Air Force Academy

Feb. 21, 2007

On the road for the third straight weekend, the Air Force women's gymnastics team returns to the Midwest this weekend for a Saturday afternoon showdown with Western Michigan. The Falcons and Broncos will face off at 1 p.m., on Saturday (Feb. 24) at University Arena in Kalamazoo, Mich.

Weekly Release 06 - at Western Michigan
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SCOUTING THE FALCONS: Air Force continues to improve its scores each week...the newcomers continue to lead the program...freshman Michelle Denise leads the squad on the uneven bars and all-around, while classmate Kayla Kincade tops the team on the balance beam...sophomore Abigail Rogers has accounted for the team's top score on the floor exercise...Air Force most recently set a season-best team score of 185.557 in a loss to UC-Davis.

SCOUTING THE BRONCOS: Western Michigan is a perfect 2-0 at University Arena this season...the Broncos most recently defeated in-state rival Central Michigan 192.600-190.375 on Saturday...WMU is 2-2 in the Mid American Conference and 2-7 overall...the Broncos are not listed in the current GymInfo rankings, but Andrea Perini had been ranked fourth in the MAC with an all-around average score of 38.637...freshman Rici Smith is a native of Falcon, Colo., and graduated from Liberty High School in Colorado Springs.

ONE MORE TIME: While UC-Davis is the only team the Air Force will face on three occasions, it is not the only squad that the Falcons will match up with twice. Air Force, which opened the season at Denver, will close out the year hosting the Pioneers.  That meet follows a pair of home-and-home meets with Cal-Berkeley.

ABBEY'S ADDING UP: Against Ohio State, sophomore Abigail Rogers set career-best scores in two individual events, while also racking up a new high in the all-around. Rogers posted a 9.225 on the uneven bars and a 9.750 on the floor exercise, while amassing a score of 37.725 in the all-around. Over the past two weeks, Rogers has improved her personal-bests in all events.

HERE, THERE, AND EVERYWHERE: The Falcons are currently in the midst of a four-week excursion that is taking them back and fourth across the country. Air Force opened its tour Feb. 10 against Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio, before heading to Davis, Calif., for a rematch with UCD on Feb. 16. The Falcons return to the Midwest on Feb. 25, as they take on Western Michigan in Kalamazoo, Mich., and round out the road-swing back with a tri-meet in California on March 9.

`RANK YOU VERY MUCH: With the switch to the rankings being determined by the Regional Qualifying Score, Air Force has four gymnasts ranked among the league's top. Freshman Michelle Denise (9.275 RQS - bars), as well as seniors Christine Powers (9.170 - beam) and Shonna Iwaniec (9.380 - floor) are ranked fifth in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. In addition, Iwaniec (9.215 - bars) and sophomore Abigail Rogers (9.270 - floor) are ranked sixth. Iwaniec has also posted the league's third-best regional qualifying score in the all-around at 36.570.

GET OUT THE BROOMS: During the Falcons' first homestand, Kayla Kincade was the Falcons' lone event winner. Scoring a 9.500 on the balance beam, Kincade guided Air Force a near-sweep of the top three spots (UC-Davis' Marie Inouye, who filled in for an injured teammate, tied with Kincade for first-place honors.) Senior Christine Powers tallied a 9.350 to take second on the apparatus, while classmate Sashonna Iwaniec posted a score of 9.325 to take third.

COMING UP: Taking a week off from competition (March 3), Air Force returns to California on March 9 for a tri-meet with Cal-Berkeley and Penn. That meet will mark the final regular season road meet for the Falcons, who close out the season with a pair of meets at the Academy.