Jan. 4, 2011
2011 Illinois Women's Gymnastics Record Book 
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - In her first season as interim head coach, Kim Landrus expects big things from the Illinois gymnastics team, which she has seen make big strides in her eight years on staff. Along with vault and floor coach Amy Kruse and new bars coach Jay Santos, Landrus will lead a squad that just missed its second-straight trip to the NCAA Championships last season after placing third at the regional meet but had a pair of national qualifiers, including a first-team All-American on vault in senior Allison Buckley. Expectations remain high heading into the 2011 season after the Illini were slated at No. 17 in the preseason rankings and picked to finish second by the Big Ten coaches.
"Our goal is to qualify for NCAA Nationals," Landrus said. "We have a strong senior class, which will lead the pack in the right direction and help us achieve that goal. The team is excited to finally get started and begin competition. Even though we didn't make it to Nationals from the Kentucky regional last season, we still had a good experience and are excited to start the season off there."
The Illini lost eight routines to graduation following the departure of all-arounders Nicole Cowart and Sarah Schmidt, but will return 16 routines and nine letterwinners along with a pair of All-Americans in Buckley and senior Melissa Fernandez. Cowart was a consistent leader to have at the front of the lineup while Schmidt was an All-American on floor and tied the school record on the event.
"Nicole and Sarah are hard to replace, but we have a couple girls from last year who have really stepped up along with a very talented group of freshmen," Landrus said. "Alina Weinstein has done an excellent job and really proved she can be an all-arounder when she filled in at the NCAA regional meet last year. We will also have to rely on our freshmen, who each have different strengths which we will piece together to help replace the void left by graduation."
Seniors
The senior class includes Buckley, Fernandez, Samantha Perino and Lashlee Morris, who have been a key part of the recent rise of the program and will be relied upon to continue that success in their final season at Illinois. Buckley and Fernandez were also selected to the Big Ten's Gymnast to Watch List for the second year in a row.
"The upperclassmen have their eye on the goal," Landrus said. "They have a vision and understand that the hard days of practice will get them to where they want to be. If they can get everyone to believe in that, we will be a top team."
Buckley, the program's first two-time All-American, is the squad's top returner after tying for third on vault at the NCAA Championships and earning All-American honors. The Schaumburg, Ill., native was a first-team All-Big Ten selection and led the Illini with 15 individual titles last season, giving her 42 for her career, which is second on the Illinois all-time list. She also set the Illinois all-around record with a 39.525 against Penn State, breaking the old mark of 39.475, and now owns five of the top-eight all-around scores in school history.
"I look for Allison's senior season to be her best yet," Landrus said. "She is focused on doing what she knows she can do and the rest will take care of itself. She will be a huge standout for us."
Fernandez took home first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2010 after setting or tying her career high on every event while competing as an all-arounder for the first time in her career. The Eudora, Kan., native was third on the team with 11 individual titles and won multiple titles at four meets. She suffered a right lower leg injury at the Big Ten Championships on vault, which forced her out of the final two events and limited her action at the NCAA Central Regional. However, she is healthy now and is slated to compete on every event.
"Melissa is looking great in the gym," Landrus said. "She sets high expectations for herself, but if she performs the gymnastics she is capable of doing, she will meet those expectations. I look for her to be a consistent all-arounder for the Illini."
Perino had a breakthrough year in 2010, where she was named the team's Most Improved Gymnast after solid contributions all season on beam and floor. The Yorktown, Va., native recorded career highs of 9.850 on her two events after leading off floor at all 14 meets and competing on beam in the final nine meets.
"Sam is going to pick up right where she left off," Landrus said. "She has given us solid performances on both beam and floor, so I expect that again this season. She is doing everything we ask her to do and is looking great on her two signature events."
Morris competed on balance beam three times and exhibitioned on the event four times during the 2010 season. She continues to give great effort in the gym and should contribute on the event once again.
"Lashlee will be a viable option on beam and will continue to work hard every day to crack into the bar lineup as well," Landrus said.
Juniors
The juniors consist of Kelsey Joannides, who looks to compete as an all-arounder, and Hannah Welker, who has made great strides and will work to enter the lineup on bars and floor.
Joannides competed in all 14 meets a year ago, but only twice in the all-around, which she competed in her entire freshmen year. The Frederick, Md., native hopes to bounce back from a difficult year and regain her form from her rookie season, where she was the Big Ten Vault Champion and made her mark in the record books. She did compete well on floor in 2010, hitting a perfect 14-of-14 routines and tying her career high in the event with a 9.900.
"Kelsey was able to reflect on last season and knows what she wants to do differently," Landrus said. "She stayed on the equipment last year but didn't compete to her highest level. She has been practicing at her highest level recently, so I am confident she will have a successful year."
Welker scored a career-high on uneven bars at the Big Ten Championships while serving as a last-minute replacement for the injured Fernandez in the lineup. She also competed on bars at the first meet of the season and exhibitioned nine other times along with twice on floor.
"Hannah has been battling a back injury, but once she bounces back from that, she will give us some solid routines," Landrus said.
Sophomores
The sophomore class has four members in Alina Weinstein, Jaclyn Kantecki, Elise Gill and Macy Hyatt. Both Weinstein and Kantecki contributed immediately in 2010 and are expected to take another step this season.
Weinstein competed in the all-around for the first time in her career at the NCAA Central Regional, scoring a 39.050 and placing seventh overall. The Plainsboro, N.J., native also posted a career-best 9.925 on uneven bars at the State of Illinois Classic, which tied the sixth-best mark in school history. She is expected to compete in the all-around this year to fill a hole left by the graduated routines.
"Alina is one of the most talented girls we have on our team," Landrus said. "She has really adjusted to college and now understands what NCAA gymnastics is all about."
Kantecki won her first career individual title on vault with a career-high 9.850 against Michigan State in 2010. The Bridgeview, Ill., native counted her score on both vault and uneven bars at nine of 14 meets. In total, she hit 25-of-29 routines and recorded seven top-five finishes.
"I expect Jaclyn to be in our vault and bars lineup," Landrus said. "She should have a solid year for us and will be able to compete to make the lineup on all four events."
Gill exhibitioned on vault 10 times during 2010 and is working to make the lineup this season.
"Elise is doing great in practice," Landrus said. "She is mostly a vault and floor specialist and is very close to cracking the top six."
Hyatt competed once on vault in 2010 before suffering a season-ending elbow injury.
"Macy is still working on coming back from her injury," Landrus said. "She is practicing hard every day in the gym, so we will wait and see how her body responds to see what she can give us."
Freshmen
A talented recruiting class, which will make up for lost routines and make an impact right away, includes Sarah Fiedler (Lake Zurich, Ill./Lake Zurich), Elizabeth McNabb (Fortville, Ind./Cathedral) and Amber See (Minnetonka, Minn./Hopkins).
"The key for the freshmen will be how they adjust to college gymnastics and how they transition to competing every single weekend," Landrus said. "It is important for them to understand that so much of it comes down to execution of skills. They are dynamic gymnasts, so it will be a fun year for them.
"Amber is phenomenal on vault and floor. She was the national champion at the junior Olympic level. Sarah will be on multiple events for us this season. Her beam is eye-catching while her other events are extremely solid. Liz has the lines and presence that make watching her on bars and beam fun. She should be a solid contributor on both of these events while providing depth on the other two."
Coach Landrus' Event-by-Event Breakdown:
Vault
"We have a solid group of vaulters. They are dynamic and explosive, so if they go out and compete the way they practice, there is no reason they can't post 49-plus on the event at every meet. We have a competitive group and they want to work hard to get to the All-American level, like Allison did last year."
Uneven Bars
"Jay Santos is a phenomenal technical coach. He has done a tremendous job preparing the squad for the start of the season. He is still tweaking some things, but he is working every day to get the best bar team possible. Alina, Allison, Melissa and Jaclyn will all return to the bar lineup, but we did lose Sarah Schmidt and Nicole Cowart, so look for Kelsey to crack back into the lineup along with any one of the freshman."
Balance Beam
"Beam is several of the girls' favorite event, which really helps when competing it. We look to have a very strong beam team due to our natural beam workers. It is a mentally challenging event, but we train the brain as well, so that definitely helps when they are ready to compete it. I expect big things from the beam squad. Alina and Sarah (Fiedler) will fill the spots left by Nicole Cowart and Sarah Schmidt."
Floor Exercise
"We have four of the six routines back from an excellent floor team last season. We had Sarah Schmidt and Nicole Cowart who we depended on to get the job done every time, but this year I expect Alina and Amber to fill those shoes. They will be newcomers to the lineup, so they will have to learn how to perform at the college level, but I expect high-level performances from them and the entire squad on floor."
All-Around
"We expect to have a strong group of all-arounders. Allison and Melissa will both compete all four events again. Kelsey should also compete all-around if she can secure a spot in the bar lineup along with Alina, who currently is in the top six on every event. Sarah Fiedler and Amber See are also right up there and have a chance to enter the lineup on every event, so we have many potential all-arounders to go with our two returning senior ones."
