Eastern Gymnastics Hosts Bowling Green in MAC Dual

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University gymnastics team looks to continue its strong start to the 2015 campaign, returning to the friendly confines of the Convocation Center for its next meet. The Eagles will host their first Mid-American Conference dual of the season when Bowling Green State University comes to town, Jan. 24. The matchup against the Falcons is set to begin Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m.

USAG Appreciation Day: Saturday's meet versus Bowling Green is USA Gymnastics Appreciation Day. Gymnasts wearing a club t-shirt, sweatshirt, or jacket will get free admission for the Eagles' MAC dual against the Falcons.

Falcon Focus: Bowling Green enters the dual with a 3-1 record following a season-opening victory over Michigan State, Jan. 10, and a second-place finish at the Ozone Collegiate Classic, Jan. 17. The Falcons return a veteran group consisting of three former MAC champions, just 1-of-2 schools in the conference to have that many on a current squad. The Orange and Brown return 2014 MAC Freshman of the Year Lauren Feely to go along with MAC champion upperclassmen Jamilah Ali and Alyssa Nocella.
The Eagles will be looking to break a losing skid against BGSU, falling to the Falcons the last eight times the two teams competed in the same meet. The last time Eastern soared past BGSU was Feb. 12, 2011, when EMU downed Bowling Green, 189.550-185.750, at venerable Warner Gymnasium. In that conference dual, Nikole Viltz led the Eagles finishing first in both the vault and floor exercise posting scores of 9.725 and 9.675, respectively.

MAC Leaders: Through the first two meets of the season, Eastern Michigan leads the MAC in several statistical categories. With an average team score of 194.250, the Green and White ranks first in the MAC, while also sitting seventh in the Central regional rankings. Eastern also is at the top of the conference in team scores on the balance beam and floor exercise with averages of 48.375 and 48.825, respectively. In the other two events, the Eagles rank second with a 48.513 mark on vault and a 48.538 average on bars. Individually, senior Chantelle Loehner paces the MAC in the floor exercise with a stellar average of 9.863.

No Road Nerves: The EMU gymnastics team improved upon its season-opening mark that gave the Eagles a national ranking, tallying a 194.575 in a tri-meet against Central Michigan University and Seattle Pacific University Saturday night, Jan. 17, at McGuirk Arena. The host Chippewas protected their home gym with a score of 195.875, and EMU posted a 194.575, while Seattle Pacific finished third with its 187.250 team score.
Nerves that could appear with the first road meet of the season were kept in check by the Green and White as Eastern Michigan improved upon its team score in three of the four rotations. The floor exercise continued to be the Eagles' best rotation due to a 48.850 in the tri-meet. Scores of 48.675 on the uneven parallel bars and 48.575 on the balance beam, respectively, were also new season bests for EMU. Individually, the Eagles earned marks of 9.700 or higher on 16 of their 24 scores.

Anna's All-Around: Senior gymnast Anna Willette led the Eagles to a season-high score of 194.575 at a tri-meet hosted by Central Michigan, Jan. 17. Competing in all four events, Willette won the all-around competition with a score of 39.000, becoming the 11th Eagle in program history to record an all-around mark of at least that total. The Pylesville, Md. native paced Eastern on vault with a 9.800 to tie for first in the event. She also put together a season-high beam routine of 9.750 as well as a pair of 9.725 marks on bars and floor. Along with capturing the vault title, Willette's floor routine of 9.725 was a personal best. The all-around performance was the first of her career, and her 39.000 mark ranks 29th in the nation.

The Floor Queen: The floor exercise has been the EMU's best event in both meets this season as the Green and White lead the conference with an average team mark of 48.825, and there has been one veteran Eagle that as led the way. Senior Chantelle Loehner got off to a great start in her final season as an Eagle against Temple, capturing first place in the exercise with a routine that wowed the judges for a 9.850. Coming off a victory on floor versus the Owls, Loehner led the Green and White once again by tallying a new career-high 9.875 at the Central Michigan tri-meet, Jan. 17. The Cary, Ill. native tied for second in the exercise, becoming just the 17th Eagle in program history to record a floor score of at least 9.875. With a season average of 9.863, the floor specialist leads the MAC and is ranked 25th in the nation. Loehner is certainly used to claiming floor titles as she won three during the 2014 campaign.

A Fresh Trio: Along with a first year head coach in Jay Santos, three freshmen gymnasts have already made a major impact in their first year at EMU. Kendall Valentin has provided the biggest spark out of the class, recording career highs of 9.825 on bars and 9.725 on beam in the Central Michigan tri-meet. The Holmdel, N.J. native also earned a personal-best 9.750 on vault in the season opener versus Temple to tie for first in the event. Also in the meet against the Owls, classmate Catie Conrad placed second on beam with a 9.725. Prior to her beam routine, Conrad started her EMU career off on vault with a 9.675. The Brighton, Mich. native also tallied a 9.750 bars routine in Mount Pleasant last weekend. Rounding out the trio of freshmen competing in the season's first two meets, Rachel Slocum has been consistent on floor with two scores of 9.775.

Challenge on the Horizon: Following the MAC dual against the Falcons, the Eagles return to the road for the Michigan/Illinois Challenge, Jan. 31. The annual quad meet pits Michigan institutions Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan against Illinois schools Illinois State and Illinois-Chicago. While the two in-state schools will combine their scores together to measure up against the pair of Illinois universities, all four teams will compete against one another. Illinois State is this year's challenge host, with the meet beginning at 4 p.m. from Horton Field House.

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Players Mentioned

Catie Conrad

Chantelle Loehner

Rachel Slocum

Kendall Valentin

Anna Willette

Eastern Michigan Athletics