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Show DAILY THE CHRONICLE UTAH 1 4 11 f ?'V Gymnasts Face BU In Final Home Meet ERIC WALDEN Chronicle Sports Editor The Huntsman Center is always a raucous, seething den of energy when the U gymnastics team is competing there. In the Utcs' five meets at JMHC thus far this year, they've averaged 9,048 in attendance and picked up five victories, running their consecutive home dual meet win total to 169 now. However, U coach Greg Marsdcn is convinced that the arena will be crazier still at the team's season finale this Saturday, and with good reason. "The last home meet of the year is always emotional because it's Senior Night, and it's the last time they'll be competing in the Huntsman Center," Marsdcn said. "And we're facing BYU, which is always a good meet. It usually comes down to the last rotation." Needless to say, Utah will have no shortage of motivation for trying to resolve the nagging inconsistencies that have plagued the team throughout its last several meets and as it progresses toward Rcgionals and NCAAs. First off, the team and the Huntsman Center crowd will honor seniors Shannon Bowles, Deidra Graham and Lindsay Tanner, who will be making their final appearances at the Huntsman Center. Marsdcn said it will be difficult to imagine the team without them. "They're each very unique people, but they're all the kind you don't Football Starts Spring Session On Next Friday replace," he said. Graham, who will be returning to after five weeks of just the bars competition (due to a back injury), said it would be a memorable 1- ..A season is just one week away. On March 29, the Utes will, officially begin their Spring at session the practice in Field Practice McCartney for the season. 2002 preparation Utah is coming off a successful 'ot campaign that saw it conclude an 4 year with a Las Vegas Bowl victory over traditional powerhour-- USC. The Utes have put all that behind thern, though, and coach Ren McBride is looking forward to getting practices going, "I'm always excited for Spring ball," he said. "This is my 41st or 42nd Spring of football practice, and I'm as excited about this team as I have been about night. "I just want to soak up every bit I can," Graham said. "It will be special to just get out there and do everything I can to contribute. I just want to be with and help my teammates." One other senior on the team, Kylcc Wagner, won't be participating in the festivities, as she is applying for (and is expected to get) a medical hardship and extra year of eligibility from the NCAA, after spraining her and missankle in the season-opening every meet thereafter. "That's looking very good, though we can't say it's for certain," Marsden said. "But she meets all the criteria the injury.happencd in the first 20 percent of the season, and she hasn't competed since. I think the application process is just a formality." Next, the Utcs will ramp up furrival ther still because it is BYU they'll face. Though it doesn't appear to be much of a rivalry, with Utah leading 8-- e er any." The Utcs have been busy already, though. After returning in-sta- te the V J the Utes scries 67-know that is misleading, especially given that the Cougs have come closer than anyone in the last 15 years to beating Utah at home, losing by just 0.5 points in 2000. Last year, Utah needed a school record all-ti- Hoping that being swept last weekend by New Mexico was just a fluke, the U baseball team will try to turn things around quickly against UNLV. "It is important to bounce back this weekend, but we arc not going to panic," said U coach Tim Esmay. "Our team played well up until last week, and now we just have to hope it was one of those weekends." The Utcs have amassed a record of with most of those games on the road, except for two against Southern Utah. UNLV comes into the game with a record of and, like the Utcs, was conference-opening scries, swept in its against BYU. "They are in the same boat as us, and one team is going to come out of this series feeling pretty good and the other team will be wondering what to do," Esmay said. 12-1- 1, 10-1- 3, SWIMMING A cd to keep the Cougars at bay. Though Utah won the teams' see gymnastics, page 7 z...J Senior Deidra Graham returns to the 322-2- 3 Utah's starting pitching did not perform up to par last weekend, as the U's hurlers were shelled in every single game they played. "Hopefully the pitching performance last week was a fluke for our starting pitchers," Esmay said. It must get better, or else the same type of scries the Utcs had last week will happen again in Las Vegas, as the starting rotation may be the exact same rotation that was put in last week. "Jason Wylic and Cheyenne Rush-to- n will play the first two games, but it all depends if Mitch Maio plays in the first two games in relief," Esmay said. If Maio docs pitch in any of the first two games, then he will not start the third game. Despite those three straight losses, there was one thing that was encouraging to Esmay. "Our team is really starting to swing it well, and we had five or six guys who hit the ball really well," Esmay said. akudiya chronicle. Utah, edu vs Utah SDSU (7-- 7) (6-6- 322 at 9 a.m. All Day Minneapolis, Minn. all - around on In the meantime, the coaches will try to prepare the athletes for a toucher schedule (cne that now includes Michigan) and further improve an offense that jumped from 80th to 24th in the nation ever the last year. "It's up to us to develop some younger, newer players and take the team another level," McBride said The Spring session concludes on April 37. ERIC WALDEN ... Saturday. Tennis WOMEN'S TENNIS at Utah Phillips 66 Nationals .... 2, I5th-rank- 197.925 to school following the. semester break, the players received nine dsys off during the Olympics to compensate for a missing Spring Break, but otherwise have been doing lifting, strength training and conditioning. McEride said some additional running would go on next week leading up to V Baseball ASAD KUDIYA Chronicle Sports Writer Though the first game on the schedule doesn't occur for another five months, the beginning of the U football team's -: ) PT Las Vegas, Nev. CHRONICLE SPORTS EDITOR ASAD KUDIYA Chronicle Sports Writer Playing nationally ranked teams has been nothing out of the ordinary for the U women's tennis team. However, playing The Aztecs have been playing extremely well over the past few weeks, as they have upset No. 18 Notre Dame and also defeated No. 41 Kansas State. The Aztecs are currently sporting the Mountain West Conference Women's Tennis Player of the Week, No. 39 San Diego State. consistently well against them has been the problem. Last weekend, the Utes played a very good TCU team, and were in Silvia Tornier. crushed The Utes will be playing two conference opponents this weekend in Las Vegas, and both of the teams are nationally ranked. "We are confident about this week's matches," said coach John Tsumas. "We have been playing many nationally ranked teams and I think we have learned a lot from our The second team the Utes will play will be the No. 17 UNLV Rebels, who will be an even tougher draw than the Aztecs. UNLV climbed 10 spots over the past week after defeating No. 30 Indiana and Penn. The Rebels have only lost two matches overall this season. Those losses came against two top-- 5 teams, No. 2 Wake Forest and loses." No. Utah may have learned a lot from its losses, but still may be overmatched when it plays two teams who are on a tear. The first contest will be against These two matches will be very tough for the Utes to compete in, as they have not yet done well against teams ranked among the top 50. akudiyachronicle. utah.edu D'Shaun Crockett and the Utes begin practice In a week. BASEBALL WOMEN'S TENNIS GYMNASTICS 7-- 0. at Utah UNLV (12-1- 1) (10-1- 3) Las Vegas, Nev. tr fc At Stanford. at Utah UNLV VV 1 (7-- 7) vs (10-2- ) 323 at 9 a.m. 322-2- 4 ERIC "WALLY" WALDEN 5 4 PT Nev. Las Vegas, EWALDENCHRONICLE.UTAH.EDU BYU Utah 323 at 7 (10-3(8-2- ) ) p.m. Huntsman Center 581-704- 1 |