March 23, 2007

PITTSBURGH - The Pitt women's gymnastics team rounds out its regular season competition this week with the final leg of their four week road-stretch. The Panthers will compete against No. 10 Oklahoma (12-2, 3-0 Big 12) with a meet scheduled for Saturday at 7 p.m. The Panthers (8-9, 4-3 EAGL) scored a 192.925 in their last meet against NC State.

Standout freshman Dani Bryan (Germantown, Md./Northwest) remains a team leader on the vault. Last week, she scored a 9.800 and holds a regional-qualifying score (RQS) of 9.850 for second in the league and 46th in the nation. Another key vaulter for the team has been freshman Shannon McConnell (Allison Park, Pa./North Allegheny), who's impressive performance last week added to the Panthers 48.675 score on this event. McConnell has been really consistent in recent weeks, providing depth on the vault with an RQS of 9.715.

On the uneven bars, senior co-captain Andrea Arlotta (Cincinnati, Ohio/Northwest) leads the Panthers after her fifth event title last week. She is currently second in the league and 43rd in the NCAA with an RQS of 9.835.

Despite difficulty a few weeks ago on the balance beam, the Panthers will head to Oklahoma following a season-high score of 48.525 on this event last week. Sophomore Anya Chayka (Germantown, Md./Richard Montgomery) leads the Panthers, scoring her second career-high in as many weeks with a 9.825 against NC State. She's hit above a 9.700 in five meets this year.

The Panthers have three strong competitors on the floor exercise entering this weekend. Bryan continues to be a strong newcomer with powerful tumbling and original choreography. She has an RQS of 9.750 on this event. Arlotta is seventh in the league with an RQS of 9.810, having recorded two 9.900s this year while winning the event five times. In addition to these two gymnasts, McConnell has also remained consistent on the floor exercise, scoring above a 9.700 in her last six meets.

The meet is scheduled for 7 p.m. in the Howard McCasland Field House. Next week, the Panthers will begin their postseason competition with the EAGL Conference Championships at Maryland.