April 12, 2003
Senior gymnast Julia Gore placed sixth in the all-around competition at the NCAA Central Region Championship on Sat., April 12, at Coleman Coliseum in Birmingham, Ala. Gore scored 39.125 points, her fifth highest total of the season, and was the evening’s best unaffiliated gymnast.
Sarah Dame and Kara Reighard of Central Michigan both advanced to the NCAA National Championship with scores of 39.300 and 39.200, respectively. Alabama’s Kristin Sterner placed first in the all-around, while teammate Jeana Rice, the 2003 Central Region Gymnast of the Year, placed third. Auburn’s Courtney Puckett was second.
Alabama and Auburn finished one-two in the team competition. Auburn’s team total of 196.350 placed the Tigers in a tie with Central Michigan. According to NCAA rules, the tie was broken using the total of the low, previously dropped scores from each rotation. Oklahoma came in sixth, a mere 0.050 behind AU and CMU. Michigan State and Kent State rounded out the competition.
Gore began her evening on the uneven bars, scoring a solid 9.800. The Pflugerville, Texas, native then moved on to the balance beam, where she missed her career best by only 0.025, hitting a 9.850. On floor, Gore scored 9.700 despite stepping out of bounds once, an automatic one-tenth deduction. She concluded the evening with a 9.775 on the vault.
Gore was a mere 0.075 out of qualification for Nationals behind the Central Michigan duo. With the Chippewas ahead of Auburn by 0.250 heading into the final rotation, Gore was poised to join AU’s Courtney Puckett as the individual qualifiers. But the Tigers rallied on the floor exercise to tie CMU. Auburn easily won the tie-breaker, due to its fall-free evening. Central Michigan, on the other hand, counted falls on beam, floor and vault.
Gore’s completed senior season was her most prolific as a GymKat. She posted career best averages on vault, bars and floor, while also posting personal best scores on vault, bars and beam. Gore’s 39.400 against No. 13 Denver was Kentucky’s highest all-around mark since 1996.
