining the top three scores out of four routines to make up their team total. The duo of junior Melissa Fernandez and sophomore Austin Phillips won this year's Mixed Pairs title with a combined score of 29.9, highlighted by two perfect 10s on balance beam and uneven bars by Fernandez.
Rounding out the top three were senior Sarah Schmidt and sophomore Maxwell Portocarrero in second place (29.85) and junior Samantha Perino and sophomore Tyler Mizoguchi in third place (29.75). Perino scored the day's only other perfect 10 on balance beam.
"It's a fun event and a good start to our season," men's gymnastics associate head coach Justin Spring said. "We upgraded our routines substantially, so we have a lot of work to do before the real season starts. It might take a little longer to perfect Olympic-caliber routines."
Members of the Illinois swimming and diving and women's golf teams were on hand as celebrity judges to evaluate both the men and women using the women's 10-point scoring system in order to add scores systematically to determine the winning group.
"It's a great opportunity for our team to perform in front of the community and get used to competing on our home floor," women's gymnastics head coach Bob Starkell said. "Each year we are trying to get better, and the coaches continue to expect more and more. This exhibition is a great way to prepare and keep the team excited for the first home meet in January."
Both squads begin the regular season on the road. The women get things started on Friday, Jan. 8 in Corvallis, Ore., against No. 10 Oregon State, Air Force and Alaska, while the men kick things off at the Windy City Invitational on Saturday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. in Chicago.
The women open their home schedule on Saturday, Jan. 23 against No. 9 Oklahoma, and the men begin their home season on Saturday, Feb. 13, when they square off against No. 8 Minnesota.
