March 6, 2008

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EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State gymnastics celebrates Senior Day on Sunday as the Spartans host New Hampshire for a 2 p.m. start at Jenison Field House. MSU will honor Rhiannon Banda-Scott, Bethany Little and Megan McNally following their final home contest at Jenison.

The Spartans moved up five spots to No. 14 in the latest GymInfo national ranking with a Regional Qualifying Score (RQS) of 195.255 and a team average of 194.739. The numbers also rank MSU fourth in the Central region (trailing No. 5 LSU, No. 6 Alabama and No. 11 Auburn) and second in the Big Ten Conference, behind only No. 4 Michigan.

Michigan State is in the top 30 nationally in each event. The Spartans are 10th on the beam with a 48.985 RQS and have their highest RQS on the vault with a 48.955 to stand in 16th. They are also 16th on the bars with a 48.765 and currently are 27th on the floor at 48.745. Among Big Ten foes, the Spartans are second on both the beam and bars, and third on vault, while in the region, they are third on bars and fourth on both the beam and vault. MSU is fifth in the Big Ten and sixth in the Central on the floor.

Each one of the 13 Spartans who have appeared in the competitive lineup this season have placed among the top-three in at least one event. MSU has totaled 71 top-three individual finishes so far, with 45 coming from the talented sophomore class. Sophomore Nicole Curler leads the way with 21 podium finishes, followed by junior Katlyn Roggensack (11) and sophomore Rochelle Robinson (10).

The Spartans have also seen seven student-athletes win or share an individual title in 2008. MSU has 25 individual finish place finishes, led by eight from Curler and six from Robinson. Again, the sophomore class accounts for 18 of the 25 wins.

Three seniors grace the Spartans' roster, however only one - Banda-Scott - is currently an active participant. Banda-Scott however has had a career season, setting career-highs in all three of her events - vault, beam and floor - and has six top-three finishes, including two individual event titles, after only having two podium finishes in her previous two seasons in Green and White. She is also tied for 23rd in the nation, sixth in the Central region and third in the Big Ten with a 9.860 RQS on the vault.

Both Little and McNally this season have announced their retirement from collegiate gymnastics due to lingering injuries. Little appeared in one meet this season, placing third on the bars against Maryland; her first top three finish since her sophomore season.

Sophomore Nicole Curler was named the Co-Big Ten Gymnast of the Week on Tuesday. Curler earns weekly honors for the second time in her career, having garnered the award after the first week of last season, and is the first Spartan in 2008 to take home weekly recognition.

Curler began the weekend on Friday night at No. 8 LSU by finishing second in the all-around with a career-high 39.525. The score is the highest so far by a Big Ten gymnast and ties for the second best mark in Spartan history. En route to her career mark, she placed second on the beam, tying her career high and the best mark in the Big Ten this season, with a 9.925. Curler also set season highs in the other three events, finishing third on bars with a 9.875, fifth on floor with a 9.875, the top Spartan score on the floor in 2008, and tied for sixth on vault with a 9.850.

On Sunday, the Spartans topped Ball State and Western Michigan, led again by Curler's standout efforts. She won the all-around for the third time this season and for the fourth time in her career with a 39.150, tying for her second best tally in 2008. The sophomore also tied for second on the bars (9.800) and floor (9.825), tied for third on the vault (9.825) and tied for the sixth on the beam (9.700).

MSU leads the all-time series with the Wildcats, 19-5-1, as the two schools have met at least once every season since 1988. In East Lansing, the Spartans hold a 11-1 edge. MSU has won the last six and are unbeaten in the last seven, including a Fox Run Invitational win last year in Durham.

New Hampshire (12-6) is currently ranked 39th in the country with a RQS of 192.445. They are 33rd in the nation on vault (48.590), tied for 34th on beam, 42nd on bars (48.140) and 48th on floor (47.885). Sophomore Helena Diodati is the top Wildcat, placing among the leaders in the country in two events - bars (t-61st/9.795 RQS) and vault (t-66th/9.810).