Christina Pheil, L10 at Tampa Bay Turners in Florida, has committed to North Carolina according to her club's Facebook page. Last season she finished 1st AA (1st V/FX) at her state meet, 11th AA at regionals and 16th AA (1st FX) at the NIT.
Montana Whittle, L10 at Nebraska School of Gymnastics, has signed with Kentucky according to her local paper. Whittle competed at Level 9 last season, finishing 26th AA at nationals. She recently competed 3 events in her first L10 meet at the Peppermint Twist.
Amber Hu, L10 at Waller's GymJam in California, will join Penn's team next season. Last season she finished 8th AA at the SoCal meet and qualified to regionals, where she competed two events.
Alex Waller and Jessy MacArthur, L10s at Waller's GymJam Academy, have agreed to walk on at UCLA for the 2013-14 season.
Waller placed 18th at the 2011 SoCal meet and 20th AA at regionals. MacArthur finished 13th AA at the SoCal meet and 18th AA at regionals.
Sara Schupp has been accepted to Cornell University and will be competing for the Cornell gymnastics team next season. Sara trains at New England Sports Academy in Westwood, MA and is a Level 10 Regional Qualifier. Last season she placed 5th on FX at her state meet and 9th on Vault at regionals.
Sara will join her sister, Alexis (Cornell ’14) in competing for the Big Red Team.
Allie Hansen, L10 at United Gymnastics in Illinois, has accepted a scholarship to Iowa State. Last season she finished 3rd AA at her state meet and 12th AA at regionals.
As anticipated, Jessie Jordan has graduated from high school early to join the LSU team for this season. Last season she finished 2nd AA at her state meet, 1st AA at regionals and 28th AA at JOs.
SEMO has hired Mary Patterson as an assistant coach. As Mary Beth Arnold, she achieved a high level of success at the elite level, including winning a bronze (team) at the 1995 World Championships.
Link: SEMO Release
Georgia has the strongest schedule when compared to the Top 10 teams in 2012, according to our annual analysis. Each year, we've calculated the relative strength of the schedule (relative schedule difficulty) for the Top 10 Teams, as determined by the Preseason Coaches' Poll. Read on to find out how the rest of the teams fared.
USU has announced that it signed McKenzey Martinez of Idaho, Michelle Yasukochi of California, and Hayley Sanzotti of Illinois to Letters of Intent this fall. All three commitments have been previously reported.
The season is rapidly approaching and teams are finalizing their preparations for the season. Many teams have held intrasquad meets, scrimmages and exhibitions in preparation for the season. Some are posting video highlights or complete coverage online. Here's a collection of what's available online this season:
Kiera Brown, L10 from World Class in Virginia, has committed to Georgia. She finished her 2011 season with a 3rd place AA at JOs. She is off to a strong start this season, finishing 1st AA (1st V) at the Commonwealth Cup and 1st AA (1st V/FX) at the COTC meet.
Hannah Popper, Level 10 at Top Flight Gymnastics Training Center in Southlake, Texas, has verbally committed to Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. Hannah did not compete in 2011 due to a season ending injury. In 2010 as a Level 9, she took first place on bars at the WOGA Classic and the Kurt Thomas Invitational. At regionals she took 2nd on bars and floor and 4th all around. At westerns she placed second on bars and 12th in the all around.
Towson has confirmed the signing of Abby Griswold, Erin Odom, Katie Sassa and Lydia Thompson to NLIs. The commits of all four were covered in prior news items.
Link: Towson Release
Southern Utah has announced the signing of Arlyn Armor, Stacie Webb, Baylie Divino, Kiki Parenteau and Natalie Trejo. The commits of all five were covered in prior news items.
Link: SUU Release
Former Arkansas standout Casey Jo Magee has been named Assistant Coach at WMU for the 2012 season. While serving in that position, she intends to continue training toward her goal of qualifying for the Olympic Trials.