Kovic named top coach as Penn places second

On its way to breaking five school records and winning four Eastern College Athletic Conference individual titles, the Penn gymnastics team, in its strongest performance in the school's history, came in a close second in the ECAC championships this past Saturday. In front of a large crowd in the Palestra, the Quakers finished one point behind heavily favored, No. 1-seeded James Madison. In the process, Penn obliterated the school team-score record, previously set this season at 185.900, with a score of 188.775. The Tribe finished first with 189.875, followed by the Red and Blue and then William and Mary, 188.600, Vermont, 185.625, Brown, 182.300, and Cornell, 181.900. Yale didn't compete because of injuries. Penn coach Tom Kovic was named co-ECAC Coach of the Year and Mary Pedersen, a 1994 Penn graduate and former gymnast, was named ECAC Assistant Coach of the Year. Quakers freshman Becky Nadler set a personal best, broke a school record and was crowned co-ECAC champion on the beam with a 9.75 score. Other than Penn tri-captain Carin Kaplan, who also set a personal best of 9.575, the rest of the team suffered from initial nervousness, which resulted in three falls on the beam, Penn's first event. "We got the bugs out after the first event and hit the next 18 routines," Kovic said. After a bye round, the Quakers came back to set a school record on the floor with a team score of 48.600. Penn had four finishers in the top 10 with three more personal bests for Penn sophomore Shannon Stafford, Nadler and Kaplan. In the following round, Penn tri-captain Kathleen Gunn placed second on the vault. Penn sophomore Molly Sullivan and Stafford also finished in the top 10. Gunn won the ECAC uneven parallel bars with a 9.675. Penn junior Shilpa Rao and freshman Lizzie Jacobson also placed in the top 10 on the way to breaking yet another record on the bars with a 46.750. "It was exciting to come back and do so well," said Gunn, who suffered a head injury at the Ivy Classic three weeks ago. "This was the first time since the Ivies, where I was injured." In addition to the bars title, Gunn finished fourth in the all-around competition, despite a fall on the beam. Her score of 37.875 was a personal best. In addition to Gunn, two other gymnasts, Sullivan and Jacobson, from Penn placed in the top 10. "Each event is new; I try not to think about the all-around score," Gunn said. "I'm still hoping to qualify for the NCAA Regionals." A key factor in the Quakers' strong performance was the home crowd in the Palestra and the use of familiar equipment, according to Kovic. Prior to this weekend, Penn had never had an ECAC champion and after the day had finished, the Quakers had a co-ECAC beam champion, an ECAC uneven parallel bars champion, an ECAC assistant coach, and a co-ECAC coach. In addition, the team had broken numerous school records on its way to the school's highest ECAC finish ever. "We finished very strong and breaking all those records was just a great way to end the season," Nadler said.