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Show Dutiful Gymnastics Lcc:un3 TonsFd 1 979 By DAVE WIGHAM BOUNTIFUL When you compete in a sport where the top six scores count toward determining the outcome of the meet, then you better have the depth necessary or you'll find yourself on the short end of the score more times than not. Such is the case with the Bountiful High girls gymnastic gymnas-tic team. The Braves just don't have six girls in every event, and as a result they usually end up on the losing end of the score. THEY HAVE some good performers, in fact according to their coach, if they only took the top three scores instead in-stead of six then the Bountiful team would win a lot of meets they lose. Another drawback to the Bountiful program is that they are now under the leadership of their third coach in as many years. Each coach is different and coaches different techniques and methods, getting used to one has been out of the question for the Braves. JOYCE Lumpkin is this year's coach for the Bountiful school and she has started to get things turned around for the Braves. This is actually her first gymnastics team. She helped with a private club in California last year as a dance specialist, and her enthusiasm has spread to the team. The Braves have a lot Of sophomores on the team and they are learning a lot this year and are already excited for next year. Joyce moved to Utah from Long Beach with her husband who is an assistant assis-tant football coach at the University of Utah. BOUNTIFUL has four girls who compete on the Class II level with only two of them going for the all-around. Sophomore Jane Anderson has been strong in the floor, beam and vaulting events and with some work this year on her bars she could be a tough competitor next year in the all-around. Junior Bev Ossmen is the Braves best all-around this year with her strength coming com-ing in the balance beam event. Another junior, Kristin Murray, competes in everything but the uneven bars, she doesn't have any optionals in that event. JUNIOR Pam Bailey is the other Bountiful all-around competitor with her strength coming from the bar competition. compe-tition. Linda Bishop, a sophomore, leads the crowd in the Class HI division for the Braves. Linda is strong in everything and competes in the all-around all-around event. Coach Lumpkin noted that Linda always places in the meets. "In fact one meet had they combined everyone's score in the all-around, all-around, including the Class II Linda would have placed third." JUNIOR Laurie Capps also goes in the all-around event, which means she enters all four events, with her strongest stron-gest event being the balance beam. Sophomore Sue Livin-good Livin-good has come on strong to win a couple of meets in the vaulting competition. Another junior, Terresa Gates, has had a good year in the all-around finishing in the top four each meet in her class. A couple of other gymnasts gym-nasts are good on the uneven bars, Jaenelle Peterson and Cindy Synder, need a little more work on their vaulting and they will enter the all-around. all-around. MRS. Lumpkin noted that two things will make her job easier next year. "First of all we will have floor plates installed in-stalled so we can host home meets. Secondly we will be offering a gymnastics class in school PE which will help." Bountiful is a year away, they are working hard and always learning from their meets. This year they just don't have the depth needed to win the region, but with a coach as enthusiastic as their's it's just a matter of time before they will. |