Yohman proud of Panthers’ fifth-place Regional finish

They vaulted, flipped and balanced themselves in the type of performance that would have… They vaulted, flipped and balanced themselves in the type of performance that would have impressed even the great Bela Karolyi.

Needless to say, the Panthers’ fifth-place finish at the Northeast Regional Gymnastics Championships last weekend made their own coach, Debbie Yohman, very proud.

“I was extremely pleased with the weekend’s results,” Yohman said.

Held in Durham, N.H., the Northeast Regional competition was one of several regional competitions taking place all over the country. They serve as the first round of the NCAA women’s gymnastics championship. All competing teams had to previously qualify to be invited to the regional. The Panthers were fortunate to be one of only three teams out of about 20 — along with Rutgers and New Hampshire — invited from the northeast region. The other three that competed were top-ranked teams from around the country: Louisiana State, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Nationally ranked Louisiana State University won the competition, scoring 197.125 points. The Panthers proved that they can compete with the best, however, finishing close behind at 193.1 points.

“We entered the competition seeded last, and we came in fifth,” Yohman said. “I was especially happy that we were able to beat Rutgers, a team that we should have beaten earlier this season.”

The top two teams, LSU and Oklahoma, advance to the NCAA championships in two weeks, as do the top two gymnasts in the all-around event not from those teams. The only other way to qualify for the NCAA championships is to win an individual event. Pitt’s Leila Tait made certain that the Panthers would not be unrepresented at the national championships by tying for first place on the balance beam.

Tait, the Panthers only competing senior, won the balance beam with a season-high 9.85 points. She also led the team on the vault, tying her career-high score of 9.775, in that event as well. She is the first Panther to win an NCAA Regional event since Samantha Salyers won the uneven bars competition in 1997. Tait will compete at the NCAA championships from April 21-23 in Auburn, Ala.

“Her performance was not surprising,” Yohman said. “Yet, we did not expect to see her on the podium at the end, because you never really know who is in the lead until the end of the competition. It was a pleasant surprise.”

The Panthers also received remarkable performances from many of their underclassmen. Sophomore Andrea Arlotta was the highest-scoring Panther on the uneven parallel bars, receiving a 9.75. She also led the team in the all-around competition. Freshman Samantha DeBone also scored points for the Panthers on the floor exercise with a team-leading score of 9.8.

When asked if any of her gymnasts’ performances surprised her, Yohman replied, “No, and I say that in a positive way.”

She then added, “Yes, we had great performances, but none of them were unexpected. We finally did what we were capable of doing all year.”

Now that the Northeast Regional has concluded, the Panthers’ team competition season comes to a close, but on a high note. The immediate future looks bright, with all of the gymnasts who compose the team’s solid core returning. In actuality, the team is only graduating one competitor, NCAA qualifier Tait. In preparing for the team’s future, the Panthers signed two talented recruits last November and will likely sign another one this Wednesday. Yohman said she expects her athletes to come and do great things next year.

Asked how this year finished, Yohman simply replied, “It was a really nice way to end the season.”