Alyssa Click Named WAC Gymnast of the Week

Women's Gymnastics 3/20/2011 4:53:00 AM SUU Strategic Communication

Cersosimo and Click Capture Individual Titles as T-Birds Finish Second

SAN JOSE, Calif. - March 19 - Southern Utah tallied the second highest team score on the balance beam in school history on Saturday night, but were unable to ride the performance to a second consecutive Western Athletic Conference championship, finishing second behind Boise State. Brooke Cersosimo and Alyssa Click provided individual highlights for the T-Birds during the night by finishing first on the beam and bars, respectively.

SUU got out to a rocky start on the uneven bars, having to count a fall that put the team behind early. Ari Lamb began the rotation well enough with a 9.775, but a fall by Cersosimo during the next routine turned up the pressure for the rest of the team. Lauren Jeffrey (9.775), Michaela Chernoch (9.825) and Click (9.850) followed with strong routines, but a final mishap by Caitlin Kennedy left the T-Birds with a team score of 48.100 on the event.

Southern Utah then regrouped and came out with a vengeance on the balance beam, scoring a season-high 49.325, marking the No. 3 all-time best mark in school history, trailing a 49.400 recorded in 2007 and 2004. Cersosimo came back from her fall on bars to anchor the team with a career-best 9.925 and tie the third best all-time mark on the SUU record books.

She was followed closely by Ari Lamb with a 9.900 as the duo finished first and second overall on the event. Kennedy also recovered from her fall on bars to finish tied for fourth overall with Click as the duo tallied a 9.875. Chernoch's 9.750 rounded out the team score and helped make up some ground for the Thunderbirds.

Southern Utah's 48.800 on the floor exercise was the third highest team score on the event of the night, but was uncharacteristically low for the Thunderbirds after scoring three consecutive 49's on the event coming into the meet. Senior Shannon Coughlin tallied the top mark for the team with a 9.825 to finish tied for second. Fellow senior Lindsey Schultz was just behind with a 9.775 as Chernoch (9.725), Lamb (9.725) and Click (9.750) rounded out the team score.

The T-Birds finished the night on vault, scoring a 48.600 with each gymnast scoring a 9.700 or better as the team only competed five. Kennedy and Cersosimo finished as the top scorers for the team with 9.750's and were followed by a trio of 9.700's from Coughlin, Schultz and Lamb. Lamb rounded out her evening with a second-place finishing 39.100 in the all-around.

Southern Utah finished its night with an overall team score of 194.825 while Boise State finished with a 195.700. San Jose State (193.925), Sacramento State (193.550), Utah State (191.850) and Cal State Fullerton (191.650) made up the final standings.

Despite the defeat, the team score will only help to bolster Southern Utah's regional qualifying score and will all but lock the Thunderbirds into an appearance at the NCAA Regionals during the first weekend of April. A top-two team finish at that meet will mean a berth for the squad in the NCAA National Championships with individual winners at regionals also earning their way to nationals in Cleveland, Ohio, April 15-17.

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