Senior Melissa Fernandez earned three All-America honors and received a pair of trophies at the NCAA Championships after tying for fifth in the nation in the all-around and fifth on beam at NCAA event finals.

Women's Gymnastics May 4, 2011

2011 Women's Gymnastics Season Wrap-Up

Women's Gymnastics May 4, 2011

2011 Women's Gymnastics Season Wrap-Up

May 4, 2011

2011 Season Wrap-Up Notes (PDF) | 2011 Videos | 2011 Photo Galleries | 2011 Illini Ink

2011 Illinois Gymnastics Season Wrap-Up

Second NCAA Appearance in Program History
6 All-Americans
#11 Final National Ranking
2nd place at NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
3rd place at Big Ten Championships

Quick Hits
 Highest Finish in School History: In her first season as interim head coach, Kim Landrus led Illinois to its highest national ranking in school history, as the Illini wrapped up the year ranked No. 11 following their second-ever appearance at the NCAA Championships. The top-12 final rankings were based on team score at nationals, and the Orange and Blue scored a 195.100 in their semifinal, just in front of Kent State's 195.000 from the second session. Illinois ended the season in the top 25 for the sixth year in a row while its previous top finish came in 2009 when the Illini made their first NCAA appearance and placed 12th in the country.

 Six Illini All-Americans: Heading into the NCAA Championships, Illinois gymnasts had earned five All-America honors in school history. The Illini more than doubled the record books by racking up six All-America accolades during the afternoon semifinal session at the Wolstein Center, giving the UI program 11 total All-Americans. Senior Melissa Fernandez was responsible for half the honors, leading the way with a pair of first-team All-America honors on beam and in the all-around along with a second-team nod on floor. Senior Allison Buckley and sophomore Alina Weinstein were also second-team All-Americans on floor while junior Kelsey Joannides garnered the distinction on vault for placing among the top eight in the session.

 Firsts by Fernandez: Senior Melissa Fernandez accomplished several firsts for the Illini in her final competition at the University of Illinois. The Eudora, Kan., native earned three All-America honors to become Illinois' first-ever multiple All-American at the NCAA Championships, placed fifth in the nation in the all-around to become the first Illini to earn an NCAA trophy in the all-around and reached the podium at event finals by tying for fifth on beam to notch the highest individual finish in school history. She is the first Illini to make the podium twice in her career at event finals and now owns the UI program's most career All-America accolades with four, just in front of teammate Allison Buckley's three.

 Illini, Buckley Rewrite the Record Books: During the 2011 season, Illinois set the school record for team score (196.975) and beam (49.375) while senior Allison Buckley cemented her name throughout the UI record book in her final season as an Orange and Blue gymnast. The Schaumburg, Ill., native broke the career event titles record with 62 crowns, eclipsed her own record-setting mark in the all-around with a 39.550 and equaled her own score of 9.950 on beam, which is tops in program history.

 Big Ten Vault Champion: Freshman Amber See tied for the Big Ten vault title with a 9.900, giving the Illini a freshman champion on the event for the second time in three years after Kelsey Joannides captured the top spot in 2009. See earned a career high on the event for the second time and tied for the top spot with Penn State's Sharaya Musser, giving Illinois its 12th individual conference crown in school history.

 All-Big Ten Honors for Illini Trio: Three Illini earned All-Big Ten honors, as selected by the coaches, with seniors Allison Buckley and Melissa Fernandez being named to the first team and junior Kelsey Joannides garnering second-team accolades. Buckley collected first-team accolades for the third time in her career, as she also earned the honor in 2008 and 2010, and has earned conference honors all four years after also being a second-team selection in 2009. Fernandez notched first-team All-Big Ten honors for the second year in a row, while Joannides picked up Big Ten honors for the second time in her career after also being named to the second team as a freshman in 2009.

Illinois NCAA Championship Recap
In their second-ever appearance at the NCAA Championships, the Illini placed sixth in their session with a 195.100 and 11th overall in the country while racking up six All-America accolades at the Wolstein Center. Senior Melissa Fernandez led the way with a pair of first-team All-America honors, tying for fourth on beam to advance to the event final for the second time in her career and matching her career high (39.375) to become the program's first All-American in the all-around by tying for fifth. Fernandez also was a second-team All-American on floor along with senior Allison Buckley and sophomore Alina Weinstein while junior Kelsey Joannides garnered the distinction on vault for placing among the top eight in the session. Fernandez, who also qualified for the beam final in 2009 to pick up her first All-America award, set an Illinois record with three All-America honors at a single meet and now owns four career awards, the most in school history. Buckley ended her career second all-time with three while Weinstein and Joannides nabbed the honor for the first time.

The Illini finished strong by recording a pair of totals over 49 on floor and vault but were forced to count a fall on beam. After sitting out the first rotation on a bye, Illinois kicked off the meet on bars with a 48.825 before turning in a 47.950 on beam. The Illini bounced back with a 49.150 on floor and ended the meet on vault, where they tallied their top event score with a 49.175, which matched a season high and the third-best mark in UI history.

At the NCAA Championship individual event finals, Fernandez tied for fifth on balance beam and reached the event podium for the second time in her career to close out the best season in Illinois women's gymnastics history. Fernandez, who competed sixth out of the 10 finalists, recorded a 9.8375 from the panel of six judges and tied with Utah's Mary Beth Lofgren in her final time performing for the Orange and Blue. For the season, she hit a perfect 15-for-15 on beam, including 12 scores of 9.825 or better.

Illini in the Rankings
The Fighting Illini finished the season ranked 11th in the nation, the highest final ranking in program history, and ended the season in the top 25 for the sixth year in a row. At the conclusion of the regualr season, the Illini were ranked eighth on floor and 11th on beam while also sitting in the nation's top 20 on bars (17th) and vault (T-18th) thanks to an RQS over 49 on each event. Individually, Allison Buckley was tied for fifth in the nation on floor with an RQS of 9.900 and 11th in the nation in the all-around with an RQS of 39.375. She was also tied for 27th on beam and tied for 40th on vault, which led the Orange and Blue. Melissa Fernandez was 20th in the nation in the all-around (39.230) and tied with Buckley for 27th on beam (9.855) while Kelsey Joannides was 12th in the nation on beam (9.875).

Illini Place Second at NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional to Earn Second-Ever Trip to Nationals
At the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional, Illinois earned its second-ever trip to the NCAA Championships following a runner-up finish at Coleman Coliseum. The Illini came through in the clutch on balance beam and totaled a 195.925 to edge Penn State (195.850) for the final qualifying spot. Illinois was solid on all four events, posting a 49.075 on beam, a 48.975 on vault and floor and a 48.900 on bars. The meet came down to the wire, as the Illini were just .125 ahead of the Nittany Lions heading into the final rotation. The Orange and Blue needed to hit on beam to remain ahead of PSU, who finished the meet on bars. Penn State turned in a 49.125 while the Illini had two gymnasts remaining to perform on their event. Senior Allison Buckley and Melissa Fernandez each nailed their routines with stuck landings and scored 9.850s, giving the Illini a 49.075 and clinching a national berth for the second time in the last three years. Individually, Buckley took fourth in the all-around with a 39.350 and led the Illini on three events, as she tied for third on bars, fourth on floor and seventh on beam with a 9.850 on each. Freshman Amber See was the top Illini vaulter and reached the podium with a fourth-place showing after a 9.850 on the event.

Illini Take Third at Big Ten Championships
On March 19 at Minnesota's Sports Pavilion, the Illini took third place at the 2011 Big Ten Championships with a score of 196.075. The Illini notched stellar showings on floor, vault and bars, recording a score over 49 on the final three events on their way to a top-three finish for the fourth time in five years. Individually, four gymnasts reached the podium with nine top-five finishes, led by freshman Amber See tying for the Big Ten vault title with a 9.900. With the Big Ten title on vault, the Illini boasted a freshman champion on the event for the second time in three years after Kelsey Joannides captured the top spot in 2009. See earned a 9.900 on the event for the second time this season and tied for the top spot with Penn State's Sharaya Musser, giving Illinois its 12th individual conference crown in school history. The Minnetonka, Minn., native also tied for fourth on floor with a 9.900.

Senior Melissa Fernandez tied for the runner-up spot in the all-around with PSU's Madison Merriam after both combined for a 39.275 to finish behind Musser, who won the all-around competition with a 39.475. The Eudora, Kan., native also came in second on bars with a season-best score of 9.900 while junior Kelsey Joannides, tied for second on beam with a 9.850. Despite falling for the first time on beam this season, senior Allison Buckley bounced back and tallied three top-five finishes to close out the meet. The Schaumburg, Ill., native was part of a 10-way tie for third on bars with a 9.850, tied for fourth on vault with Fernandez with a 9.850 and equaled See for fourth on floor with a 9.900.

Record-Breaking State of Illinois Classic Victory
Senior Allison Buckley and the Illinois women's gymnastics team rewrote the UI record book at the State of Illinois Classic, as four different school records were either set or tied. The Illini won the quad meet between the four Division I Illinois schools for the fourth straight-year with a school-record score of 196.975, topping Northern Illinois (194.025), Illinois-Chicago (193.325) and Illinois State (192.650). Buckley eclipsed her own all-around record by winning the title with a 39.550 and tied the top beam mark in program history with a 9.950, helping the Orange and Blue reset the beam record for the second time this season with a 49.375.

The Illini swept all four event titles and the top three spots in the all-around while also posting scores over 49 on every event. Junior Kelsey Joannides matched her career high with a 9.925 to win the vault title while senior Melissa Fernandez and sophomore Alina Weinstein tied for the top spot on bars with a score of 9.875. Buckley, who now owns 62 career event titles, equaled her own school record to win the beam crown with a 9.950 and tied a career best with a 9.925 on floor to earn the victory. Fernandez was the runner-up in the all-around with a 39.300 followed by Weinstein in third with a personal-best total of 39.250.

Buckley Surpassed All-Time Event Titles Mark
On Illinois' Senior Day at Huff Hall, Allison Buckley broke the Illinois all-time event titles record after collecting four crowns which surpassed Olympian Nancy Thies' old mark of 58, which stood for 34 years. The Schaumburg, Ill., native finished her career with 62 crowns, including a team-high 20 victories in 2011, with seven in the all-around, six on floor, four on beam, two on vault and one on bars. She also totaled a team-high 19 crowns in 2008, 8 titles during an injury-shortened sophomore season in 2009 and a team-best 15 event wins in 2010. Here is a look at a career breakdown of Buckley's titles by event:

Event: # of Titles
Vault: 15
Bars: 2
Beam: 11
Floor: 16
All-Around: 18
Total: 62

Twice is Nice - Beam Record Reset Again
Illinois closed out the State of Illinois Classic on March 12 by again resetting the school beam record with a 49.375, surpassing the old mark of 49.325 set at Michigan State on Feb. 25. Buckley's 9.950 tied her own school-record mark from 2009 and Stacy Redmond's score from 1995. Joannides came in second by tying her career best with a 9.900 while Weinstein notched a personal-best 9.850 and tied Fernandez for third. See chipped in a career-high 9.825 to clinch the record and tie for sixth.

On Feb. 25 at Michigan State, the Illini posted a then-school record on balance beam with a 49.325 in the meet's final rotation to come from behind and defeat the Spartans 195.225-195.000. Heading into the last event of the night, Illinois trailed by .025 at Jenison Fieldhouse. The Illini sealed the victory with a string of three straight 9.900s from its upperclassmen to close out the meet, as seniors Allison Buckley and Melissa Fernandez and junior Kelsey Joannides shared the event title. Senior Samantha Perino matched her personal-best beam score with a 9.850 and freshman Amber See tallied a 9.775 in her first time in the beam lineup to complete the Illini's record-setting performance on the event. The Illini retained the "Victory Plank" rivalry trophy with the win over the Spartans and at the time, notched their fifth meet title in a row, which marked the longest winning streak since 1995.

Sophomores in Action
All four Illini sophomores saw action in the lineup this season. Jaclyn Kantecki tied for first on bars in Kentucky with a 9.825, giving her the second event title of her career, and set a season high on vault at the Oklahoma quadrangular with a 9.800. Elise Gill also made her Illini debut in the vault lineup at the season opener and counted her score at three meets, including a career-high 9.700 at Ohio State. Macy Hyatt made her season debut at Missouri and counted her bars score at seven meets, including a career-high 9.850 and runner-up finish at Michigan State along with a 9.800 at the Big Ten Championships.

Alina Weinstein competed in the all-around at 13 of 14 meets and turned in a career-best performance at the State of Illinois Classic. The Plainsboro, N.J., native, tallied a personal-best all-around score of 39.250, tied a career high with a 9.875 on floor and notched her best-ever beam mark with a 9.850. On Feb. 19, she earned her first victory in the all-around with a 39.150 against UIC and also picked up her first career event title with a victory on bars after scoring a 9.800 against the Flames. A career-high 9.900 on bars at Oklahoma paced her all-around score of 39.100, the third-highest of her career. At the Big Ten Championships, she was eighth in the conference with an all-around score of 39.025. After a 39.125 at the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional, Weinstein topped the 39-mark in the all-around at six of the final eight meets.

Fresh Faces
Interim head coach Kim Landrus welcomed a talented recruiting class in her first season at the helm in freshmen Sarah Fiedler, Elizabeth McNabb and Amber See. Fiedler and See made an immediate impact in the Illini lineup, which lost eight routines following the graduation of all-arounders Nicole Cowart and Sarah Schmidt. Fiedler set a career high on bars at back-to-back meets with a 9.825 at the State of Illinois Classic and Big Ten Championships. She counted her bars score at 11 meets and twice turned in a season-best beam performance of 9.725 against Missouri and at the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional. See became the second freshman to win the Big Ten title on vault in the last three years at Illinois, joining teammate Kelsey Joannides, who earned the honor in 2009. The Minnetonka, Minn., native won four vault titles and one floor crown, with career highs on vault (9.900) and floor (9.925), which tie the sixth-best mark in school history. She also made the beam lineup at the past seven meets and twice helped the squad break the school record on the event. See led the Illini on vault at the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional with a 9.850, tying for fourth, and matched Buckley and Fernandez as the top Illini on beam with a 9.850 to help Illinois clinch its second-ever trip to nationals.

Joannides Jumped Out of the Gate
Junior Kelsey Joannides, who was a second-team All-American on vault and tied for second on the team with seven event titles, got off to a quick start at the first meet of the year, tying for the all-around title and tallying the top beam score at Kentucky. The Frederick, Md., native posted two victories at a meet for the first time in her career and topped her title total from the entire 2010 season (1). After only competing twice in the all-around a year ago, Joannides took part in the all-around at nine meets this season.

Joannides again led the Illini at Michigan, as she tied for third in the all-around with a 39.075 to help the Illini earn a runner-up finish in Ann Arbor. At Ohio State, she improved her all-around score once again, notching a 39.100 to take third overall. In the home opener against Iowa, she won the vault title with a 9.850, was the runner-up on beam and floor and took second in the all-around with a season-high 39.175. At the squad's Pink Meet against Minnesota and CMU, she recorded a trio of 9.800s on vault, beam and floor. Joannides captured her first beam title of the year against UIC, matching a career high with a 9.900 while also taking third on floor with a season-high 9.875. She also tied for the beam title at Michigan State with a 9.900 and tallied the top spot on vault with a 9.850. At the State of Illinois Classic, she won the vault crown with a career-high 9.925 and tied her personal best with a 9.900 on beam. Joannides tied for the runner-up spot on beam at the Big Ten Championships with a 9.850 and tied for seventh on vault at the NCAA Championships with a 9.875.

Buckley Named Big Ten Gymnast of the Week for Second Time
Senior Allison Buckley garnered Big Ten Gymnast of the Week honors on March 14 for the second time in 2011 following her record-setting performance at the State of Illinois Classic. The Schaumburg, Ill., native broke her own all-around school record by winning the title with a 39.550 and tied the top beam mark in program history with a 9.950, helping the Orange and Blue post the top team score in school history with a 196.975 and reset the beam record for the second time this season with a 49.375. Buckley also won the floor title after tying her career high with a 9.925, was the runner-up on vault with a 9.875 and added a 9.800 on bars.

Buckley also was named co-Big Ten Gymnast of the Week on Jan. 24 following her performance at Ohio State. She tallied then-season best scores on all four events on her way to the all-around crown with a combined total of 39.375. The senior tied for first place on vault with a 9.875 and followed it up with a trio of second-place finishes on the balance beam (9.850), floor exercise (9.850) and uneven bars (9.800). She now has earned four weekly honors throughout her career.

"See"ing Double
Amber See earned Big Ten co-Freshman of the Week honors twice during the regular season. She first garnered the accolade along with Ohio State's Sarah Miller on Feb. 21 following her performance versus UIC. Against the Flames, See picked up the vault crown with a mark of 9.875 and followed it up with a second-place showing on floor exercise with a score of 9.900. On March 7, she again was honored by the conference along with Minnesota's Kayla Slechta after helping the Illini to strong showings at Oklahoma and against Western Michigan. The Minnetonka, Minn., native helped the Illini notch a score of 196.425 against the Broncos with a pair of career highs, tying for first on floor with a 9.925 and winning the vault crown with a 9.900. See also picked up two top-10 finishes in a quad-meet with No. 13 Ohio State, No. 4 Oklahoma and Texas Woman's, posting a score of 9.825 on floor exercise to tie for fifth and recording a 9.800 on vault to tie for seventh.

Illini Earn Seven Academic All-Big Ten Selections
Seven Illini from the women's gymnastics squad were named to the Academic All-Big Ten team, which tied Minnesota for the second most by any Big Ten gymnastics team this season. To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, student-athletes must be letterwinners who are in at least their second academic year at their institution and carry a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher. The Illini honored were seniors Allison Buckley (kinesiology), Melissa Fernandez (kinesiology) and Samantha Perino (psychology), junior Kelsey Joannides (marketing & management) and sophomores Elise Gill (engineering), Jaclyn Kantecki (psychology) and Alina Weinstein (general curriculum). Buckley, Fernandez and Perino garnered the accolade for the third time while Joannides earned recognition for the second-straight year.