Newcomers Shine in Season-Opening Loss to No. 17 Denver

Jan. 13, 2007

DENVER, Colo. - The Air Force women's gymnastics team dropped a 195.375-179.250 decision to the 17th-ranked Denver Pioneers on Saturday, Jan. 13, in the state's capital city. The host team, which had competed one week earlier at the Super Six Challenge, ruined the Falcons' season debut by taking top honors on all four events.

Although the Falcons ended up on the lower end of the night's final score, the squad's newcomers had a chance to shine, posting many of the team's top marks.

A quartet of newcomers tied for the Falcons' top score on the vault. Freshmen Michelle Denise (Kennewick, Wash.), Emily Darone (Middletown, Del.) and Kayla Kincade (Lakewood, Colo.) all scored a 9.200 on the apparatus to place seventh, along with sophomore newcomer Abigail Rogers (Pittsburgh, Pa.).

In addition to posting a team-best score on the vault, Denise matched the Falcons' best individual event placement of the night, as she finished sixth on the floor exercise with a team-high 9.300. Denise also recorded the Falcon's second-best score on the uneven bars at 9.200.

Darone also tallied multiple team-high scores, posting Air Force's highest scores on the uneven bars (9.250) and all-around (36.525). Darone finished seventh in the uneven bars, while tallying a second-place placement in the all-around.

Senior Sashonna Iwaniec (Ligonier, Pa.) picked up the Falcons' top score on the balance beam, accumulating a score 9.275. In addition, the Falcons' captain garnered a seventh-place score of 9.250 on the floor exercise and a third-place tally of 36.500 in the all-around.

Sophomore Mary Barrett (Copperas Cove, Texas) recorded the team's second-highest vault total at 9.100, finishing 11th due to the four-way tie by her teammates. Senior Christine Powers (Hurst, Texas) picked up a seventh-place finish on the balance beam (9.050), which was the second-best score for Air Force on that event.

The Falcons return to action on Saturday, Jan. 27, when they travel to Pittsburgh, Pa., for a tri-meet with New Hampshire and host Pitt.

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