Completed Event: Gymnastics versus NCAA Championships on April 16, 2026 ,
Final Score
Gymnastics
vs NCAA Championships
The University of Utah Athletics
Utah Gymnasts Prepare For Big Test At Georgia
2/21/2005 12:00 AM | Gymnastics
Feb. 21, 2005
SALT LAKE CITY -
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
For complete release, please download the accompanying PDF file.
QUICKLY
The road doesn't get any easier for the No. 4 ranked Utah gymnastics team (6-1) after its first loss of the season--by five one hundredths of a point to Nebraska. This Friday, Feb. 25, the Utes will face No. 8 ranked Georgia (8-4) in Athens, Ga. The meet will start at 7:30 p.m. EST in Stegeman Coliseum ... The two teams last met at the 2004 NCAA Championships, where Georgia placed second and Utah was sixth ... Friday's match-up is the first dual meet competition between the two schools since 1991 (see Series History) ... Utah slid three places to No. 4 in the rankings after holding the No. 1 spot for five of the first six weeks of the season ... Utah is 3-1 on the road ... Live stats and commentary for Friday's meet at Georgia will be available at www.UtahUtes.com.NATIONALLY RANKED UTES
For the complete top 25 team rankings, please see page 3 of the PDF release. Utah boasts two of the country's top 10 all-arounders: Freshman Ashley Postell is ranked No. 3 in the nation this week with a 39.390 regional qualifying score (RQS) while senior Annabeth Eberle is No. 10 (39.205). They are tied for 11th on the floor exercise (9.875). Sophomore Rachel Tidd is No. 4 on the bars (9.88). She does not have an RQS on any other events or in the all-around. Nicolle Ford, Utah's other all-arounder, is tied for No. 16 in the latest all-around rankings (39.115) and is No. 8 on bars (9.85). Utah is ranked No. 2 on bars (49.175), No. 3 on beam (49.00) and No. 8 on both vault (49.10) and floor (48.135).LAST WEEK
Freshman Ashley Postell won the all-around, vault and beam, but it wasn't quite enough for the Utes, who lost their first meet of the year, 196.650-196.600, to Nebraska last Sunday. Utah, which didn't count a fall but seemed flat for much of the meet, led just once: Postell's 9.95 beam routine as Utah's final competitor put the Utes up 196.600-196.500, but a 9.90 floor routine by Nebraska's Richelle Simpson put the Huskers back on top. Postell won the all-around with a 39.60, while teammates Rachel Tidd (39.35), Annabeth Eberle (39.30) and Nicolle Ford (39.05) placed fourth through sixth. Ford tied for first on the uneven bars with a 9.85.UTE NOTES
Senior Gritt Hofmann could return on floor this week, where she is Utah's final competitor, but she is questionable on vault and beam. Hofmann missed the Nebraska meet with a wrist injury. Junior Natalie Nicoloff began training on beam again last week and should be available on that event this Friday. Nicoloff, who has missed three meets with an elbow injury, has led off Utah's beam lineup since her freshman year. Junior All-American Kristen Riffanacht's status is day-to-day due to a hamstring injury. At the start of the week, she is listed as probable ... Now that the national rankings have gone to regional qualifying score (RQS), Utah had to drop its 197.675 high score from the ranking calculations. That score is the highest score in the nation this season. Utah's total season average is also No. 1 in the nation (196.386) ... Freshman Ashley Postell is Utah's win leader with 13. Other Ute victors: Nicolle Ford (9), Rachel Tidd (8), Annabeth Eberle (7) and Hofmann (2) ... Four Utes have gone without a fall so far this season: Postell (25-25), Tidd (20-20), freshman Jessica Duke (4-4) and Nicoloff (3-3).SERIES HISTORY
Although Utah and Georgia have faced each other every year since 1983, they have not met in dual meet competition since 1991. The series, which Utah leads 19-14-1, will come to Salt Lake City next March. Utah and Georgia's last regular season face-off was in 1995 in Provo, where Utah won a tri-meet that also featured host Brigham Young. Utah leads 4-1 in regular season competition, with its loss coming in a tri-meet at Alabama in 1988. In regular season competition in UGA's Stegeman Coliseum, the Utes lead 1-0 after winning by just .050 (193.550-193.500) in 1991. Including NCAA Championships competition, Georgia leads 4-2 in Athens. Since their last regular season meeting in 1995, Utah and Georgia have clashed 15 times in NCAA Championships competition, with Georgia holding an 11-4-1 lead. Utah's last victory came in the first round of the 2003 NCAA Championships in Lincoln, Neb. The Utes' last win in Athens was for the NCAA title in 1995. Georgia has won the last two.
Gymnastics Media Availability | Pre-NCAA Championships
Wednesday, April 15
Utah: 197.500 | Ala.: 197.225 | OSU: 196.375 | DU: 195.950 | Gymnastics Post-Meet Press Conference
Saturday, April 04
Utah: 197.400 vs. UCLA: 197.850 | Gymnastics Post-Meet Press Conference
Sunday, March 15
Utah: 197.650 vs. BYU: 196.550, West Virginia: 195.300 | Gymnastics Post-Meet Press Conference
Sunday, March 08