Gymnastics weekly update
In the process of beating Iowa State and Arizona State the first two meets of the season, Missouri not only caught the eye of future opponents but of the Big 12 Conference as well.
Senior Alicia Hatcher and junior Sarah Shire have both been recognized by the conference for their fast starts in the 2009 campaign.
Hatcher earned the Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week honor after she claimed first in the uneven parallel bars (9.825) and second on the balance beam (9.850) against the Cyclones. It marked the second time in her career she was given the award.
Setting the pace a bit quicker, though, was her teammate Shire. Thanks to strong showings in the first two meets of the season, the junior was named Big 12 Gymnast of the Week twice in a row.
She placed first in the all-around (39.350), balance beam (9.900) and vault (9.875) against Iowa State. Her score in the beam tied her career-high. The following week Shire again took the all-around title (39.350) and broke her all-time balance beam mark with a 9.925.
Since she transferred to Missouri from Utah for her sophomore season, Shire has been no stranger to recognition from the Big 12. Last February she won Big 12 Gymnast of the Week honors in recognition of her effort against Centenary and ended up being named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.
Getting back to this season, Shire shared her second Gymnast of the Week award with Nebraska junior Kylie Stone and it was Stone and the Cornhuskers who handed Missouri its first loss of the season last Friday at the Hearnes Center.
Now the Tigers head on the road again, this time to Ohio State to face off against the Buckeyes, Michigan State and Illinois. The Fighting Illini entered this past weekend’s meets ranked No. 14 in the country while the Buckeyes were right behind them at No. 15. Michigan State did not crack the top 25.