Women's Gymnastics Places Third At Midwest Independent Championships
March 25, 2001 Winona, Minn. - The women's gymnastics team placed third at the Midwest Independent Championships on Saturday with a score of 190.35. Illinois State captured the team title with a score of 193.7 followed by Southeast Missouri State (190.55) and Winona State (185.35). Freshman Atlin Mitchell (South Surrey, BC/Elgin Park), who had injured her back earlier in the week, overcame the pain and placed third in the all-around competition with a score of 38.125. She also added a second-place finish in the floor exercise with a score of 9.825. Mitchell was selected to the all-conference team as a result of her efforts. "Atlin was incredible," co-head coach Mary Jansson said. "She almost had a flawless meet, she kept fighting for the team." UIC (15-8) also received all-conference efforts from junior Nadia Ori (Highland Park, Ill./Highland Park) and sophomore Kimberly Sommer (Wheaton, Ill./Glenbard South) as both tied for first place on the uneven bars with a score of 9.7. Senior Laura Jungels (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) also turned in a championship performance on the balance beam with a score of 9.85 while junior Amy August (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles) was the Flames' top performer on the vault with a fourth-place score of 9.65. Jansson could not say enough about her squad despite their lackluster performance on Saturday night.
"These eight kids had to go out and perform week in and week out," Jansson said. "I couldn't be prouder of them. They had the courage to go out and to go out strong. The way they dealt with the pressure was fantastic."
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