Gymnastics seniors bid Hutch farewell

The Penn gymnastics team should have little trouble with three Division III opponents tonight at Hutchinson Gym. It has been well over three years since gymnastics senior co-captains Molly Sullivan and Shannon Stafford first stepped onto a mat in Hutchinson Gymnasium. Both Quakers are experiencing a wide range of emotions as they prepare to compete there for the last time tonight. The Quakers host West Chester, Ursinus and Wilson in a meet that starts at 6 p.m. All three schools have greatly improved their programs in the last few years, but Penn is still expected to triumph. "We are expecting to go in and not take this competition lightly," Penn coach Tom Kovic said. "Our goal is to win and get our best team score to date. We want our routines back to upwards of a 90 percent hit ratio." The Quakers (2-1) placed first in last year's meet with a score of 186.925. Behind the Red and Blue were West Chester at 176.175, Ursinus at 172.950 and Wilson at 127.975. In the current Region 5 rankings, Penn is eighth with an average score of 184.375. West Chester is 17th with a 174.965 and Ursinus is 18th at 170.506. However, Ursinus beat West Chester 178.100 to 177.125 one week ago -- a sign that both schools have improved as the year has progressed and may be capable of competing with the Quakers. Wilson, which has only had a program for a few years, is still far behind the other teams. The Quakers will welcome the returns of junior Kirby Thorpe and freshman Sarah Tudryn to the bars, as well as Stafford's return to the floor exercise. Tudryn's recovery from a severely sprained ankle is a very pleasant surprise for Penn. "We thought Sarah might have been out for the year," Kovic said. "She's made a remarkable comeback." This meet, however, will belong to Sullivan and Stafford. While Penn will be hosting the Ivy Classic later this month, it will take place in the Palestra and not Hutchinson Gymnasium, the Quakers' normal meet site. Thus, today's meet will be the last time that the seniors will really feel at home. Concurrently, Sullivan and Stafford will be honored after the competition. "I'm really sad that this will be the last time that we compete in Hutch after four years, but it's exciting at the same time," Sullivan said. "It's starting to hit me now." Sullivan has competed in the all-around competition all four years she has been at Penn. She was Ivy Classic Champion her freshman year with a 37.200 and narrowly missed qualifying for the NCAA Regional Championships the last two years. Stafford, Penn's specialist on the vault and floor, will be competing for the first time all season today. According to Kovic, the ACL injury she suffered last year would have signalled the end of many gymnasts' careers but Stafford has been able to persevere and eventually come back. "I'm really excited about the meet, especially to be competing at home," Stafford said. "We're definitely expecting a win and think this is a good chance to improve our regional score." Penn is now entering the second half of the season and is less than two weeks away from the Ivy Classic and another crack at Brown, which upset the Quakers February 7. Today's meet against three Division III schools should be a good opportunity for Penn to relax before the tougher competition. For Sullivan and Stafford, competing for the last time at home, the meet will mean so much more.