Everything is coming together for the Penn gymnastics team at just the right time. With the Ivy Classic Championship quickly approaching, their scores are finally falling into place. "Every meet we pull together and improve," Penn sophomore Christina Anzalone said. "We are in a very good situation" Penn is coming off of its best meet of the year, posting a 191.075 on Feb. 7 at Temple. Despite falling to the Owls, the Quakers were impressed with their high scores -- marks that were particularly remarkable because of the many injuries to key gymnasts. "Everyone hit last weekend and we didn't even have our ultimate lineup in," sophomore Laura Bouchelle said. Another good sign for the Quakers is the return of many of the injured athletes into the lineup this week. Sophomore Alexandra Chalat -- who sprained her ankle on Feb. 2 at Brown -- will return to the Quakers' lineup for limited action this weekend as Penn plays host to Cornell and Ursinus on Saturday. "She is one of our best," Bouchelle said. "Our floor lineup isn't as strong without her. She can get a huge score." Ursinus doesn't figure to be much of a challenge for Penn. The Quakers easily defeated the Bears 186.725-178.85 in their first meet of the season on Jan. 11. "I am pretty confident we will win," Anzalone said. "They are a lower division school and so they can't get the overall quality of a team like Penn." The Red and Blue will have to continue to perform at their top level to compete with Cornell this weekend.
The defending Ivy League champions, the Big Red are coming off a banner year. Last season, Cornell set more than 20 school records and had three All-Americans, individual Ivy and East Coast Athletic Conference champions. The Big Red also notched a sixth-place finish at the USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships. Cornell returns 12 letter winners from the team, including all three All-Americans. "They were really good last year," Bouchelle said. "But they are not scoring as well this year. We should be able to beat them." Cornell is led by senior co-captain Shannon Weiman, a 2001 All-American, who anchors the beam lineup. Weiman delivered a school-record 9.825 in that event last season. Sophomore All-American Meghan Miller, the 2002 East Coast Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year also leads the Big Red entourage. Last season she averaged a 9.6 on floor and beam, going through the entire season without a fall. Miller also won the Ivy League and ECAC individual titles and placed fourth at the USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championship. While Cornell boasts an impressive cast of gymnasts, Penn isn't phased. "We are really confident right now," Bouchelle said. "And a win this weekend would give us tons of momentum going into Ivies."
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