Penn gymnast Stephanie Ortiz saved her best for last this weekend.
At the ECAC Championships in Kingston, R.I., the sophomore turned the Quakers' season finale into her own grand finale, taking home third place in the all-around competition.
After going through much of the season hampered with injuries, Ortiz turned in her best performance of the season to post a score of 38.35 at the meet. The mark earned her First-Team honors and propelled the team to a third-place finish.
All in all, the Quakers turned in a score of 189.050, behind powerhouses Towson (191.275) and William & Mary (190.350).
The day may have belonged to the repeat-champion Tigers, but Penn's third-place mark also had special significance. The Quakers finished higher than any other Ivy school in the nine-team field, which included Yale and Cornell.
Both the Elis and the Big Red had beaten Penn in dual meets earlier this season. This time, both teams were thwarted in their bids for the top three as they tied for fourth place with a score of 188.8.
For that, Penn's Ivy foes can thank Ortiz. Not only did the Silver Spring, Md., native finish as the meet's third-best gymnast, but she also took home third-place honors on the balance beam with a score of 9.575.
"Stephanie Ortiz was brilliant," Penn coach Tom Kovic said. "She has been hampered with injuries all season, but at this meet she really stood out."
Penn faced a stiff challenge right at the beginning of the meet, with the balance beam as its first-rotation apparatus.
During the season, the Quakers had struggled on the balance beam with numerous falls and costly deductions. However, Penn was able to turn this around by taking first place on the event behind Ortiz's strong performance.
After competing in the floor exercise, the Quakers moved on to the vault. There, the team enjoyed strong performances by freshmen Jordan Brewer and Lauren Markowitz, who placed fourth and fifth, respectively. The two were honored with All-ECAC Second-Team selections.
On the whole, Kovic was happy with the performances turned in by his young gymnasts.
"They were a group of individuals that were brilliant in my mind," he said.
Penn and Towson entered the final event of the competition neck-and-neck. But the Tigers were headed for their strongest event: the floor exercise. There, the ECAC powerhouse was able to seal its victory.
Penn, on the other hand, had to contend with the uneven bars. The Quakers' performance there was less than spectacular, and it dropped them into third overall to close out the meet.
Senior Emily Petkun finished 10th in the all-around competition, highlighted by her eighth-place floor routine. On the bars, however, she struggled.
"She was very strong on three events but had some difficulty on the bars," Kovic said of the senior, who has led the Quakers all season long.
The day was also marked by a special honor for Petkun, who was recognized by the ECAC as the scholar-athlete of the year for gymnastics.
Kovic spoke of the great respect he has for Petkun and the other seniors on the team, who most likely performed in the last competition of their gymnastics careers.
"They're a tough group to replace, not only from just a scoring standpoint, but also from a leadership standpoint," Kovic said. "I think this senior class leaves a great legacy; ... they struggled with ups and downs but they were able to persevere.
"They never quit," he added.
But despite seven seniors departing at the end of the season, Kovic is optimistic about the future of Penn gymnastics. He points to a strong returning core of current freshmen, sophomores and juniors.
For now, the season might not be over just yet. The Quakers will be waiting to see which gymnasts qualify for the NCAA Regional Championships on April 15 at Ann Arbor, Mich.
"They were a group of individuals that were brilliant in my mind."
"She was very strong on three events but had some difficulty on the bars."
