By Craig Degel
Arizona Daily Wildcat
For the Arizona gymnastics team, last Friday's phrase for the day was "personal best" Ä as in, 19 of them.
The Wildcats (193.925) tied or bettered 19 personal bests on its way to a four-team meet victory over 11th-ranked Brigham Young (191.275), Boise State (186.625), and the University of Denver (186.625). Arizona's total was the eighth-highest team score ever in meet competition.
With junior Karen Tierney out nursing a knee injury and scheduled for surgery March 16, leading the charge for the UA was redshirt freshman Tenli mid
Poggemeyer, who attained a personal best of 39.30 to win the all-around championship.
After the competition, Poggemeyer said she had been tired because of the Wildcats' travel schedule, but she and head coach Jim Gault knew the secret to her success.
"She's just doing the job, isn't she," Gault said. "She was a little tired in warmups, but then she had some apple juice."
Somebody should make it a point to find out what's in that apple juice.
Poggemeyer set a personal best of 9.825 to capture the individual vault title, while senior Nicole Garrett (9.825), juniors Jessica Marshall (9.825) and Michaela Grigg (9.75), and sophomore Cami Banholzer (9.5) all set personal bests for the vault.
Garrett set a personal best 9.775 on the beam, but Poggemeyer tied her personal bests of 9.825 to win the individual beam title Grigg also tied her personal beam best of 9.55.
Sophomore Becky Bowers won the individual bars title with a 9.875, with Poggemeyer and Boise State's Jolene Dahl tied for second place at 9.825.
The flood of personal bests continued in the floor excersise. Junior Darci Wambsgans set a personal best 9.875 to win the individual title. Poggemeyer placed third with a personal best 9.80, with Banholzer (9.725), Shane Allbritton (9.65) and Grigg (9.6) all acheiving new personal marks.
With so many personal bests being set, one had to wonder if Tierney was even missed.
Said Gault: "Tonight, if we had Karen and she was on we'd be in the 194's."