Season Opens with Dual Meet at Southern Utah (Jan. 7, 9 p.m.)

CEDAR CITY, Utah - The 2019 University of New Hampshire gymnastics season kicks into gear with a season-opening Monday night (9 p.m. ET) dual meet against Southern Utah University at America First Event Center. The Wildcats and Thunderbirds each competed at the NCAA Regional Championships in 2018, with UNH earning a No. 31 year-end national ranking while Southern Utah closed the season ranked 35^th.

January 7, 2019 • 9 p.m. ET
UNH at Southern Utah
America First Event Center • Cedar City, Utah
Live Video • Live Stats

NEXT HOME MEET • GET TICKETS HERE
•The Wildcats test themselves in their home opener with a Fitness Day/Family Day showdown against No. 23 Iowa of the Big Ten Conference at Lundholm Gym on Sunday, Jan. 13, at 1 p.m. •A special $19 family four-pack ticket special highlights the Family Day festivities. Simply use the promo code FAMFOUR when purchasing tickets HERE.
•As part of Fitness Day, kids in attendance are invited to participate in the season-long jump rope challenge with the chance to qualify for free tickets to a future meet.
•Season tickets, group tickets and single-meet tickets are available HERE or by calling 603-862-4000.

WATCH FOR FREE ON MONDAY NIGHT
•Monday night's UNH/SUU meet will be broadcast live on Pluto.TV, a free streaming service available on the internet and many streaming apps, including Apple TV, Roku and Android TV.

TENTATIVE LINEUP
Vault
Danielle Doolin (Medford Lakes, N.J.)
Courtney Bondanza (Buffalo, N.Y.)
Erin Carroll (Kingston, N.H.)
Danielle Mulligan (Farmingdale, N.Y.)
Nicole O'Leary (Newtown, Conn.)
Lauren Diggan (Sinking Spring, Pa.)
First Alternate: Mariella Miele (Basking Ridge, N.J.)

Uneven Bars
Clare Hampford (Trumbull, Conn.)
Ava Watkins (Cherry Hill, N.J.)
Riley Freehling (Southington, Conn.)
Diggan
Hailey Lui (Collegeville, Pa.)
Mulligan
First Alternate: Doolin

Balance Beam
Doolin
Hannah Baddick (Gettysburg, Pa.)
Emma Winer (Georgetown, Mass.)
Bondanza
Freehling
Mulligan
First Alternate: Hampford

Floor Exercise
Freehling
O'Leary
Doolin
Winer
Mulligan
Diggan
First Alternate: Watkins

SEASON OVERVIEW

Vault
The Wildcats feature four Yurchenko fulls -Doolin, Bondanza, Mulligan and Diggan- that come with a 9.950 start value. Carroll performs a front pike half with a 10.0 start value, and O'Leary has a front handspring, front pike vault with a 9.900 start value. Though O'Leary's vault has the lowest start value among the starting six, 40^th-year head coach Gail Goodspeed says it's amazing.

"She performs it better than anyone in the country and has scored a 9.900 on it when she hits."

Freehling and Miele are the leading vault alternates.

"We have more depth on vaulting than we've had in the past," Goodspeed said. "When I compare to Southern Utah and some of the top teams in the country, vaulting is probably our weakest event."

"Working on amplitude and focusing on being clean in sticking our landings is going to be key through the season," said third-year associate head coach Lindsey Bruck Ayotte.

Bars
"Particularly the top four -Freehling, Lui, Diggan and Mulligan- are top-notch routines; it's the execution, knowing they can hit and stick dismounts," Goodspeed said. "I think we are as good as we were on bars last year, if not better in terms of consistency. Clare Hampford has taken a big step up in terms of changing her bar routine around and has been hitting it pretty well in practice."

"We don't have extreme depth on bars, but our routines have the potential to be really good," Bruck Ayotte said. "Now that we've gotten the routines together, we just need to focus on hitting those handstands, keeping nice, tight, clean form and sticking the dismounts."

"I would say our routines are a little more unique because we are not cookie-cutter, we swing well and it's fun to watch," Goodspeed said. "Mulligan performs a cool, eagle-grip position into a Pike Jaeger to shoot over the low bar and finishes with a half in, half out. It's one of the best bar routines in the country; she has the potential to score a 10.0."

Doolin is the first alternate on bars. Lui, who rolled an ankle during practice in early December, is likely to be a three-event gymnast once she returns to full health. Goodspeed said to expect the freshman to only be in the bar lineup for the season opener with the potential of a beam routine.

Beam
Balance beam should be UNH's top event in 2019.

"It is probably the hardest event to make a lineup for because we've got the depth," Bruck Ayotte said. "It's going to be all about hitting those clean sets and being consistent."

Goodspeed is excited about two freshmen, Baddick and Lui, who are ready to jump right into the beam lineup.

"Hannah has that elite look. She does the high-level skills, but she also performs at a high level.

"Hailey has one of the beam routines to watch. She has gorgeous lines and does every possible skill in the book. Her length and flexibility are beautiful to watch."

Lui is expected back in the beam lineup for Sunday's home opener against Iowa.

"It will be nice to see what Emma Winer does this year, her first time in the beam lineup," Bruck Ayotte said.

"And Mulligan's awesome on beam too," Goodspeed added. "She does the double turn --four-inch beam, four feet off the floor-- turning twice. She does it beautifully, and she has great execution."

A point of emphasis for beam judges this season is to deduct points for gymnasts pausing to concentrate mid-routine prior to performing a big skill, something Goodspeed says her Wildcats must be cognizant of to avoid lower scores.

Floor
"On floor, we have the skill level that top programs have across the country," Goodspeed said. "Being able to hit it consistently and solidly is where we struggled last year at the beginning of the season before we picked it up toward the end of the year.

"I think we're a little bit in the same boat. Aches and pains have stopped people from training as hard as they possibly should, and we've had to back people off. I think we look good on floor, but I think we'll look a lot better a month down the road."

At home meets, where the 'Cats finish on floor, Doolin is the anchor (No. 6). However, with UNH competing floor before beam at Southern Utah on Monday, the senior is moving to the No. 3 spot in the order to maximize recovery time between events.

"I'm really excited for floor this year because I think our music choices are more fun and exciting and should be more of a crowd pleaser," Bruck Ayotte said. "And I think the gymnasts are performing better as well. As Gail said, I think a month from now we'll be even better, but we are at a good starting point."

Lui is expected to join the floor lineup once healthy, and Watkins is ready to contribute.

"I think we have depth on floor and making the lineup is going to be the same kind of issue as beam," Goodspeed said. "It's going to be 'what are you doing in practice' to step up."

All-Around
"We are really excited to get Danielle Mulligan in the all-around this year," Goodspeed said. "Mully's been on the 'add-an-event-a-year' plan, starting with bars as a freshman, adding beam as a sophomore, floor last year and now vault."

"Riley Freehling is the other person I think has taken a big step up this year," Goodspeed said. "She could potentially be in the all-around, but right now she's doing three events."

Coach Goodspeed's Overview
"We lost five seniors from last year's team. They were primarily one-event gymnasts, but they were all good on that one event. Now I think the upperclassmen who didn't have the opportunity to compete last year and will have that opportunity this season have stepped up."

"Hailey Lui and Hannah Baddick are stepping into the lineup, and Mariella Miele and Ally Cucich are working to join as well. Hannah Roderick, who is currently sidelined with an ankle injury, has a vault that could potentially earn her a place in the lineup."

"We lost five, we gained five. As far as routines, I think we picked up more. In terms of quality at the top level, it's the returners -and Hailey- who will fill those roles."

2019 EAGL CHAMPIONSHIP TICKETS ON SALE NOW
•Tickets are on sale now for the 2019 EAGL Championship, presented by The Mall at Fox Run, slated for Saturday, March 23 (2 p.m.) at the Whittemore Center. The Wildcats will take on league rivals George Washington, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh and Towson in their quest to win their third EAGL championship and first since capturing the title in front of their fans at the Whitt in 2014. CLICK HERE for more information.

NEW NCAA REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP FORMAT
•The NCAA has introduced a new format for the 36-team NCAA Regional Championships this season. While the top 36 teams will once again qualify, the traditional six predetermined regional sites of six teams each will be replaced by four predetermined regional sites with nine teams and approximately three all-around competitors from non-qualifying teams. At each regional, the first round (April 4) will consist of two teams in a dual meet with the winning team advancing to the second round (April 5), where eight teams compete. The regional final (April 6) will see the top four remaining teams competing, with the top two teams, the top all-around competitors and the top event specialist on each event (who are not on an advancing team) receiving an automatic berth to the NCAA Women's Gymnastics National Championships (April 19-20) at the Forth Worth Convention Center in Forth Worth, Texas.

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