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Show CS S" n! MONDAY 1 IV J O 31 Red Rocks blast Aggies with record performance Utes score of 198.05 is the second highest in school history Matthew Ouellette Chronicle Sports Writer The U gymnastics team strolled into the Huntsman center Friday night needing a strong performance against Utah State to secure their place among the top national contenders this season. By the end of the night, the word strong was an entirely insufficient description of their performance. Astonishing was a much more suitable word. Not only did the Utes turn in the second best score in school history (198.05), but senior Melissa Vituj also turned in score the third best in school history (39.875). The result was a resounding victory and an elated Vituj. "Tonight felt sensational, I don't know of a much better word than that," Vituj said. Her performance was sensational enough that on four different occasions, a judge awarded her a 10.0. Since the final score is the average of two judge scores, Vituj had to settle for one perfect 10 and two 9.975s. Her 10 came on the balance beam and it was well deserved. After seeing two of her teammates slightly falter, Vituj knew she had to put up big numbers to preserve a is Vituj's fellow senior Vero-niqu- e Leclerc. She competed in three events on Friday, and high team score. She nailed every aspect of her new routine and got the highest possible score, much to the delight of the Huntsman Center crowd, which erupted when the score earned her first career 10.0 on the floor exercise. "Veronique looked as good as I've ever seen her look for us," Marsden said. Although she did have a few minor stumbles, her routines were precise throughout the night, a fact she attributes to her lighthearted approach. "I was having a blast, especially on floor," Leclerc said. "I love doing this routine. I didn't really expect a 10.0, but I was happy to see it." Marsden was happy to see it as well, and wished he could have seen more from Veronique, but for a fault of his was displayed. "It was great to be home," Vituj said. "I love competing at home because the crowd really gets me going." The crowd was probably a factor on her bars routine, which she normally struggles with, because she received a 9.975 after sticking her highly difficult triple twisting fly away dismount. As soon as she hit the planted both feet firmly to the ground, the crowd went nuts and Vituj 's smile could be seen from the rafters. However, that same brilliant smile has not been there through the entire season. Earlier this year Vituj struggled, falling in one event in four of the first six meets, but the last two meets have prompted most people to say that Vituj own. "I really have to give Veronique a lot of credit," Marsden said. "If I would have been wise enough to put her in the she would have had one heck of a score." The Aggies of Utah State didn't fair quite as well as the Utes, but they did have some inspired performances from freshman Alex Martin. In the middle of her balance beam routine, Vituj's 10.0 was raised and the crowd released a deaf- - is back. "WelL Mel never left," Vituj said. "I had a few speedbumps earlier in the season, but I think we've ironed out those wrinkles." Another Ute who seems to have ironed out her wrinkles SEE REDROCKS PAGE 8 Utes and Cougars ready to rumble 4 1 itMimgsrMmr Senior Melissa Vituj's score of 39.875 was not only her career best, but also the third highest score in school history. Utes win 27th straight at home Asad Kudlya Sports Editor Tye Smith Utah. "It's a really tough place to play, but we just have to focus on the court and execute," U senior Nick Jacobson said. The crowd noise is absolutely intense and the Utes haven't been very impressive on the road this year. Utah has only won two conference road games this season, which is the main reason the Utes are in second place. While the Utes have struggled on the road, the Cougars are playing very well, having won their last six games. Even though the Cougars 5, 11-- 1) 73-6- 1 V- st If they win one of their next two games, then Air Force will win the conference title outright. "We are just focused on winning games and we are in a bad position right now, but all we can do is win," U center Tim Frost said. Now, the Utes have to focus on matching up against the hottest team in the conference in one of the toughest places to play in the country. "They are playing well right now, and this is the best I have seen them play all season," Frost said. "They are almost unbeatable at home." BYU is undefeated at home this season, and the last time they lost at the Marriott Center was last year against The U women's basketball team recorded its 27th consecutive home victory last Saturday with a 2 win in the Huntsman Center against rival BYU The final score was not, however, indicative of the kind of battle it took to secure the victory. The Utes got off to a slow start, allowing the Cougars to dictate the pace of play for most of the first half. In what has recently become a disturbing trend, the U has made a habit of letting inferior teams get out to a hot start in the first half, often requiring the Utes to dig their way out of a hole in the second half. The same was true Saturday, as the Utes found themselves down by five with 6:42 left in the first. A 4 Utah run put the Utes up by one at the half. In the second half, the Utes found their groove, slowly building upon the halftime lead until they had established a lead with 35 seconds remaining in the game. "We didn't play exceptionally well, but we made the big plays when we had to," said sophomore Shona Thorburn, whose 18 points, four rebounds and four assists provided an important stimulus for the Utes. "It's just a matter of staying with it and letting the game come to us, instead of forcing too much," Thorburn continued. "I think we had good momentum and we knew that if we just kept chipping away, we would eventually win." (21-- (14-1- - i 5 i l f ' 2, ). had some serious defensive breakdowns, but even so, our kids just kept gutting it out, and I'm real proud of them." "BYU is a great team, and we're lucky to get the win," SEE Women's PAGE Elliott added. ???? 10-- 1 , j The key for the U was the dominant interior play of senior Mandie Little. She scored 22 points, a career high, while grabbing five offensive rebounds. "I think it was just time for me to step up," Little said after the game. well-playe- Sports Writer Neither the U men's basketball team nor BYU can control their own destiny in the race for the MWC regular-seaso- n title, but in tonight's matchup between the two schools, either team has a chance to solidify itself as the second-beteam in the conference. Since conference leader Air Force narrowly escaped with a 72 70 win over New Mexico on Saturday, the Falcons have clinched at least a share of the title. d BYU for a game. "I think it took a lot of guts to win this one," Elliott said. "It wasn't always pretty. We ! ; 0 f 1 Senior Nick Jacobson scored 21 points in the Utes victory over BYU earlier in the season. got off to a slow start in con- ference play, center Rafael Araujo and guard Mark Big- elow have put the team on their backs and carried them to second place. Araujo is leading the team, 64-5- 6 comeback 18.4 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. "We have to make sure we get a lot of pressure on him and make sure he is uncom- - averaging SEE Men's PACE 6 Having survived - ... - I ! ' ' f ... - I ; ' fi 0 ; L. T" 1 ' 1 I several runs by the Cougars, even during the second half, Utah head coach Elaine Elliott called her team's performance "gutty" while giving credit to 4 Junior Mandie Little scored a career high 22 points and grabbed 5 rebounds in the win over the Cougars. |