The 2008 Alabama Gymnastics Guide

Transcription

The 2008 Alabama Gymnastics Guide
Section III
The Coaching Staff
Roster Breakdown
48-55
56-57
2008 Guide to the Crimson Tide
Crimson Tide at a Glance
58-59
60
2008 Crimson Tide Bios
Support Staff
61-75
76-81
Coaches
Sarah & David
PATTERSON
Significant anniversaries are meant to be celebrated, and this
year Sarah and David Patterson have two reasons to look back
over their past accomplishments and celebrate. This season is their
30th coaching the University of Alabama Gymnastics team and
it is also the 20th anniversary of the Crimson Tide’s first NCAA
Championship.
“I think it’s very rare that someone discovers what they were
meant to do, their life’s work, at the age of 22,” Sarah Patterson
said. “I think I was very fortunate to be in the right place at the
right time. In my adult life, I’ve only received a paycheck from one
place and I think that’s pretty neat.”
While Sarah Patterson started with the Crimson Tide seemingly
the day after graduating from Slippery Rock University in 1978,
David Patterson started coaching Alabama even before he graduated.
“To be able to find something that you really love to do, and to
be able to make a living doing something that can make a difference in people’s lives, and to find it at such a young age was really
a blessing for me,” David Patterson said. “And I think we’re very
lucky to be able to do what we love in a place that is truly special. It
just doesn’t get any better.”
Even though the calendar tells them that this will be their 30th
season at Alabama, it doesn’t seem possible that much time has
48
Did You Sarah Patterson has been named National Coach of the Year four times.
Know?
flown by since the Pattersons coached their
first practice at the Capstone.
“Day-to-day it doesn’t seem like 30 years,”
Sarah Patterson said. “But then, when I find
time to look back at all we’ve accomplished
over the years it does. For me, each team is so
different and each season brings its own challenges and joys, and that keeps the excitement
level very high. It’s why I love what I do.”
One job, one school, for 30 years is a
feat that is exceedingly rare and to have
maintained such a high level of success
over that span of time makes it even
more impressive. The seeds for that success were planted with the Crimson
Tide’s very first recruiting class. The
duo promised that class Alabama would
make it to the national championships
during their careers. As seniors, that first
recruiting class marched into the 1983
NCAA Championships where the Tide
finished an amazing fourth at their first
national championship appearance. The
Crimson Tide has not missed an NCAA
Championship appearance since, making it 25 in a row last season, the second
longest streak in the history of collegiate
gymnastics.
During that 25 year span, Alabama has
won four NCAA Championships and finished in the top six 23 times. The Tide has
also finished in the ‘final four’ an NCAAbest 21 times.
The first of those championships came
in 1988 and it cemented the Tide’s place
among the nation’s elite program and gave
credence to the coaching philosophy that
Sarah and David Patterson had utilized since
day one of their coaching career.
“For David and I, that championship
validated our coaching philosophy of being
a balanced program, striving for success athletically, academically and socially,” Sarah
Patterson said. “It proved you could have that
philosophy, those priorities. It proved you
could coach for a championship, you could
instill that academic success was first and fore-
most and you could treat your student-athletes
as maturing individuals who you want to see
become better citizens who will continue to
grow after graduation.“
Alabama followed the 1988 NCAA
crown with national championships in 1991,
1996 and 2002. The Tide has collected five
Southeastern Conference crowns under the
Pattersons in 1988, 1990, 1995, 2000 and 2003.
Success on all levels has been a Patterson
And while those numbers just scratch the
surface of the Pattersons’ accomplishments, it
does outline a pattern success that is extraordinary even among the nation’s elite collegiate
programs.
But the success that Sarah and David
Patterson are most proud of is that enjoyed
by their charges after they leave Alabama.
After spending their collegiate careers at the
Capstone, Tide gymnasts invariably go on to
Alabama’s all-time roster is filled with
highly successful doctors and lawyers, mothers and executives, teachers and engineers
and they all share the common thread that
they learned at Alabama, the habit of winning.
And that fact is probably the greatest single
measure of Sarah and David Patterson’s three
decades of success at Alabama.
One of the reasons that the Pattersons have
been so successful over the years is that the
tenants of excellence upon which they
have built the Alabama program have
been a constant from day one.
“The core of what we are today
hasn’t changed from 20, 30 years ago,”
Sarah Patterson said. “Now we’ve gotten a
little older and a little wiser, but when you
get right down to we still have the same
philosophy, the same goals and the same
drive to succeed on all levels that we did at
the start.”
The Starting Point
trademark throughout their careers. In addition to the Tide’s success as a team, individually, Alabama gymnasts have earned
223 All-American honors and 21 NCAA
Championships. Six times a Patterson-coached
athlete has earned the Honda Award, given
annually to the nation’s top gymnast.
Patterson-coached athletes have earned 18
NCAA and Southeastern Conference postgraduate scholarships another figure that is
best in the nation as well as 115 Scholastic AllAmerican and 171 Academic All-SEC honors.
lead lives of distinction, both professionally
and personally.
“Winning championships never grows
old,” Sarah Patterson said. “And I have thoroughly enjoyed watching our ladies take home
conference and national awards and championships, but there is nothing like the sense of
satisfaction I get watching our ladies go out
into the world and use what they learned at
Alabama, both in the classroom and in the
gym, to make themselves successful. It is simply the best feeling in the world.”
Tide March 20, 1995 - Ground is broken on Alabama’s state-of-the-art gymnastics practice facility. Alabama will move into the facility in August 1996.
Timeline
That start came at a point in time
when Alabama Gymnastics was a struggling program. The Tide hadn’t enjoyed
a winning season or even the same coach
in its four years prior to Sarah taking the
helm as head coach. In fact, Sarah had
been hired as an assistant coach for the
program’s fifth year, but received a letter
during the summer before she arrived
on campus that changed her life and
Alabama’s fortunes.
“I was going to be the assistant
coach,” Sarah remembers. “But I got a letter
during the summer saying the previous coach
had left and did I want to be the head coach.
I asked my coach at Slippery Rock, Cheryl
Levick about it and she told me that it would
be a great place to build a program.”
Upon her arrival, Sarah found a program
on its last leg. The 22-year-old New York
native was the Tide’s fifth coach in as many
years. After four losing seasons, no one expected success, except Sarah.
After getting the Alabama job, she put in
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the sense of accomplishment that working in
the community gives, then when they graduate and go out into the world, they will have
gained so much from that experience that they
will always be giving people. That’s something
that’s very important.”
Supporting the Crimson Tide
a call to David Patterson, an Alabama diver
whom she had worked with the summer before
at a gym in Huntsville, Ala. With the lure of a
leftover women’s basketball scholarship, David
joined the gymnastics program.
“After my freshman year, Sarah called and
said she was going to be here and asked if I
would help out with the team. It was a tough
decision, but I decided to go with coaching.
I just assumed it would be something to help
me pay for a little bit of school for a couple of
years. Somewhere along the way, I fell in love
with it.”
With the coaches in place, Sarah making
about $5000 a year in what amounted to a
graduate assistant’s salary and David receiving a $500-a-year scholarship for his efforts,
Alabama started on its fifth season.
It was a partnership that immediately
clicked. The two balanced each other in such a
way that their combined talents are more than
the sum of their parts.
“David is such a great technical coach, while
I tend to enjoy the artistic side of the sport,”
Sarah said. “I think both of us are good motivators, though we have different styles in that
respect. David also helps me keep focused on
what’s best for us and the program. And while
I love to be out speaking and promoting the
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program, he’s much more comfortable in the
background, providing the plan and structure.”
With Sarah and David in place, the difference was immediately discernible. Excellence
wasn’t a quality to hope for, it was expected.
Results were swift and a snowball effect was
underway. But while things were shaping up in
a hurry for the Crimson Tide, there were still
plenty of bumps in the road.
“I was naïve,” Sarah Patterson said. “I didn’t
realize there were obstacles in my way. I guess
in that way we were lucky. If I had known
everything that would stand in my way, we
might not have made it this far.”
A Helping Hand
In the area of community service, Sarah
and David Patterson give countless hours
and encourage their athletes to do the same.
Alabama gymnasts are active in the community
from working with handicapped children to
spending time at a local retirement community
to helping raise money for Project AngelTree.
“I think as David and I have matured we’ve
placed a greater emphasis in our own lives on
community service and how we can help,”
Sarah Patterson said. “I feel that if we can instill
that quality, that characteristic of giving in our
athletes when they are 18 to 22, and they have
One offshoot of Alabama’s success in the
gym and the classroom, as well as its commitment to community service is an ever-growing
fan base.
“Our fans come in the years that we finish
second, third or fifth at the national championships as much as they do the years that we
win it all,” Sarah Patterson said. “I think that’s
because of what the program stands for. It’s
not just winning. It’s the type of people who
are involved in the program, the emphasis on
being involved in the community and academics; it’s the total package. That’s why people
support us”
And they support the Crimson Tide in
force. Alabama has averaged over 10,000 fans
a meet each of the last four years including a
school and SEC record 12,578 fans per meet
during the 2006 season.
Last season Alabama Gymnastics sold out
Coleman Coliseum for the third time and for
the second year in a row, drawing 15,075 for
the Auburn meet. In 2006, the Tide set a school
and Southeastern Conference record when a
beyond capacity crowd of 15,162 made their
way to the Alabama beat Florida.
A Family Affair
Sarah and David aren’t the only Pattersons
who have made success a habit. Daughters
Jessie, 22, and Jordan, 15, have a balance of
their own, participating in a wide variety of
extracurricular activities while making excellent grades. Jessie is a senior at Alabama while
Jordan is a high school sophomore at American
Christian Academy.
After a standout high school volleyball
career, Jessie spent much of her college career
on the journalistic side of sports, serving first as
Sarah Patterson Career Capsule
Education: Slippery Rock State College (Penn.), 1978
Major: Physical education
HONORS:
— Alabama Sports Hall of Fame
(inducted March 2003)
— National Coach of the Year
- 2002, 1991, 1988 & 1986
— SEC Coach of the Year
- 1985, 1995 & 2000
— 1997 U.S. World University Games
coach (silver medal)
— 1983 U.S. World University Games coach
— Honorary member of The University of Alabama
National Alumni Association
— Alabama State Gymnastics Association Coach of
the Year 1978-79
ADMINISTRATION:
— Associate Athletic Director, 1985-present
— DCH Foundation Board member,
2004-present
— Senior Women’s Administrator, 1985-96
— SEC Executive Committee
— NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Committee, 1985-90
— NCAA Recruiting Committee, 1991-96
David Patterson Career Capsule
Education: University of Alabama, 1982
Major: Coaching and public relations
CLUB COACHING ACHIEVEMENTS:
— Bama Bounder Age Group Club
•2 60 state champions
•2 10 regional champions
•2 2 national champions
— Named assistant coach for the 1989 and
1991 World University Games.
HONORS:
— 1982-83 Alabama State Gymnastics
Association Coach of the Year
— 1992 & 1993 NCAA Central Region
Assistant Coach of the Year
Did You David Patterson has helped raised over $350,000 for Camp Smile-A-Mile, a camp for children with cancer as part of the annual “Ride of Love” charity bike ride.
Know?
Alabama Under The Pattersons
Year at Alabama: 30th Overall Record: 366-79-4/29 years
— 2002, 1996, 1991 & 1988
NCAA Team Champions
— 2003, 2000, 1995, 1990 & 1988
SEC Team Champions
— 1983-85, 1987-96, 1998-03, 2005-07
NCAA Regional Team Champions
— 21 individual NCAA Championships
— 10 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships
— 8 SEC Postgraduate Scholarships
— 50 athletes with 223 All-American
honors
— 44 athletes with 115 Scholastic
All-American honors (since 1991)
— 49 All-SEC honors
— 171 Academic All-SEC honors
— 40 individual SEC Championships
— 3 NCAA Top VIII Honors
— 6 NCAA Region Gymnast of the Year
Honors
The Pattersons - Jordan, Sarah, David and Jessie
a reporter, and then the sports editor for The Crimson White,
Alabama’s student paper. She also spent three years covering
high school football along with Alabama football’s spring and
preseason football camps for The Tuscaloosa News. This year
she is the Crimson White’s managing editor.
Jordan has enjoyed a very successful athletic career in her
own right, playing volleyball and softball at ACA as well as
competing on a travel softball team. The entire family is active
members of the Church at Tuscaloosa.
David, in his scant spare time, is an avid fly fisherman and
cyclist. He has caught fish in 45 states, with an ultimate goal
—
—
—
—
—
4 SEC Athletes of the Year
3 SEC Scholar Athletes of the Year
5 SEC Gymnast of the Year Honors
3 SEC Freshmen of the Year
SEC Single meet attendance record
(15,162 vs Florida 1/20/06)
— SEC Single season attendance record
(12,578 per meet, 2006)
of conquering all 50. As a cyclist he has helped
spearhead the “Ride of Love”, a one-day, 150-mile
ride through Alabama to raise money for Camp
Smile-a-Mile, which caters to children with
cancer. And as if all that weren’t enough, he has
taken up woodworking over the last few years,
creating ever larger and more intricate pieces.
And while it may seem that Sarah
Patterson’s favorite hobby is speaking to groups
about Alabama gymnastics, she has become an
enthusiastic scrapbooker over the past few years
and a big country music fan, filling her iPod with
Gretchen Wilson, Kenney Chesney and others.
In addition to her coaching duties, she is
the driving force behind the “Power of Pink”
initiative that raises awareness in the fight against
breast cancer and has raised over $500,000 for the
DCH Breast Cancer fund established by Alabama
Gymnastics in 2004 to help women in need prevent, detect and treat breast cancer. In 2005 she
was also named to the DCH Foundation Board.
She has served in Alabama’s athletic administration as
Associate Athletics Director since 1985 and was on the SEC
Executive Committee, the NCAA Women’s Gymnastics
Committee and the NCAA Recruiting Committee.
With lives full to the brim, it’s easy to see how 30 years
have come and gone so quickly for Sarah and David Patterson.
Their time is filled with family and work and the wide variety of
details that intertwine everything together. It is an intricate act
of balance to keep everything going at such a high level for such
a long time, but it is a balancing act at which the Patterson family excels at and thrives upon.
Tide March 25, 1995 - Alabama vaults past three teams on the final event to win its third SEC Team Championship with an NCAA-best vault total.
Timeline
THE PATTERSON RECORD
Year
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985
1984
1983
1982
1981
1980
1979
Record
8-2-0
14-1-0
11-3-0
12-1-0
10-7-0
12-3-0
15-2-1
14-3-0
8-3-0
10-3-0
13-2-0
12-1-0
15-1-0
7-3-1
9-2-0
9-4-0
16-0-0
14-1-0
13-3-0
14-3-2
12-5-0
18-2-0
16-4-0
15-5-0
15-1-0
17-2-0
14-1-0
16-4-0
7-7-0
SEC
Finish
3rd
2nd
3rd
2nd
1st
2nd
2nd
1st
2nd
4th
4th
2nd
1st
2nd
2nd
2nd
2nd
1st
2nd
1st
3rd
3rd
2nd
—
—
—
—
—
—
Regional
Finish
1st
1st
1st
2nd
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
2nd
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
1st
2nd
1st
1st
1st
—
—
—
—
NCAA
Finish
9th
3rd
2nd
3rd
2nd
1st
4th
5th
3rd
3rd
9th
1st
2nd
2nd
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
4th
3rd
4th
6th
4th
—
—
—
—
51
Bryan Raschilla
Assistant Coach
Seeing Bryan Raschilla in the world of gymnastics, it’s easy to think there’s something wrong
with that picture. At 6 feet 5 inches tall, it would
be easy to think he looks a little out place, but for
the Alabama Gymnastics team, Raschilla, now in
his 12th season as assistant coach, is a picture perfect fit.
And for Raschilla, the feeling is mutual.
“I absolutely love what I am doing,” Raschilla
said. “I get to meet and build relationships with
some really wonderful people. The chance to work
with this caliber of student-athlete, I don’t think
you get anywhere else. And what I like the most
is that it’s not just about gymnastics and it’s not
just about the four years they’re here on campus.
Being at Alabama is about creating lifelong relationships.”
Most importantly to him, Raschilla has seen
class after class of Alabama gymnasts come
through the program, grow as athletes and people
and graduate, ready to make something great of
their lives.
“I’m at Alabama to be a part of a program that
does things the right way,” Raschilla said. “I have
the good fortune to coach athletes who excel in
academics, athletics and community service. To be
able have some part in their development is really
at the heart of why I coach.”
Since he joined the Tide for the 1997 season,
Raschilla has helped coach Alabama to nine top-5
national finishes, including the 2002 NCAA
Championship and a pair of NCAA runner-up
finishes. With Raschilla on board, the Tide has
also won a pair of Southeastern Conference titles
in 2000 and 2003. Alabama gymnasts have won 10
individual NCAA titles, earned 115 All-American
honors and 111 Scholastic All-American honors.
Raschilla’s gymnasts haven’t been the only
ones to grow and prosper. He and wife Laura
have a son, Adam born in 1998, and a daughter,
Kathryn, born in 2001. Adam and Kathryn seem
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to grow every time they turn around and with
their infectious smiles, are team favorites when
they visit in the gym.
“If I ever wonder how long I’ve been here, all I
have to do is look at my kids and how fast they’re
growing up,” Raschilla said. “They are at a really
neat age right now where they understand what
daddy does and they really enjoy the meets and
being around the girls. And I certainly couldn’t
think of better role models for my children than
our gymnasts.”
Raschilla believes he is fortunate to have the
opportunity to raise his children in Tuscaloosa
with the collegiate atmosphere.
“I just really like Tuscaloosa a lot, and bringing
up my children where they can be positively influenced by these collegiate athletes is just great,”
Raschilla said.
His duties with the Crimson Tide are as wide
ranging as his talents. In addition to in-the-gym
coaching, the Mineral Ridge, Ohio native also
develops the Tide’s strength and conditioning program and coordinates, along with David
Patterson, Alabama’s recruiting efforts.
“Bryan not only brings his keen technical
analysis to the team,” Sarah Patterson said. “He
also brings the sort of stability that is expected of
this program. After all, he is now in his 12th year
with us, and he is only the third coach to serve as
an assistant. He adds a comforting continuity for
the athletes.”
He also brings a talent for graphic design to the
Tide. Before joining the collegiate coaching ranks,
in addition to coaching club gymnastics, Raschilla
worked in the art department of one of Ohio’s top
advertising agencies. Every year, Raschilla brings
his skills to bear on the Tide’s posters, logos,
advertising, media guide covers along with a host
of other projects.
“I’ve always been able to draw,” Raschilla said.
“And I’ve always been interested in computers.
Did You Assistant coach Bryan Raschilla does all the graphic design work for the gymnastics team, including the cover of the 1999 media guide which was named Best in the Nation.
Know?
Bryan Raschilla Capsule
Family: Wife - Laura
Son - Adam, Daughter - Kathryn
Hometown: Mineral Ridge, Ohio
Education: Youngstown State University (Ohio), 1989
Major: Graphic Design
Record at Alabama/Years: 130-33-1/ 11
What I am able to do for the
team is a great marriage of those
two things.”
So how did the 6-foot, 5-inch
redhead with a degree in graphic
design get involved in the one
sport he’d never tried?
“I probably get asked that
question a hundred times a
year,” Raschilla laughed.
Asked to spot for his high
school team, Raschilla’s interest
continued to develop throughout his time at Youngstown
State University in Ohio when
he coached age-group gymnastics. After eleven years of club
gymnastics and countless state
champions, national qualifiers
and national team members, he
moved into the collegiate arena.
“I started in 1983,” Raschilla
said. “And I’ve been coaching
ever since.”
Following a two-year stretch
at the University of Michigan,
where the Wolverines were second and sixth at nationals during
his tenure, Raschilla moved on to
The University of Alabama.
In the years that have passed
in Tuscaloosa with the Crimson
Tide, Raschilla has accumulated
masses of great memories, but
for him, it’s not just the championships, the titles and the victo-
ries that stick with him.
“As a coach, I think some
of my greatest memories come
from those moments that no one
else sees,” Raschilla said. “It’s
those moments in the gym when
someone is having a hard time,
but they push through anyway.
It’s breakthroughs in practice,
and all the hard work along the
way that sets up the championship moments. Those are some
of my best memories.”
But Raschilla’s greatest
memory thus far is the birth of
his children. “They are the first
Southern-born Raschillas,” he
exclaimed.
The Raschillas
Kathryn, Bryan,
La
Tide April 13, 1996 - Alabama scores an NCAA-record 198.075 at the NCAA Central Regional Championships in Baton Rouge, La.
Timeline
ura and Adam
The Crimson Tide With Raschilla
— 2002 NCAA Team Champion
— 2003 & 2000 SEC Team Champions
— 1998-03, 05-07 NCAA Regional Team Champions
— 10 individual NCAA Championships
— 4 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship
— 3 SEC Postgraduate Scholarships
— 26 athletes with 110 All-American honors
— 42 athletes with 99 Scholastic All-American honors
— 24 All-SEC honors
— 111 Academic All-SEC honors
— 26 individual SEC Championships
— 3 NCAA Top VIII Honors
— 6 NCAA Region Gymnast of the Year Honors
— SEC Freshman of the Year
— 5 SEC Gymnast of the Year Honors
— 2 SEC Athletes of the Year
— 2 SEC Scholar Athletes of the Year
— SEC Single meet attendance record
(15,162 vs. Florida 1/20/06)
— SEC Single season attendance record
(12,578 per meet, 2006)
53
Dana Duckworth
Volunteer Assistant Coach
Sarah Patterson has always wanted her gymnasts to be positive role models to all the little girls
they come into contact with. As for the gymnasts
themselves, there isn’t a better role model than
former Crimson Tide NCAA Champion Dana
Dobransky Duckworth, now in her ninth season as
a volunteer assistant coach for the Crimson Tide.
“Dana has achieved everything that I could
wish for our athletes,” Patterson said. “She enjoyed
a tremendous career here at Alabama, winning
NCAA and SEC team titles as well as individual
NCAA Championships. She excelled in the classroom and was active in the community. And
beyond what she accomplished while she was at
Alabama, she has gone on to a great career with
a wonderful family. I can’t think of a better role
model than Dana.”
Even the stories that Dana might rather forget
serve the current generation of gymnasts well.
“As a freshman, in her first semester, Dana
failed her first round of tests, in every class,”
Patterson remembers. “I tell that story because
by the end of the semester, she had all As. Dana
worked hard to get things back on track and never
gave up.”
Success is a Duckworth hallmark. She finished
her career as a two-time NCAA Champion, winning the balance beam title in 1992 and 1993. She
was also part of the 1991 NCAA Championship
and 1990 Southeastern Conference teams.
Her life since graduation has been just as successful. She enjoys a highly successful career with
Pfizer Pharmaceuticals and she and her husband
Joe, who married in 2000, have two children,
Joseph Clemson, “Jace”, born in 2006, and Camryn
Elizabeth who was born in 2004.
54
Did You Two-time NCAA Champion Dana Dobransky Duckworth is in her eighth year as Alabama’s volunteer assistant coach.
Know?
“Life changes so fast and priorities shift so
quickly once you have children,” Duckworth said.
“It’s been wonderful, extremely busy, but amazing
time and I wouldn’t trade a moment of it for anything in the world.”
Balancing her family life, her profession and
coaching is challenging, but well worth it, she said.
“My decision to volunteer with Alabama
stems from the passion I have for the sport, the
love I have for the University and the example I
strive to set for our ladies in and out of the gym,”
Duckworth said. “My goal is to bring an element
of creativity and fun during our ladies’ quick four
years here at the Capstone. It’s my way of giving
back to a sport and a program that has given me so
much.”
In addition to serving as a role model,
Duckworth is also one of the nation’s premiere
choreographers. Nothing could drive that point
home quite like the success the athletes she has
worked with have enjoyed.
Last season, when sophomore Morgan Dennis
capped off her rookie season by winning the
NCAA Floor Exercise Championship, it marked
the fourth time that a routine that Duckworth
choreographed won the NCAA floor title. In what
is believed to be a first, two of the athletes she
worked with shared the NCAA floor exercise title
in 2004 when Alabama’s Ashley Miles and North
Carolina’s Courtney Bumpers tied for top honors.
In 2005 Bumpers scored a 10.0 to win her second
floor title, while Miles was right there in second
with a 9.975. That same year Miles also scored
a 10.0 during the Super Six Team Final, leading
Alabama to a second place finish. Miles closed
out her storied Alabama career with a third place
The Duckworths Joe, Jace, Dana and Camryn
national finish on the floor exercise
giving her four top-3 NCAA finishes.
With Duckworth’s help, Miles also
won four consecutive Southeastern
Conference and NCAA Regional floor
exercise titles. She is the first gymnast
in SEC history to win the same event
all four years of her career.
“It’s such a wonderful experience
to be able to help these athletes bring
out their personality and perform
routines that shine,” Duckworth said.
“They work very hard and have certainly been very successful. It’s a lot of
fun to watch them compete.”
Professionally, Duckworth has
been just as successful. In her six and
half years with Pfizer, she has already
become a multiple Vice President
Cabinet winner denoting the top representative in the Gulf Coast Region
and earned the Circle of Excellence
Tide April 25, 1996 - Junior Meredith Willard wins Alabama’s fourth NCAA All-Around title.
Timeline
award which means she is in the
top ten percent of the representatives in the Southeast Region. She
was elected district captain for
the Legislative Action Committee,
which works with state and local
Senators and Congressmen to
address healthcare issues and the
impact they have on constituents.
Duckworth’s pride in the Alabama
gymnastics program also contributed
to her decision to make a return
engagement. Throughout her career,
she witnessed the way in which the
program changed her teammates, and,
more importantly, how it impacted
her own life.
“When I came aboard in 1989,
I was just a 17-year-old girl. Over
those four years, I really matured
into a young woman with leadership
skills,” Duckworth explained. “The
opportunity to compete with Alabama
completely structured my life in such
a positive way - from winning championships to going to graduate school
on postgraduate scholarships. Who
could ask for anything more? I am so
glad to have this opportunity to give
back and watch the same thing happen to these young ladies.”
Duckworth has now seen both
sides of a national team championship, having been a part of the Tide’s
1991 NCAA title as a sophomore and
the 2002 NCAA Championship as
a coach. She has also won a conference title as an athlete (1990) and as a
coach (2003).
In addition to her team championships, Duckworth earned eight
All-American accolades and finished
her career in 1993 by winning her
second consecutive NCAA Balance
Beam title with a perfect 10.0. She
was named NCAA Woman of the
Year for the State of Alabama in
1993.
As a student, she soared to
great heights, becoming a threeyear Scholastic All-American and
a two-time CoSIDA At-Large
Academic All-American, an award
the spans several sports. She was
inducted in Mortar Board as an
undergraduate and earned both an
NCAA and Southeastern Conference
Postgraduate Scholarship, using them
to attend graduate school at Alabama
and obtain her Master’s of Business
Administration in 1999.
After graduating with her
Bachelor’s degree, she moved up the
corporate ladder quickly at AMX
Corporation, a high tech firm out of
Dallas. She finished her tenure there
as manager of their training programs. After receiving her Master’s
degree, she served as Director of
Marketing of a Trussville based automotive company followed by a short
stint as Vice President of Corporate
Solutions for a Birmingham company
before returning to Tuscaloosa to
work for Pfizer.
55
2008 Alabama Roster
The 2008 Alabama Gymnastics Team - From the left, bottom row- Jennifer Iovino,
Cassie Martin, Terin Humphrey, Ricki Lebegern. Second row - Megan Mashburn, Kassi
Price, Brittany Magee, Amanda Montgomery, Kaitlin White. Third row - Jacqueline
Shealy, Kayla Hoffman, Morgan Dennis, Casey Overton. Top row - Ashley O’Neal, Alyssa
Chapman.
PRONUNCIATION GUIDE:
Alyssa Chapman ______ Ah-liss-uh
Ricki Lebegern _______ Leba-gurn
Brittany Magee ________ Mah-gee
56
Casey Overton__________Kay-see
Courtney Priess__________Preess
Bryan Raschilla ____ Rah-shill-uh
Name
Yr.
Exp.
Hgt.
Hometown
Club Team
Alyssa Chapman
So.
1L
5-3
Spartanburg, S.C.
Kozeev’s World of Gymnastics
Morgan Dennis
So.
1L
5-3
Westampton, N.J.
Arena Gymnastics
Kayla Hoffman
Fr.
HS
5-1
Union, N.J.
Rebound Gymnastics
Terin Humphrey
Sr.
3L
5-1
Bates City, Mo.
Great American Gymnastics Express
Jennifer Iovino
Fr.
HS
4-11
Olney, Md.
Hill’s Angels
Ricki Lebegern
So.
1L
4-11
Annandale, Va.
Capital Gymnastics
Brittany Magee
Jr.
2L
5-2
Arlington, Texas
Texas Dreams Gymnastics
Cassie Martin
Jr.
2L
5-0
Olney, Md.
Hill’s Angels
Megan Mashburn
Fr.
HS
5-4
Greenville, S.C.
Haydens Gymnastics Academy
Amanda Montgomery
Jr.
2L
5-5
Jacksonville, Fla.
Starlight Gymnastics
Ashley O’Neal
Jr.
2L
5-2
Kennesaw, Ga.
Gymnastics Academy of Atlanta
Casey Overton
So.
1L
5-2
Virginia Beach, Va.
Excalibur Gymnastics
Kassi Price
So.
1L
5-4
Plantation, Fla.
Orlando Metro
Jacqueline Shealy
So.
1L
5-3
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
World Olympic Gymnastics Academy
Kaitlin White
Sr.
3L
5-6
Allen, Texas
World Olympic Gymnastics Academy
HEAD
COACH
Sarah Patterson
30th Year
ASSISTANT
HEAD COACH
David Patterson
30th Year
ASSISTANT
COACH
Bryan Raschilla
12th Year
VOLUNTEER
COACH
Dana Duckworth
9th Year
Did You Alabama made its 25th consecutive NCAA Championship appearance in 2007, giving the Tide the second longest streak in collegiate gymnastics history.
Know?
STUDENT
COACH
Courtney Priess
1st Year
2008 Alabama Roster Breakdown
CLASS BREAKDOWN
Seniors (2)
Terin Humphrey
Kaitlin White
Juniors (4)
Brittany Magee
Cassie Martin
Amanda Montgomery
Ashley O’Neal
Sophomores (6)
Alyssa Chapman
Morgan Dennis
Ricki Lebegern
Casey Overton
Kassi Price
Jacqueline Shealy
Freshmen (3)
Kayla Hoffman
Jennifer Iovino
Megan Mashburn
STATE-BY-STATE BREAKDOWN
ALABAMA
Jacqueline Shealy
FLORIDA
Amanda Montgomery
Kassi Price
RETURNING NCAA CHAMPIONS (2)
Terin Humphrey — 2007 & 2005 Uneven Bars
Morgan Dennis — 2007 Floor Exercise
MARYLAND
Jennifer Iovino
Cassie Martin
NEW JERSEY
Morgan Dennis
Kayla Hoffman
TEXAS
Brittany Magee
Kaitlin White
MISSOURI
Terin Humphrey
SOUTH CAROLINA
Alyssa Chapman
Megan Mashburn
VIRGINIA
Ricki Lebegern
Casey Overton
GEORGIA
Ashley O’Neal
RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS (4)
Morgan Dennis (2):
Terin Humphrey (10):
Brittany Magee (1):
Kassi Price (1):
2007 —
2007 —
2006 —
2005 —
2006 —
2007 —
Floor, All-Around*
Bars, Beam
All-Around*, Bars*, Beam, Floor*
All-Around*, Bars, Beam, Floor
Floor*
Bars*
* Denotes second-team All-American
2007 SCHOLASTIC ALL-AMERICANS (8)
Alyssa Chapman, Ricki Lebegern, Brittany Magee, Cassie Martin, Amanda Montgomery, Casey
Overton, Kassi Price, Kaitlin White
2007 ACADEMIC ALL-SEC (9)
GYMNASTICS STAFF
Assistant Athletic Trainer: ____________________________________________________Monica Decker
Student Athletic Trainers: _____________________________________Laura Nicholson - spring semester
Katy Steele and Denarreo Gilmore - fall semester
Managers: _____________________ Will Miller, C.J. Laird, Lauren Smelley and Abbie Dean - spring semester
Academic Advisor: _________________________________________________________ Fern Hampton
Strength and Conditioning Coach: _________________________________________________Travis Illian
Promotions Director: ________________________________________________________Jennifer Martin
Promotions Intern: __________________________________________________________Nicki Rumanek
Morgan Dennis, Terin Humphrey, Ricki Lebegern, Brittany Magee, Cassie Martin, Amanda
Montgomery, Casey Overton, Kassi Price, Erin Rightley
Tide April 26, 1996 - Alabama sets an NCAA Super Six Championship-record 198.025 while winning its third NCAA Team Championship, second in Tuscaloosa.
Timeline
57
Kaitlin
White
The 2008 Crimson
Tide Preview
Casey
Overton
Megan
Mashburn
Kayla
Hoffman
Cassie Martin
Ashley O’Neal
Terin
Humphrey
58
THE 2008 SEASON -
THE DETAILS -
It’s a time of celebration and
excitement for the Alabama
Gymnastics program as the 2008
season marks Sarah and David
Patterson’s 30th year coaching
the Crimson Tide and the 20th
anniversary of Alabama’s first
Southeastern Conference and
NCAA Championship team. But
the most exciting thing about 2008
is the current team stands ready to
take Alabama to its 26th NCAA
Championship and strive for its
fifth national title. Alabama returns
all but one routine from last season
and has added some talented freshmen to the mix as well.
• There are 15 gymnasts on this year’s roster - 2 seniors, 4 juniors, 6 sophomores
and 3 freshmen.
• The Crimson Tide returns two NCAA Champions to its roster in 2008, senior
Terin Humphrey and sophomore Morgan Dennis. Humphrey won her second
uneven bars title last year while Dennis won the floor exercise title. Humphrey
is also the defending NCAA Central Region All-Around and Uneven Bars
Champion, while Dennis won the Regional vault title. The Tide also returns
2007 Southeastern Conference Balance Beam champion Ricki Lebegern.
• Alabama returns four All-Americans this season, Humphrey, junior Brittany
Magee and sophomores Dennis and Kassi Price.
• While the Pattersons are in their 30th season coaching the Tide, assistant coach
Bryan Raschilla is in his 12th season coaching at Alabama. Volunteer assistant
coach Dana Dobransky Duckworth is in her 13th season with the program as a
gymnast and coach.
• Alabama has six home events this season including two that are already scheduled to be televised. The Tide’s Feb. 8 meet against Arkansas will be on espn2
while its Feb. 1 meeting with the Georgia Bulldogs will be on Fox Sports Net.
• Alabama is coming off its 25th consecutive NCAA Championship appearance,
the second longest streak in collegiate gymnastics history.
Did You Senior Terin Humphrey is a 10-time All-American and the 2007 and 2005 NCAA Uneven Bars Champion.
Know?
Morgan
Dennis
THE SCHEDULE The 2008 season, which opens in Tuscaloosa
against Illinois, includes six home meets in Coleman
Coliseum where Crimson Tide fans will be able
to see three-time defending NCAA Champions
Georgia, defending SEC Champions Florida,
Auburn and Penn State at home as well as the
annual “Power of Pink” meet on
Feb. 8 against Arkansas. It will
be the fourth annual “Drive 4
the Cause” meet which in addition to being a great competition will also help raise
awareness in the fight against breast cancer.
In all, the Tide will face five of the top six finishers from last year’s NCAA Championships.
Including No. 1 Georgia, No. 3 Florida,
No. 4 UCLA and No. 5 Stanford and No. 6
Nebraska.
“This is definitely a fans schedule,” Patterson
said. “There is no doubt that by the time we get to
the championship season, we’ll have seen the best of
the best. It will make for an exciting year to be sure.”
Jacqueline
Shealy
Jennifer
Iovino
Alyssa
Chapman
Amanda
Montgomery
Brittany
Magee
Kassi
Price
THE TEAM This year’s squad features 15 gymnasts, including 13 returnees – seniors Terin Humphrey and Kaitlin
White, juniors Brittany Magee, Cassie Martin, Amanda
Montgomery and Ashley O’Neal, sophomores Alyssa
Chapman, Morgan Dennis, Ricki Lebegern, Casey Overton,
Kassi Price and Jacqueline Shealy. To that mix, Alabama
added the freshman trio of Kayla Hoffman, Jennifer Iovino
and Megan Mashburn.
Of the Tide’s veterans, four, Humphrey, Dennis, Lebegern
and Price went in the all-around last season and four, White,
Magee, O’Neal and Overton, competed on three events.
THE CLASSROOM Alabama Gymnastics is known for being a balanced program, earning accolades in the gym and in the classroom
and the 2008 team is no exception. The Tide earned a 3.5
team grade point average last season, the highest in the
Southeastern Conference and third highest of any
team at the NCAA Championships last season.
Alabama returns eight Academic All-SEC honorees and eight Scholastic All-Americans
from last season.
THE BOTTOM LINE Ricki Lebegern
One of the reasons for Alabama’s unrelenting success over the past 30 years is that its focus has
never wavered. In the gym, for the Crimson Tide, there is one goal.
“On the last night of the season,” Sarah Patterson said. “We want to be on the floor of the national
championships with a chance to win.”
Simple, but effective, that goal has led Alabama to 25 straight appearances at the NCAA
Championships. Only one team has been to more consecutive national championships. The determination, drive and dedication with which Alabama pursues its singular goal has earned the Tide four
national championships and 21 top-4 NCAA finishes.
Tide April 27, 1996 - Senior Kim Kelly and junior Stephanie Woods win Alabama’s 10th and 11th NCAA titles. Kelly wins the floor exercise with a 10.0 and Woods takes the uneven bars.
Timeline
59
The 2008
Crimson
Tide at a
Glance
60
ALYSSA CHAPMAN
Spartanburg, S.C.
Sophomore
MORGAN DENNIS
Westampton, N.J.
Sophomore
NCAA Champion
All-American
KAYLA HOFFMAN
Union, N.J.
Freshman
TERIN HUMPHREY
Bates City, Mo.
Senior
NCAA Champion
All-American
AMANDA MONTGOMERY
Jacksonville, Fla.
Junior
JENNIFER IOVINO
Olney, Md.
Freshman
RICKI LEBEGERN
Annandale, Va.
Sophomore
BRITTANY MAGEE
Arlington, Texas
Junior
All-American
CASSIE MARTIN
Olney, Md.
Junior
MEGAN MASHBURN
Greenville, S.C.
Freshman
ASHLEY O’NEAL
Kennesaw, Ga.
Junior
CASEY OVERTON
Virginia Beach, Va.
Sophomore
KASSI PRICE
Plantation, Fla.
Sophomore
All-American
JACQUELINE SHEALY
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Sophomore
KAITLIN WHITE
Allen, Texas
Senior
Did You The 2007 Alabama Gymnastics team is made up of three freshmen, five sophomores, five juniors and two seniors.
Know?
alyssa
CHAPMAN
Alabama Highlights:
2007 — freshman
• Joined Alabama for the spring semester
• Posted a 3.668 grade point average for
the spring semester, earning Dean’s List
honors
• Scholastic All-American
Prep Highlights:
• Coached by Anatoly and Tamara Kozeev
at Kozeev’s World of Gymnastics
• Five-time Region VIII Qualifier
• Six-time Kozeev Gymnast of the Year
• 2006 Level 10 South Carolina State
all-around, vault, uneven bars, balance
beam, floor exercise champion
• 2005 Level 10 South Carolina State
vault, balance beam, floor exercise
champion
• Finished 13th in the all-around and fifth
on the balance beam at the 2006 Level
10 Regional Championships
Tide Alyssa Chapman earned Scholastic All-American honors her freshman year and was named to the Dean’s List her first semester at Alabama.
Timeline
Sophomore • 1L • 5-3
Hometown: Spartanburg, SC
Major: Education
Events: Vault, Beam, Floor
High School: Dorman
Club: Kozeev’s World of Gymnastics
• Finished 3rd on the balance beam at the
2005 Level 10 Regional Championships
• Level 9 Eastern National Qualifier
• Member of the Beta Club and National
Art Honor Society
• National Honor Society
Personal Information:
•
•
•
•
•
Full name: Alyssa Brooke Chapman
Daughter of John and Marilee Chapman
Sister - Samantha
Brother - Jason
Born November 30, 1988
61
morgan
DENNIS
Hometown: Westampton, N.J.
Major: Pre-major studies
Events: All-Around
High School: Holy Cross
Club: Arena Gymnastics
Alabama Highlights:
Prep Highlights:
2007 — freshman
• 2007 NCAA Floor Exercise Champion
• Sixth Alabama Gymnast to win an NCAA title
as a freshman
• All-American on the floor exercise and second
team All-American in the all-around
• Ranked No. 1 in the nation on the floor exercise at the end of the regular season
• Won the NCAA Central Regional Vault
Championship with a 9.95
• Fifth in the all-around at the SEC
Championships with a 39.5, earning second
team All-SEC honors in the process
• Won the all-around twice, at Auburn, tying her
career best with a 39.525 and against LSU
with a 39.5
• Ranked No. 1 in the nation in the all-around
during the week of Jan. 29
• Won a Tide best 15 individual event titles during the season
• Led Alabama on the floor exercise 10
times, winning it eight times - at the NCAA
Championships and against Oklahoma,
Auburn, Kentucky, UNC, LSU, UCLA and at
Auburn
• Posted the Tide’s season best marks on the
vault, 9.950 and floor exercise, 9.975
• Posted a career best 9.875 on the balance
beam against UCLA
• Named to the Dean’s List for the summer
semester after earning a 3.5 grade point
average
• Academic All-SEC
• Coached by Magda During, Jill Cookingham,
Valdi Kolasa and Wes Marutani at Arena
Gymnastics
• Second in the all-around and the floor exercise and third on the uneven bars and balance beam at the 2006 Parkettes Invitational
• Won the all-around at the 2006 New Jersey
Level 10 State Championships
• Won the vault and floor exercise at the 2005
Twisters Invitational
• Competed at the 2004 U.S. National
Championships
• Won the all-around at the U.S. Coaches’ Cup
• Won the vault at the 2004 Podium Meet
• Ninth in the all-around at the 2004 U.S.
Classic
• 2003 New Jersey Optional Athlete of the Year
• Won the all-around at the 2003 US Challenge
• Ninth in the all-around at the 2003 Level 10
Nationals
• Won the all-around at the 2003 Level 10
Region 7 Championships and the 2003 Level
10 New Jersey State Championships
• Four-year honor student
• Full Name: Morgan Marie Dennis
• Daughter of Al and Carla Dennis
• Born October 1, 1988
Dennis’ Top Scores - All-Around: 39.525 | Vault: 9.950 | Bars: 9.875 | Beam: 9.875 | Floor: 9.975
62
Did You Morgan Dennis is the first freshman to win the NCAA Floor Exercise Championship since 1999.
Know?
kayla
HOFFMAN
Prep Highlights:
• Two year member of the United States National
Team
• Competed for Diane Farrell at Rebound Gymnastics
• Took 11th in the all-around at the 2006 USA
National Championships
• Was second in the floor exercise, eighth on the
uneven bars and 10th in the all-around at the 2006
US Classic
• Was seventh on the floor exercise and uneven
bars as part of the U.S. National Team at the 2006
Moscow World Cup
• Won the floor exercise and was second in the allaround and vault at the 2006 Friendship Classic
• Finished eighth in the all-around at the 2005 USA
National Championships and was sixth on the
uneven bars
• Won the all-around at the 2005 American Challenge
and second on the balance beam, third on the floor
exercise and fourth on the vault and uneven bars
• Took second on the floor exercise at the 2005
Parkette Invitational and was seventh in the allaround and fifth on the vault
Freshman • HS • 5-1
Hometown: Union, N.J.
Major: Pre-major Studies
Events: All-Around
High School: Home Schooled
Club: Rebound Gymnastics
• Finished third and fourth respectively at the 2003
and 2004 Friendship Classic
• Took seventh in the all-around and third on the
balance beam at the Level 9 Eastern National
Championships
• Was fourth on the balance beam at the Level 10
• Competed at the 2003 and 2004 U.S. Classic
• Honor Roll Student all four years
•
•
•
•
Full Name: Kayla Marie Hoffman
Daughter of Helen and Richard Hoffman
Sister – Emma
Born August 13, 1988
Tide Kayla Hoffman, a two-year member of the United States National Team, competed at the 2006 World Cup in Moscow.
Timeline
63
terin
HUMPHREY
Alabama Highlights:
2007 — junior
• Won second NCAA Uneven Bars
Championship against the toughest field in NCAA history, marking
Alabama’s 20th individual championship and fifth bars title
• Sixth Alabama Gymnast to earn multiple NCAA titles
• All-American on the uneven bars and
balance beam, for a career total of 10
• Went all-around a team-best 12 times
and competed a team-best 51 routines
• Won the uneven bars, with a 9.9, and
the all-around, with a 39.475, at the
NCAA Central Regional Championships
• Won the balance beam at Auburn with
a season-high 9.9 to close out the
regular season
• Won the all-around against UNC with a
39.575, tying her career best score
• Won the floor exercise and vault
against UNC, tying her career best on
the vault with a 9.9
• Scored a career-high 9.950 on the
floor exercise against Auburn
• Opened the season by winning the
uneven bars against Oklahoma and
closed out the season by winning the
NCAA Central Regional and NCAA
Championship titles
• Had surgery on both elbows in the fall
to clear up pre-existing problems, was
expected to miss the first part of the
season, instead competed in every
meet and went all-around 12 times
2006 — sophomore
• First team All-American on the balance
beam and second team All-American
in the all-around, balance beam and
floor exercise
• Posted a season-best score of 9.9 on
the uneven bars four times, including
the NCAA Championship team finals
• Won the NCAA West Regional balance
beam title with a season-best 9.9
• SEC Gymnast of the Week
• Led the Tide with 52 routines
• Won 14 event titles including three
all-arounds
2005 — freshman
• NCAA Uneven Bars Champion, marking Alabama’s 18th individual championship and fourth bars title
• First-team All-American on the
balance beam, uneven bars and
floor exercise and second-team AllAmerican in the all-around
• Posted a career-high 9.9 on the vault,
a 9.95 on the floor exercise and a
39.575 in the all-around during the
NCAA Super Six team finals
• Won the SEC and NCAA Central Region
uneven bars titles
• Won 10 uneven bars titles during the
season, including all three postseason
championships
• Joined the Crimson Tide in January
after spending the fall on the T.J. Maxx
Olympic Tour
Senior • 3L • 5-1
Hometown: Bates City, Mo.
Major: Criminal Justice
Events: All-Around
High School: Odessa
Club: Great American Gymnastics Express
Prep Highlights:
• Member of the 2004 United States
Olympic Team, competing in Athens,
Greece
• Earned two Olympic Silver medals,
one as part of the USA squad and individually on the uneven bars
• Alabama gymnastics’ first Olympian
• Member of the United States 2003
World Championships Gold Medal
Team in Anaheim, Calif.
• Third in the vault, uneven bars and
floor exercise at the 2004 Visa
American Cup
• Led the United States to a silver medal
after taking second in the vault and
sixth in the all-around at the 2003
Pacific Challenge
• Member of the United States 2002
World Gymnastics Championships in
Debrecen, Hungary taking ninth in the
vault and 11th in the floor exercise
• Led the USA to the Gold at the 2002
Pacific Alliance Championships in
Vancouver, Canada, taking second
in the all-around and fourth in the
uneven bars
• Finished second in 2000, third in
2004, sixth in 2003 and seventh in
2002 in the all-around at the USA
Championships
• Competed for Al Fong and Armine
Barutyan-Fong at Great American
Gymnastics Express, the same gym
that produced Crimson Tide AllAmericans Marna Neubauer, Kim
Masters and Gwen Spidle
• Led the USA to gold at the 2000 USA
vs. France Challenge in St. Etienne,
France, taking gold in the all-around
• An accomplished horsewoman, competed in barrel racing
• Full name: Terin Marie Humphrey
• Daughter of Steve and Lisa Humphrey
• Brother: Shannon, serves in the United
States Marines, including a year-long
tour in Iraq
• Born August 14, 1986
Humphrey’s Top Scores - All-Around: 39.575 | Vault: 9.900 | Bars: 9.950 | Beam: 9.950 | Floor: 9.950
64
Did You Terin Humphrey, a two-time Olympic Silver Medalist, is only the third gymnast in NCAA history to repeat as national champion on the uneven bars.
Know?
jennifer
IOVINO
Prep Highlights:
• Coached by Kelli Hill and Jen Bundy at
Hill’s Gymnastics
• Four-time National Tops team member
• Three-year competitor at the national
championships
• Was ninth on the vault and 12th on the
balance beam at the 2004 USA National
Championships
• Won the floor exercise and was third in
the all-around and balance beam, fourth
in the vault and sixth on the uneven bars
at the 2007 Maryland Classic
• Won the floor exercise at the 2006 Level
10 National Championships and was third
in the all-around, fifth on the balance
beam and eighth on the vault
Tide Jennifer Iovino was the 2006 Level 10 National Floor Exercise Champion.
Timeline
Hometown: Olney, Md.
Events: All-Around
High School: Magruder
Club: Hill’s Gymnastics
• Won the all-around and the vault and the
2006 Starz and Stripes Invitational
• Competed at the 2004 US Classic
• From the same club team as current
Tide junior Cassie Martin and former AllAmerican Raegan Tomasek
• Four-year honor roll student
•
•
•
•
Full Name: Jennifer Lea Iovino
Daughter of Carol Ann and Frank Iovino
Sister – Allison Michelle
Born September 8, 1989
65
ricki
LEBEGERN
Alabama Highlights:
2007 — freshman
• SEC Balance Beam Champion with a
career high 9.925
• Led Alabama in nine events, winning six
individual titles
• Scored a career all-around high of 39.475
against LSU, including a career high 9.925
vault and a 9.9 balance beam score
• Led Alabama in the all-around against
Georgia and won the all-around at
Arkansas
• Posted a 9.875 to share top honors on the
balance beam at Arkansas
• Scored a career high 9.9 on the floor exercise against Kentucky and matched that
score against UCLA
• Won the vault to open the season, against
Oklahoma with a 9.85, and to close the
regular season, at Auburn with a 9.9
• Scored a career-high 9.825 on the uneven
bars against UNC and at Auburn
• Earned Dean’s List honors for the fall and
spring semesters after posting a 3.6 grade
point average in the fall and a 3.866 GPA
in the spring
Prep Highlights:
• Member of the U.S. Junior Olympic
National Team
• Finished fourth in the all-around and third
on the vault at the 2005 Level 10 National
Championships
Hometown: Annandale, Va.
Major: Human Development & Family Studies
Events: All-Around
High School: Falls Church
Club: Capital Gymnastics
• Trained at Capital Gymnastics National
Training Center where she was coached
by Tatiana Perskaia, Victor Vectrov and
Marina Gerom
• Second in the all-around and the balance
beam at the 2006 Junior Olympic National
Championships
• Won the all-around, vault, uneven bars and
balance beam at the 2006 JO Region 7
Championships as well as taking second in
the floor exercise
• Won the all-around at the 2006 Excalibur
Cup
• Fourth in the all-around at the 2005 JO
Nationals
• Won the vault, uneven bars and balance
beam and took second in the all-around at
the 2005 JO Region 7 Championships
• Won the all-around and vault at the 2005
Maryland Classic
• Won all four apparatus and the all-around
at the 2005 Winter Island Getaway
Invitational and the 2004 World Class
Invitational
•
•
•
•
Full Name: Erica Leigh Lebegern
Daughter of William and Jamie Lebegern
Brother - Terry and sister - Sophie
Born December 12, 1987
Lebegern’s Top Scores - All-Around: 39.475 | Vault: 9.925 | Bars: 9.825 | Beam: 9.925 | Floor: 9.900
66
Did You Ricki Lebegern won Alabama’s 25th Southeastern Conference championship since 2000 when she took top honors on the balance beam last season.
Know?
brittany
MAGEE
Alabama Highlights:
2007 — sophomore
• Won the beam with a career high 9.9 against
UCLA and at Auburn
• Posted a 9.875 to share top honors on the balance beam at Arkansas
• Scored a season high 9.875 on the vault
against LSU
• Earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average for
the summer semester, earning a place on the
prestigious President’s List
• Posted a 3.934 grade point average in the
spring, earning Dean’s List honors
2006 — freshman
• Second team Floor Exercise All-American
• NCAA West Regional floor exercise and vault
champion, scoring 9.90s
• SEC floor exercise champion, scoring a career
best 9.95 on the way to the title
• All-SEC
• Won the vault at Kentucky and against
Arkansas and Auburn, tying for top honors with
teammate Ashley Miles all three times
• Won the beam with a career best 9.875
against Arkansas and at LSU
• Scored a career high 9.95 on the vault against
Kentucky
• Won the floor exercise with a 9.9 at Penn State
• Competed on the vault, balance beam and
floor exercise in all 14 meets
• Competed 42 routines as a freshman
Junior • 2L • 5-2
Hometown: Arlington, Texas
Major: Criminal Justice
Events: All-Around
High School: Coppell
Club: Texas Dreams Gymnastics
• Scored 9.85 or better on the vault 10 of
14 meets, including a 9.9 during the NCAA
Championship Super Six Finals
• Joined the Crimson Tide Dec. 26th for the second semester
• Earned Dean’s List honors (3.5 GPA or better)
for the spring semester
Prep Highlights:
• Member of the USA National Team
• Competed in the 2005 North American Trimeet
• 2004 and 2005 U.S. Championships qualifier
• Competed for Kim Zmeskal Burdette and
Chris Burdette, Directors at Texas Dreams
Gymnastics
•
•
•
•
•
Full name: Brittany Lauren Magee
Daughter of J.D. and Dalena Magee
Brother - Joe
Sister - Kara
Born June 9, 1988
Magee’s Top Scores - Vault: 9.950 | Beam: 9.900 | Floor: 9.950
Tide A two-year Scholastic All-American, Brittany Magee won a share of the SEC and NCAA Central Region Floor Exercise titles as a freshman.
Timeline
67
cassie
MARTIN
Alabama Highlights:
2007 — sophomore
• Won the uneven bars against Auburn, scoring a
career best 9.925
• Posted a perfect 4.0 grade point average in the
fall, earning a spot on the President’s List, and
a 3.978 GPA for the spring semester, earning
Dean’s List honors
• 2007 Academic All-District 4 Women’s At-Large
Team
• Named Outstanding General Chemistry Student
2006 — freshman
• Won the balance beam at Penn State and again
at Auburn with matching career-best 9.9 scores
• Scored career-best 9.875s on the uneven bars
and floor exercise at Kentucky
• Earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average as a
freshman
Prep Highlights:
• Coached by Kelli Hill and Jen Bundy at Hill’s
Gymnastics, the same gym that produced Tide
All-American Raegan Tomasek and current
freshman Jennifer Iovino
• 2003 and 2004 Level 10 U.S. National Team
member
Hometown: Olney, Maryland
Major: Pre-Med
Events: All-Around
High School: Magruder
Club: Hill’s Gymnastics
• Took first in the floor exercise, second in the
uneven bars and third in the all-around at the
2004 Level 10 National Championships
• Won the floor exercise at the 2004 Region 7
Championships and took third on uneven bars and
in the all-around
• Won the 2004 Maryland State balance beam, floor
exercise and all-around titles
• Won the 2003 Elite U.S. Challenge balance beam
and floor exercise titles and took second in the
all-around
• Won the 2003 Level 10 National uneven bars,
floor exercise and all-around titles and took second on balance beam
• Won the 2003 Region 7 uneven bars, balance
beam, floor exercise and all-around championships
• Won the 2003 Maryland all-around, uneven bars
and balance beam titles
• Four-year member of the honor roll
•
•
•
•
•
•
Full name: Cassandra Anne Martin
Daughter of Melba and Dan Martin
Brothers - David and Christopher
Sisters - Theresa and Rebecca
Uncle, Robert Griffin, swam for Alabama 1960-64
Born December 13, 1987
Martin’s Top Scores - Bars: 9.925 | Beam: 9.900 | Floor: 9.875
68
Did You Cassie Martin, a two-year Scholastic All-American, was named to the 2007 CoSIDA Academic All-District 4 At-Large Team, which honors student-athletes from 12 different sports.
Know?
megan
MASHBURN
Prep Highlights:
• Coached by Dennis Hayden and Craig Kirby
at Hayden’s Gymnastics
• Finished seventh on the vault at the 2006
Level 10 National Championships
• Competed a the 2007 Level 10 National
Championships
• At the 2007 Level 10 Regional
Championships, finished third in the allaround, second on the vault and fourth on
the uneven bars
• Took fifth on the vault and balance beam at
the 2005 Level 10 Regional Championships
Tide Megan Mashburn, a member of the National Honor Society, finaled on the vault at the 2006 Level 10 National Championships.
Timeline
Hometown: Greenville, S.C.
Events: Bars, Vault, Floor
High School: Evans
Club: Hayden’s Gymnastics
• Finished third in the all-around, second on
the vault and eighth on the uneven bars
and floor exercise at the 2004 Eastern
Championships
• Won the all-around and balance beam and
was second on the vault and floor exercise at
the 2004 Level 9 Regional Championships
• Beta Club
• Four-year honor roll student
• Full Name: Megan Kay Mashburn
• Daughter of Mike and Kay Mashburn
• Father, Mike, played football at the University
of Memphis
• Two brothers – Matt and Drew
• Born April 28, 1989
69
amanda
MONTGOMERY
Alabama Highlights:
Prep Highlights:
2007 — sophomore
• Competitive debut came at the NCAA Central
Regional Championships on the uneven bars and
balance beam
• Named to the President’s List for the spring
semester after posting a perfect 4.0 grade point
average
• Earned a 3.936 GPA in the fall, earning a spot on
the Dean’s List
•
•
•
•
2006 — freshman
• Inducted into Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society
Hometown: Jacksonville, Fla.
Major: Entrepreneurship & Small Business Mgt.
Events: All-Around
High School: Bartram Trail
Club: Starlight Gymnastics
2003 Level 10 U.S. National Team member
2005 Florida State Balance Beam Champion
2005 National Qualifier
Competed for Vessy Ivanov and Valentin Marinov
at Starlight Gymnastics
• Character Counts Award
• Full name: Amanda Vaughn Montgomery
• Daughter of Ladson and Angie Montgomery
• Father graduated from Alabama while mother
graduated from Alabama’s Law School
• Brother - Ladson
• Sisters - Kelsie and Samantha
• Born May 18, 1987
Montgomery’s Top Scores - Bars: 9.700 | Beam: 9.775
70
Did You A two-year Scholastic All-American, Amanda Montgomery earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average for the spring semester.
Know?
ashley
O’NEAL
Hometown: Kennesaw, Ga.
Major: Restaurant & Hospitality Management
Events: All-Around
High School: Kennesaw Mountain
Club: Gymnastics Academy of Atlanta
Alabama Highlights:
Prep Highlights:
2007 — sophomore
• Posted a career high 9.875 to share top
honors on the balance beam at Arkansas
and matched that score at Auburn in the last
regular season meet
• Posted a career high 9.9 to share top honors
on the vault at Arkansas
• Competed three events (vault, balance beam
and floor exercise) in seven meets this season
• Posted a career best 9.875 on the floor
exercise in the season opening meet against
Oklahoma and matched that score against
UCLA
• Posted a 3.583 grade point average for the
spring semester, earning Dean’s List honors
• Took seventh in the all-around at the 2005
Level 10 National Championships
• Finished eighth on the balance beam at the
2005 Level 10 National Championships
• Won the all-around, vault, balance beam
and floor exercise at the 2005 Region 8
Championships
• 2004 Level 10 Region 8 Balance Beam
Champion
• Competed for Jacobo Giron and Natalia
Vaulter at the Gymnastics Academy of Atlanta
• Full name: Ashley Brooke O’Neal
• Daughter of Gary and Helen O’Neal
• Born April 10, 1987
2006 — freshman
• Scored a career high 9.85 on the floor exercise during the NCAA Championships Super
Six team final
• Posted a career high 9.85 twice on the vault,
at Penn State and at Auburn
• Scored career high 9.825 on the balance
beam at LSU
O’Neal’s Top Scores - Vault: 9.900 | Beam: 9.875 | Floor: 9.875
Tide Ashley O’Neal, who earned Dean’s List honors last spring, posted career best scores on each of her events last season..
Timeline
71
casey
OVERTON
Alabama Highlights:
2007 — freshman
• Matched career best of 9.875 on the
balance beam at the SEC Championships
• Won the balance beam against UNC
posting a 9.85
• Earned Dean’s list honors for the fall and
spring semester after posting a 3.538
and 3.835 grade point average respectively
• Posted a perfect 4.0 GPA for the summer semester, earning President’s List
honors
•
•
•
•
•
•
Prep Highlights:
• U.S. National Team member
• Member of the U.S. National Training
Squad from 2000-06
• Helped the United States National Team
to a team gold at the 2004 USA/Japan
Meet
• Competed for the U.S. at the 2002
Hometown: Virginia Beach, Va.
Events: All-Around
High School: Alpha Omega Academy
Club: Excalibur Gymnastics
International Massilia Cup in Marseille,
France
Coached by Jim and Dena Walker at
Excalibur Gymnastics club, the same
gym that produced former Tide AllAmericans Alexis Brion and Dana Filetti
Finished in the top-20 in the all-around
at the 2004 USA Championships
Took eighth in the all-around at the
2003 USA National Championships and
finished in the top-10 in the floor exercise, balance beam and uneven bars
Won the floor exercise and was second
in the all-around at the 2004 Parkettes
Invitational
Took second in the all-around at the
2005 Parkettes Invitational
National Honor Society
• Full name: Lauren Casey Overton
• Daughter of George and JoAnn Overton
• Born July 5, 1988
Overton’s Top Scores - Beam: 9.875 | Floor: 9.650
72
Did You Scholastic All-American Casey Overton was named to the Dean’s List for the fall and spring semester and the President’s List for the summer semester.
Know?
kassi
PRICE
Hometown: Plantation, Fla.
Major: Pre-Business
Events: All-Around
High School: Crenshaw School of Performing Arts
Club: Orlando Metro
Alabama Highlights:
Prep Highlights:
2007 — freshman
• Second team All-American on the uneven bars
• Featured in Sports Illustrated’s Faces in the Crowd
section during the first week of February
• Ranked No. 1 in the nation in the all-around during the
season’s second and fourth week
• Led the Tide 12 times, winning 11 individual titles in
the process
• Won the all-around in the first three meets of the season, scoring a career high 39.575 against Auburn
• Won the uneven bars with a career high 9.95 against
UNC and against Auburn and Kentucky and at Auburn
• Posted a career high 9.875 to share top honors on the
balance beam at Arkansas
• Scored career-best 9.925 marks on the vault and floor
exercise against Auburn
• Won the vault against Oklahoma and Kentucky
• Posted the Tide’s top balance beam score of the season of 9.875 at Florida, a score she matched against
Kentucky
• Earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average for the fall,
spring and summer semesters, earning a spot on the
President’s List each time
• Six-year member of the United States National Team
• Earned silver on the uneven bars and bronze in the
vault at the 2006 World Cup meet in Lyon, France
• Led the United States to a silver medal in the 2005
Massilia Cup in Marseille, France, winning the allaround, uneven bars and floor exercise and taking
second in the vault
• Led the United States to the gold at the 2004 Junior
Pan Am Championships in San Salvador, El Salvador,
winning the all-around and taking second in the
uneven bars and third in the balance beam and floor
exercise
• Won the all-around and led the United States to the
gold at the 2002 Copa International in Puerto Rico
• Took seventh in the all-around at the 2006 U.S.
Championships
• Fifth in the all-around at the 2004 and 2005 U.S.
Championships
• Ninth in the all-around at the 2003 U.S.
Championships
• Won the all-around, floor exercise and
uneven bars at the 2000 Junior Olympic
• Trained under Jeff Wood and Christi
Barineau at Orlando Metro
• Valedictorian of her senior class
•
•
•
•
Full Name: Kassandra Rose Price
Daughter of Paul and Annjanette Price
Sister - Karlee
Born August 2, 1989
Price’s Top Scores - All-Around: 39.575 | Vault: 9.925 | Bars: 9.950 | Beam: 9.875 | Floor: 9.925
Tide All-American Kassi Price won the first three all-around competitions of her Alabama career and was featured in Sports Illustrated’s Faces in the Crowd during her freshman year.
Timeline
73
jacqueline
SHEALY
Hometown: Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Major: Communications
Events: All-Around
High School: Spring Creek Academy
Club: World Olympic Gymnastics Academy
Alabama Highlights:
2007 — freshman
• Competed on the uneven bars in
the season opener, tearing the ACL
in her left knee on the landing, still
scoring a 9.775
• Full name: Jacqueline Ann Shealy
• Daughter of Steadman and Ann
Shealy
• Brothers - Steadman, Robert and
John David
• Sister - Anna Catharine
• Mother was The University of
Alabama’s first scholarship gymnast and a member of Sarah and
David Patterson’s first Crimson Tide
team
• Father was a two-time national
champion quarterback for Alabama
in 1978 and 1979
• Attending Alabama on a Bryant
Scholarship
• Sarah and David Patterson’s first
legacy gymnast
• Born February 9, 1988
Prep Highlights:
• Coached by Evgeny Marchenko
at World Olympic Gymnastics
Academy
• Finished second in the all-around
and the floor exercise and fourth in
the vault, uneven bars and balance
beam at the 2005 WOGA Classic
• Won the vault and took fifth in
the all-around and second in the
uneven bars at the 2005 Lady Luck
Invitational
• Finished second in the all-around
and won the uneven bars at the
2004 Classic
• Won the vault and balance beam
and took second in the all-around
at the 2003 Big Chill Invitational
• Led Region 8 to the 2001 Level 10
National Championship
Shealy’s Top Scores - Bars 9.775
74
Did You Both of Jacqueline Shealy’s parents are former Alabama athletes. Her mother Ann was a member of Sarah and David Patterson’s first team and her father Steadman was quarterback of Alabama’s 1978
Know? and 1979 National Champion football teams.
kaitlin
WHITE
Senior • 3L • 5-6
Hometown: Allen, Texas
Major: Financial Planning
Events: All-Around
High School: Allen
Club: World Olympic Gymnastics Academy
Alabama Highlights:
Prep Highlights:
2007 — junior
• Scored a career high 9.875 on the floor exercise against LSU and matched that score a
week later against UCLA
• Posted a career high 9.875 on the uneven
bars against Auburn, a score she matched at
Arkansas
• Posted a season best 9.850 on the vault at
Arkansas
• Earned a 4.0 grade point average for the
spring and summer semesters, earning
President’s List honors both times
• Posted a 3.833 grade point average for the
fall semester, earning Dean’s List honors
• Coached by Evegeny Marchenko and Natasha
Boyarskaya at World Olympic Gymnastics
Academy
• Four-year member of the United States
National Team
• Competed internationally over half a dozen
times
• Finished ninth in the all-around as a member
of the United State’s 2001 Goodwill Games
team in Brisbane, Australia
• Took second in the all-around and the floor
exercise at the 2002 American Classic
• Took fourth in the all-around and second in the floor exercise at the 2001 U.S.
Gymnastics Championships
2006 — sophomore
• Scored a career best 9.85 on the uneven bars
at Penn State
• Scored a season high 9.85 on the vault
against Georgia
•
•
•
•
Full name: Kaitlin Elizabeth White
Daughter of Monte and Tammy DeVinny
Brothers - Tanner and Tucker
Born October 6, 1986
2005 — freshman
• Scored a career-best 9.875 on the vault during the NCAA Super Six team finals
White’s Top Scores - Vault: 9.875 | Bars 9.875 | Floor: 9.875
Tide Scholastic All-American Kaitlin White posted career high scores on the floor exercise and uneven bars as a junior.
Timeline
75
Courtney Priess
Student Coach
There was no doubt that when student coach Courtney Priess retired from gymnastics after her sophomore season due to on-going back problems that plagued
her since her days as a club gymnast, that Sarah and David Patterson wanted to
keep her involved in a significant and daily basis.
“Courtney brings so much to this team, from her amazing attitude and work
ethic to her great knowledge of gymnastics and eye for choreography,” Sarah
Patterson said. “She is a valuable part of this team and brings so much to practice every day.”
In addition to her daily duties in the gym as a student coach, Priess also
provides weekly updates on the team to the Tide’s websites, providing fans
with an insider’s view of the team’s progress. “Courtney’s Chalk Talk,” has
been an instant hit, as much for its upbeat style as the details she provides.
“I think more than anything else, people feed on Courtney’s positive
nature,” David Patterson said. “She is such a great teammate and an amazing person. Just reading her updates, her excitement and passion for this
program is evident.”
As a sophomore, Priess was named to the Southeastern Conference’s
Good Works Team for her efforts in community service. A two-year
Academic All-SEC honoree, she came to the Tide from Cincinnati
Gymnastics Academy. She was an all-around finalist at the 2002 and
2003 Level 10 National Championships and was runner-up in the
all-around at the 1999 Level 10 National Championships. She twice
competed for the United States at the Massilia Cup in Marseille,
France. A native of Hamilton, Ohio, she is the daughter of Linda
and Mel Priess.
Tony Giles
Tony Giles is in his 16th season
as the voice of Alabama Gymnastics.
Giles, the public address announcer
for the Crimson Tide home meets
since 1993, is considered one of the
nation’s best. In addition to serving as
the announcer for the Tide’s regular
season home schedule, he has also
been the voice of the 1996 and 2002
NCAA Championships as well as sev-
76
The Voice of the Crimson TIde
eral NCAA Regional and Southeastern
Conference Championships including
last spring’s NCAA Central Regional.
A financial advisor and estate planning consultant for Morgan Stanley,
Giles is also Alabama’s announcer
for men’s basketball and football. A
1976 graduate of The University of
Alabama, Giles and his wife Lynn have
two sons, Scott and Rowdy.
Did You Director of Gymnastics Operations Rita Martin has been with the gymnastics program since 1985.
Know?
Administrative Staff
Rita Martin
Robin Kelley
Director of Gymnastics Operations
Administrative Assistant
For every minute that Alabama
Gymnastics shines in the white hot
spotlight of national success, there are
thousands of behind the scene details
that make it possible.
For the Crimson Tide, there are
two women charged with handling
those details and keeping everything
running smoothly. Rita Martin, the
gymnastics operations director, and
Robin Kelley, the Tide’s administrative
assistant, work hard every day to keep
the Alabama Gymnastics world shining bright and running like a well oiled
machine.
As director of operations, Martin
is responsible for a wide variety of
tasks, from daily paperwork to being
the meet director, and everything in
between.
The New Jersey native has been
a part of the athletics department for
more than 25 years and the University
for 30. When Sarah Patterson added
Associate Athletics Director to her list
of duties in 1985, Martin became her
assistant.
“Rita is so great at keeping everything together,” Patterson said. “She
allows us to be our best because she
handles all the fine points so well.”
Martin and her husband Buddy
have a daughter, Kelly, and two sons,
Paul, a Tide graduate, and Brett, an
Alabama senior.
Kelley is in her sixth year with the
gymnastics program, though she has
been a part of the athletics department
for the past eight years. She also performs a wide variety of duties, including keeping up with the program’s
correspondence and recruiting efforts.
She also travels with the Tide, taking
care of the details on the road.
“Robin does so many things for us,”
Patterson said. “She is invaluable on
the road, taking care of all the arrangements, from where we stay to where
we eat and how we get from here to
there.”
A native of Northport, Ala., Kelley
and her husband Jay have two sons,
Tanner and Jesse.
Managers
<<C.J. Laird and Will Miller • Lauren Smelley and Abbie Dean>>
They are vital part of the Alabama
Gymnastics team, helping make sure everything is set for each practice and that the
coaches and student-athletes have everything
they need to be successful. This season the
Crimson Tide has four managers, three that
work in the gym and one that helps the gymnastics administrative staff. Will Miller and
C.J. Laird are both in their third year with
the Crimson Tide while Lauren Smelley and
Abbie Dean joined the gymnastics family
last season.
With jobs that vary from moment-tomoment, Alabama’s crew of managers are
vital to the Crimson Tide’s success.
All four have specific duties that keep
them busy, whether it is making sure each
Jennifer Martin
What you see at any given Alabama
Gymnastics meet, from the pre-meet light
show and up-tempo music to the t-shirts
flying through the air and video highlights
flashing across the Crimson Tide’s video
display boards takes a lot of work to prepare
and Jennifer Martin has a lot to do with creating that fun-filled atmosphere.
Martin is in her third year as the Tide’s
assistant director of marketing and promotions and one of her main responsibilities
is the gymnastics program and all that goes
with it.
“Working with Sarah Patterson and
the gymnastics program has been so much
fun,” Martin said. “She is such a dynamic
figure who has been at the forefront of athletic marketing for such a long time. I have
learned a tremendous amount working with
her.”
In 2006, Martin was part of Alabama
history when the gymnastics team became
gymnast has the right apparel, videotaping
routines and individual skills, playing floor
exercise music or moving the mats and
spring boards into position during practice.
Miller came to Alabama after playing
football at Mississippi College as a freshman. A shoulder injury forced him to give
up the sport and brought him back home
to Tuscaloosa. The American Christian
Academy graduate, who is majoring in
Advertising at Alabama, is the son of David
and Tina Miller of Tuscaloosa.
Laird graduated from Oak Mountain
High School in Birmingham and is a senior
at Alabama. In addition to his work with
the Tide he also coaches club gymnastics at
Tuscaloosa Tumbling Tides, working with
Levels 4-6. The son of Chae and Beverly
Laird of Birmingham, C.J. is majoring in
Fitness Management.
Smelley, a sophomore, graduated from
American Christian Academy. The daughter
of Jeff and Karen Smelley, Lauren is pursuing a double major in International Business
and Spanish.
Dean, who helps Rita Martin and Robin
Kelley with office related duties, is a senior
majoring in elementary education. The
Peachtree City, Ga. native teaches at the
Alabama Gymnastics Academy and is the
daughter of Cody and Sandy Callahan.
Dean. She went to McIntosh High School.
Assistant Marketing and
Promotions Director
the first team to sellout the newly renovated
Coleman Coliseum with a beyond-capacity
crowd of 15,162, a new Alabama and SEC
record for gymnastics attendance.
“Selling out the coliseum the last two
seasons was such a great experience,” Martin
said. “It definitely stands as one of the highlights of my career to this point.”
In addition to gymnastics, Martin works
with football and serves as the director of the
Tide’s trademark licensing office.
A native of Natchitoches, La., Martin
came to Alabama after a two-year stint as
Northwestern State’s Assistant Athletics
Director for Marketing and Promotions.
Before that she served as a marketing assistant at both Texas State and LSU. She graduated from LSU in 2001 with a degree in
general studies. She and Kevin Martin were
married last spring.
Beth Garner
Kent Gidley
Associate Director
of Athletic Ticket
Photography Coordinator
for Athletics
Johnathan King Patrick MacDonald
Ashley Waters
Joe Whitehead
Steve Wilson
Assistant Director of
Event Management
Assistant Coleman
Coliseum Manager
Coleman Coliseum
Manager
Video Services
Graduate Assistant
Tide Feb. 1, 1997 - Alabama sells out Coleman Coliseum for the first time as 15,043 fans come to see the Tide take on Georgia. A reported 400 fans are turned away for lack of seats.
Timeline
Assistant Manager
of Video Services
77
Athletic Trainer
Monica Decker
There is nothing quite so reassuring for members of the Alabama
Gymnastics team as walking into the gym and seeing Monica
Decker’s smiling face.
Decker, in her eighth year as a member of the gymnastics staff, is
an invaluable part of the Crimson Tide program.
“Monica is by far one of the finest athletic trainers that I have
worked with,” head coach Sarah Patterson said. “Her rapport with the
staff and the athletes is exceptional and her knowledge of rehabilitation is outstanding. She has a gift for working with elite level athletes.
I think anyone can know the nuts and bolts of training, but I think it
takes someone who is gifted to work with elite level athletes.”
A native of Phoenix, Ariz., Decker came a long way to work with
the Crimson Tide. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise
Science from Arizona State in 2000. In 2002 she earned a Master’s in
Sports Medicine Health Care from Alabama where she is currently
pursuing a second Master’s in Food and Nutrition.
“To take the best care of my athletes, I don’t think I can ever stop
learning,” Decker said. “And that’s why I’m pursuing a degree in
nutrition. I think it’s a degree that will really complement the work I
do as an athletic trainer.”
In addition to serving as a certified athletic trainer on the Tide
staff, Decker is also an instructor in Alabama’s athletic training
undergraduate program as well as serving as coordinator of the
University’s clinical proficiency lab.
Much of her day to day work, especially in the preseason, is spent
on preventative measures, helping stop problems before they get
started. During the season, most of Decker’s time is spent helping the
athletes maintain their health and fitness levels.
“Positive reinforcement is a big part of the job,” Decker said. “To
be there everyday, encouraging them, letting them know that they are
making progress and keeping them positive.”
And in the case of injuries, she is there through their rehab to
help them return to peak health as quickly and safely as possible.
Decker worked extensively with 2002 senior Andreé Pickens, helping
her come back from a torn Achilles tendon. She was part of a team
that included orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, that helped
Pickens not only come back in record time, but helped Alabama to its
fourth NCAA Championship in 2002. For her efforts during the 2002
season, Decker was awarded the David Dutton Award, given to individuals who go above and beyond the call of duty for the Alabama
Gymnastics program.
In addition to her other duties, Decker also tries to teach her
charges the importance of carrying on healthy habits into the life
beyond their career.
“I hope that I can teach them all enough about taking care of
themselves, that when they go out into the world, they enjoy healthy
and successful lives,” Decker said. “And being part of the Alabama
gymnastics ‘family’ I look forward to watching them grow and
mature over the years.”
Decker has a daughter, Ayana Berenice.
Athletic Training Student Staff - Athletic trainer Monica Decker is assisted
during the school year by members of The University of Alabama’s athletic
training program. This fall she was assisted by Katy Steele and Denarreo
Gilmore. In the spring she will be joined by Laura Nicholson.
From the left - Laura Nicholson, Denarreo Gilmore and Katy Steele
78
Did You In her eighth season as the gymnastics team’s athletic trainer, Monica Decker has a Master’s in Sports Medicine Health Care from Alabama and is currently pursuing a second Master’s in Food and Nutrition.
Know?
To maintain its status as a top team in the nation, Alabama gymnasts must stay in top form. Enter Travis Illian the Crimson Tide’s
strength and conditioning coach.
Illian, in his first year with the Crimson Tide, works hand in hand
with the gymnastics coaches to modify the Tide program to make
sure it best meets the needs of the current team. On average, the
team spends nearly five hours a week improving and enhancing their
flexibility as well as their physical and aerobic strength.
This preseason, the gymnasts spent two to three days conditioning in the gym and a day spinning. Each gymnast also is given a specific, individual routine that fits their needs.
Illian works closely with the Alabama coaching staff, especially
assistant coach Bryan Raschilla, who designs, with input from Illian,
the overall program.
The preseason workouts are designed to build the gymnast’s core
strength, Raschilla explained. “Once the season arrives, we are still
building, but we don’t increase our levels of frequency. We also add
more joint stabilization exercises to prevent injury.”
Illian’s job isn’t finished when the final Alabama gymnast competes at the NCAA Championships. Instead, he is busy preparing the
squad’s summer conditioning. The gymnasts get four to six weeks off
depending on individual needs. Then it is back to maintaining the
strength they worked so hard to develop over the past year.
Illian also leads the team through spinning, the core of the aerobic program. “While spinning is basically an aerobic exercise, we’ve
modified it to be more strength oriented, more explosive,” Raschilla
said.
Leaner, faster and stronger. That is the aim of the Crimson Tide
strength and conditioning program and staff for the athletes. Every
step an Alabama gymnast makes to build these characteristics is just
another step closer to another national championship title.
Strength
& Conditioning
Tide Jan. 11, 1998 - Meredith Willard becomes the first Alabama gymnast to earn the prestigious NCAA Top VIII Award.
Timeline
79
Maintaining The Crimson Tide
Alabama’s Medical Staff
When Dr. Jimmy Robinson talks about his work with the
Alabama Crimson Tide, you can hear the excitement in his
voice.
“When I was doing my residency, I got bit by the sports
medicine bug,” Robinson said. “The more I worked with the
teams, the more I wanted to do this kind of medicine.”
One of Robinson’s rotations during his Family Practice
Residency in Tuscaloosa was with Alabama team physician Dr.
Bill DeShazo. Not only did he work the required hours of his
rotation, but he found himself hanging around and helping out
even when he wasn’t on duty.
As a matter of fact, Robinson traveled with the gymnastics
team to Salt Lake City, Utah in 1988 and was on hand for the
Tide’s first ever NCAA Championship.
“It was a blast,” Robinson said. “I was still in training and
just getting interested in sports medicine. So to be out there
with the gymnasts when they won the first championship
Alabama’s ever had outside of football, it was definitely an
exciting moment.”
After doing a fellowship in sports medicine at the Cleveland
Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, Robinson received a call from Sang
Lyda, the trainer in charge of the Tide’s Olympic Sports. Dr.
DeShazo was retiring and Lyda wanted to know if Robinson
would be interested in taking over as the team physician for
the Olympic Sports. It was an opportunity Robinson jumped
at. “I came back and opened a practice in August of 1989 and
have been with the University ever since,” Robinson said.
As Robinson’s practice began to grow, he began to look
for someone to join him. With high standards, his search took
quite a while. He had been practicing seven years when he
asked Craig Buettner to join him and another five after that
when Jeff Laubenthal was asked to join the practice.
“Both Craig and Jeff were handpicked. Both have the
right kind of personalities and are smart as can be to boot,”
Robinson said. “When I identified them through the residency
program, and they caught the sports medicine bug, we tried
to set them on the path that would bring them back here.
Both men are big Alabama fans, so working with the athletics
department was a big incentive.”
80
From the left — Dr. Craig Buettner, Dr. Jimmy Robinson, Dr. Les Fowler and Dr. Jeff Laubenthal are all part of the Crimson Tide’s medical staff.
Laubenthal in particular is very familiar with the Alabama
athletics department. Not only is he a former stand-out
baseball player for the Tide, but he is married to former AllAmerican gymnast Katherine Kelleher.
Now the three men serve as the primary physicians for the
Crimson Tide. Robinson and his colleagues are involved in all
levels of an athlete’s healthcare, from the first physical of the
year before an athlete can even start practice, to an exit physical at the end of an athlete’s career and everything in between.
The hours involved are long to say the least, but for Robinson
and his cohorts, the effort is worth it.
Did You Team physician Dr. Jimmy Robinson was a member of the U.S. Olympic medical staff at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
Know?
“I’m a fan and the opportunity to work with the department is better than a paycheck,” Robinson said. “To me, the
biggest thrill is when I get to work with an athlete and maybe
something I do helps them be as good an athlete as they can
be. There’s nothing like feeling that in some small way, I made
a positive difference in an individual or team’s performance.”
Robinson’s expertise in the sports medicine has reached
international acclaim. For the 2000 Olympics in Sydney he was
one of eight team physicians for the U.S. Olympic squad. He
served in the same capacity at the 1998 Goodwill Game and
1999 Pan Am Games.
Dr. James Andrews (center), one of the world’s foremost experts in orthopedic medicine, and Dr. Lyle Cain, one of the nation’s top orthopedic surgeon’s, consult
with sophomore Jacqueline Shealy after her ACL surgery last spring.
In addition to the near daily attention
of Drs. Robinson, Buettner and Laubenthal,
Alabama has several specialists on call including
former Alabama quarterback Dr. Les Fowler
who serves as the department’s orthopedist.
Alabama athletes can also count on Dr.
James Andrews who serves on the Tide’s
medical staff as a consultant. Andrews is one
of the world’s foremost orthopedic surgeons,
internationally known and recognized for his
scientific and clinical research contributions in
knee, shoulder and elbow injuries and his skill
as an orthopedic surgeon. Many of the world’s
outstanding athletes seek his expertise in sports
injuries. His work with Andreé Pickens’ ruptured Achilles’ tendon allowed her to not only
compete her senior year but compete at a higher level than before the injury. She led Alabama
to the 2002 NCAA Championship and captured the NCAA Uneven Bars crown. Last fall,
Andrews and Dr. Lyle Cain, another Alabama
team physician, removed bone chips from both
of Terin Humphrey’s elbows, allowing her
greater range of motion than she has had in
many years. Their expertise had her back in the
lineup for the start of the season, and winning
her second NCAA Uneven Bars championship
by April.
Tide Oct. 17, 1998 - Merritt Booth is honored as a top-10 finalist for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
Timeline
THE TRAINING STAFF
Keeping Crimson Tide gymnasts fine-tuned
is the No. 1 job of The University of Alabama
trainers. Their “body shop” is the newly renovated state-of-the-art training room located in
Coleman Coliseum, and their tools consist of
hot and cold whirlpools, electrical stimulation
and ultrasound machines, tape and pre-wrap
and QDA spray, and a brain full of knowledge
needed to make sure each gymnast performs to
her full potential.
Bill McDonald heads the athletic training
staff. A member of the Tide staff since 1987,
McDonald’s area of expertise extends from
athletic training to administration. After serving as the Tide’s head athletic trainer from
1987 through the 1998 season, he moved to
the administrative side in 1999, and currently
serves as Director of Sports Medicine. Rodney
Brown is the director of rehabilitations services.
The Coleman Coliseum training room is
staffed by six full-time athletic trainers, including Sherry Kimbro (soccer and rowing), John
Morr (men’s basketball, men’s and women’s
tennis, softball and men’s and women’s golf),
Joe Hoffer (baseball, volleyball and cheer
and dance), Bernard Burroughs, (men’s and
women’s track and field), Monica Decker
(gymnastics) and Jeremy Dobbs (women’s
basketball, swimming and diving, cheerleading
and dance team). Jeff Allen is the head football
athletic trainer. He is assisted by assistant athletic trainer Ginger Gilmore and Jeremy Gsell
and two graduate assistants, Nick Williams and
John Hardin.
The coliseum staff also consists of 7 graduate assistant athletic trainers: Brandon Rayne
(Swim and Dive), Nick Seiler (Softball), Jenny
Hogg (men’s and women’s tennis), Katie
Murphy (women’s track and field), Breck
Hastings (cheer and dance), Nick Kregal (rowing) , Megan McGrath (rowing) and Johanna
Beeghly (volleyball).
Athletic trainers can spend an average of
10 to 12 hours a day on the job depending on
what point of the season the team is in.
Alabama ensures the safety of its athletes
by assigning at least one athletic trainer to each
team to cover home and away events, conditioning, practice and travel.
81

The 2008 Alabama Gymnastics Guide

Transcription

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