Gymnasts finish third at ECACs

While there were some new powerful teams at this year's ECAC Championships, there were also some very familiar ones.

The 2005 edition matched Penn against eight of the 15 opponents it faced during the course of the season.

The Quakers, the 2004 ECAC champions, took third place out of nine teams with their second highest team score of the season, a 191.975.

New additions to the ECAC gymnastics scene dominated the competition as Towson and Rhode Island finished first and second, respectively, in their first trip to the championships. Temple, which finished fifth, was also competing in its first ECACs.

The Quakers handed Rhode Island a loss early on in the season, but it seems The Rams had plenty of time to recuperate and step up their game.

However, coach Tom Kovic still felt that the Quakers had a "great meet," and that the conference's new additions brought a level of competitiveness that was unparalleled in recent years.

In the face of such tough competition, Kovic said that the Quakers maintained a positive attitude, which proved to be a successful strategy for the team.

"We performed very, very well," Kovic said. "The team was very supportive of each other. If we had a flaw, we just picked it up in the next performance. I'm very proud."

Stephanie Ortiz agreed that the team's success was propelled by optimism and positive energy.

"The spirit that the team had today, the excitement and joy that we had was incredible," she said.

Despite falling short of a repeat, many of the team's gymnasts earned high individual honors.

Junior Emily Petkun, currently ranked first in the NCAA Northeast regional all-around, placed second overall in the floor exercise, earning her first-team All-ECAC honors.

"I feel fantastic," she said. "Not only did I do well, but I had fun. We had fun. We didn't do our routines, we performed them. "

Petkun also earned second-team All-ECAC honors in two events -- uneven bars and beam.

But with such great talent comes great responsibility.

"I started up the meet," she said. "When your team puts you first, they are relying on you to deliver. I know the reason that my team put me in that first position is because I can do it. It's a positive pressure."

Ortiz, with a 9.800 on floor, earned second-team All-ECAC honors. Her amazing performance in the event was a special moment for Ortiz.

"I feel really, really good," she said. "I went out there and performed to the best of my ability and every thing just fell into place."

However, Ortiz admitted that the competition was a little difficult for her, as she was pitted against former teammates from her earlier years of gymnastics competition.

"It was weird," she said. "They used to be my teammates. I tried not to think about it too much and just concentrate on how [my team] was doing."

Kovic poignantly reflected on a decorated season for his Quakers.

"This will go down in my memory as one of my best seasons from a coaching standpoint," he said. "I had a team that never quit and always did their best."

Although the team will be graduating five very strong seniors this year, with Petkun and the outstanding freshman class returning, next season is likely to be as impressive as this one has been.

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