March 21, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The 11th-ranked Penn State women's gymnastics team has been selected as one of six teams to compete in the NCAA Regional Championships, scheduled for Saturday, April 2 in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The meet will be held at Alabama's Coleman Coliseum at 7 p.m. and will also feature No. 2 Alabama, No. 14 Illinois, No. 22 Auburn, No. 25 Central Michigan and Kentucky. The Nittany Lions are making their 37th appearance in the NCAA Regional Championships.
"We are excited to have the opportunity to compete in the NCAA Regional as the No. 2 seed," said head coach Jeff Thompson. "The team has now come full circle as we return to Tuscaloosa, the site of the 2011 season opener. It's a great draw for us. Having already competed there once this season, the team knows exactly what to expect. Having been there many times over the past 16 years, Rachelle and I know what to do and where to go for food and fun with the team.
"It will be an exciting meet as we face stiff competition from Illinois, Auburn, Central Michigan and Kentucky. We have met Illinois twice this season and are 1-1 against the Illini. We know it will be a close meet between the two of us."
The top two teams and the top two all-around competitors not on an advancing team from each of the six Regionals will receive an automatic berth to the national championships. In addition, individual event winners will also advance if they are not a part of an advancing team or one of the all-around qualifiers. Kent State University and the Wolstein Center will host the 2011 NCAA National Championships on April 15-17.
Penn State is one of seven teams from the Big Ten who will be competing for an NCAA National Championship berth. Big Ten Championship Michigan is serving as one of the six regional sites and will host Minnesota and Ohio State at its regional. Iowa and Michigan State will compete at Oregon State.
On Saturday, March 19 at the Big Ten Championship, sophomore Sharaya Musser (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and junior Natalie Ettl (Waukesha, Wis.) were both named First Team All-Big Ten, while sophomore Madison Merriam (Gaithersburg, Md.) picked up Second Team laurels. Musser claimed the all-around title and was co-champion on vault, while Ettl defended her Big Ten uneven bars title with a 9.925. Merriam finished second in the all-around and was Penn State's top performer on floor, finishing in second place.