Wildcat gymnasts place 5th at NCAA Midwest Regional

That's what happened to the Arizona gymnastics team Saturday night at the 1997 Midwest Regionals in Salt Lake City.

Although the Wildcats finished fifth in the regional with a score of 193.875, the team does have a chance at sending two people to the NCAA Championships in the all-around competition April 17-19 in Gainesville, Fla.

Sophomores Kristin McDermott and Heidi Hornbeek, the defending co-national champion in the floor exercise, finished eighth (38.90) and ninth (38.80), respectively, in the all-around.

"Both Kristin and Heidi both had great meets," UA head coach Jim Gault said.

Under the NCAA format, the team and all-around winner from each region receive an automatic berth to the national championships, and the remaining seven teams and all-around competitors will qualify for at-large bids on the basis of the national rankings of their scores.

McDermott and Hornbeek have to wait to hear from the national committee to see if they qualify, and they should know soon, Gault said.

The uneven parallel bars were a source of strength for the team as McDermott finished with a 9.850 on her routine. Had senior Becky Bowers stuck her dismount on her routine, she would have had a chance to advance to the nationals in the bars.

"It is hard for Becky to go out without going to a championship, but she really has competed well all season," Gault said.

Utah won the team competition, followed by Arizona State, Nebraska, BYU, Arizona, Utah State and Denver. Angie Leonard of Utah won the all-around.