Beavers Slated for Five-Team Meet at Lindenwood

THE MEET
In second meet of the season No. 12 Oregon State (0-1) goes on the road to the Central Time Zone to visit Lindenwood (0-1). The Beavers will also face Bridgeport (0-0), Illinois State (1-1) and Wisconsin-Eau Claire (1-2). The meet will stream at flogymnastics.com.

BEAVER BITES
Oregon State's schedule features nine opponents ranked in the top 36 of the preseason coaches poll. ... the Beavers will seek to win their third straight road opener. In 2015, OSU finished first in a tri-meet at Iowa State and did the same in a three-team meet at Ohio State in 2014. OSU is 25-17 in its first meet away from home under head coach Tanya Chaplin ... the Beavers are likely to use only one all-arounder this week with junior Madeline Gardiner in all four lineups ... OSU coaches are hopeful to have Kaytianna McMillan back in the uneven bars lineup this week at Lindenwood. McMillan continues her recovery from a late season knee injury last year. She performed on the balance beam in the season opener against Auburn scoring 9.775.

VS. LINDENWOOD
Friday's meet marks the second meeting between the schools. The Lions traveled to Corvallis in 2015 for a quad meet on senior night with the Beavers coming out triumphan 197.075-194.125. Lindenwood is led by former Oregon State All-American Jen Kesler, who is in her third season as head coach and fourth season on the coaching staff.

VS. BRIDGEPORT & UW-EAU CLAIRE
Friday will mark the first-ever meeting for Oregon State with both Bridgeport and Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

VS. ILLNOIS STATE
The Beavers are 1-0 all-time against Illinois State having faced the Redbirds in the 1997 season opener in Corvallis. It was a 192.850-184.900 victory for OSU.

OREGON STATE QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about the Oregon State gymnastics team early in the 2016 season:

After week 1, Oregon State remains ranked No. 12, the same ranking the Beavers finished the 2015 season and were picked in the preseason coaches poll. See page 3 for the preseason top 25 and complete rankings.
OSU ranks tied for No. 5 in the nation on the vault (49.125), No. 21 on bars (48.900), No. 16 on beam (48.750) and tied for No. 27 on the floor (48.650).
The Beavers return 10 contributors in 2016 including 15 out of 24 routines from NCAA Championships in 2015. But it is more complicated than that. Senior Erika Aufiero, who would likely have been an all-arounder in 2016 and performed on the two events in 2015, will miss the season due to injury.
OSU coaches need to replace three routines each on vault and barsm two on floor and one on beam.
Among the returners is Madeline Gardiner, who has qualified to Individual Event Finals each of the last two years finishing third on the balance beam both times.
In addition, Kaytianna McMillan, who qualified to NCAA Championships on the balance beam in 2014, is back for the Beavers after suffering a knee injury at the NCAA Norman Regional in 2015. McMillan competed on the beam last week and hopes to be added to the bars lineup this week and will continue to work toward returning on other events as the season progresses.
The 2016 roster includes four freshmen: Mary Jacobsen, Mariana Colussi-Pelaez, McKenna Singley and Elizabeth Yu. Colussi-Pelaez is the younger sister of Silvia Colussi-Pelaez, who transferred to Oregon State last year.
Three former transfers that joined the program for the 2015 season are back back for another go-round. Seniors Risa Perez and Jamie Radermacher and junior Silvia Colussi-Pelaez are expected to combine to fill at least five routines this season.
Nine of OSU's 2016 opponents were ranked in the preseason top 36: No. 4 Utah, No. 5 LSU, No. 6 UCLA, No. 8 Stanford, No. 10 Auburn, No. 14 California, No. 30 Washington, No. 33 New Hampshire and No. 36 Arizona State.

LAST TIME IN COMPETITION
The Beavers opened the 2016 campaign with a Top 12 showdown with then-No. 10 Auburn at home in Gill Coliseum. OSU scored 195.475 and despite three missed routines did not have to count a fall. Madeline Gardiner scored 39.225 to win the all-around and was second on the beam with a score of 9.850. Dani Dessaints was Oregon State's top scorer on her two events posting career-bests on both vault (9.900) and bars (9.850) securing second-place finishes. Senior Jamie Radermacher recorded the first event title of her career posting a career-best 9.875 on the floor to tie for the top score in the meet.

LOOKING BACK AT 2015

Oregon State finished the 2015 season ranked No. 12 in the nation.
All four of OSU's lineups were ranked among the top 25 in the nation. Vault ranked No. 13 (49.285 RQS); uneven bars ranked No. 14 (49.215); balance beam ranked No. 12 (49.145); and floor exercise was No. 7 (49.360).
OSU's floor team posted a 49.675 mark in a quad meet against San Jose State, Lindenwood and Seattle Pacific (Mar. 14), the second-highest floor score the Beavers have ever tallied.
Oregon State's upperclassmen performaned the majority of the routines in 2015 with the juniors and seniors accounting for 56% of the routines.
OSU 'hit' 95% (297 out of 314) of its routines in 2015.
Erika Aufiero (bars), Madeline Gardiner (beam) and Chelsea Tang (beam and all-around) each earned All-America honors. Aufiero and Gardiner qualified to Individual Event Finals where Gardiner finished third on the beam.
Kaytianna McMillan scored a 9.90 on the vault for the first time in her career at Pac-12 Championships. With that mark she became the ninth gymnast in Oregon State history to record a 9.90 on all four apparatuses in her career.
The Beavers welcomed three rather unexpected transfers to the squad in the fall of 2014 with the arrival of Silvia Colussi-Pelaez (Florida), Risa Perez (Arizona State) and Jamie Radermacher (Eastern Michigan). The trio combined to 'hit' 44 out of 45 routines in 2015.

TANYA CHAPLIN QUICK HITTERS

Tanya Chaplin holds the Oregon State record for wins during the regular season as well as overall. She set the record at the 2014 home opener with a 196.425-194.850 victory over Iowa State. Now in her 19th season Chaplin has 350 career wins including 281 victories during the regular season.
Chaplin has led the Beavers to conference titles in two of the last five years, winning the 2011 Pac-10 title and the 2013 Pac-12 Championships.
She has directed OSU to the NCAA Championships 11 times in her 18 seasons at the helm.

MADELINE GARDINER QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about Madeline Gardiner, a junior from Cambridge, Ontario:

Qualified to NCAA Championships as an individual all-arounder in 2014.
Earned All-America First Team honors on the balance beam and in the all-around in 2014 ... finished tied for third in the Individual Event Finals in 2014 - the best beam finish for an OSU gymnast since Joy Selig was first in 1990.
Became a three-time All-American in 2015 earning first team honors on beam ... again finished third at Event Finals.
Two-time Pac-12 All-Conference selection - 2015 All-Around first team & 2014 Balance Beam second team
Has won 15 event titles in her two-plus seasons; 1 in 2016 (1 AA); 10 in 2015 (3 AA, 2 V, 3 BB & 2 FX); and four in 2014 (3 BB & 1 FX).
Has 'hit' all 89 out of 91 routines in her career.
Madeline was named the Pac-12 Specialist of the Week for the week of Feb. 10-16, 2014 after she posted career-bests of 9.95 on floor and 9.875 on beam to win the first event titles of her career ... named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for the week of Mar. 3-9, 2014 after she won the beam title (9.925) and scored 39.400 in her first all-around performance.
Received Pac-12 Gymnast of the Week for the week of March 9-15, 2015 after winning the all-around tying her career-high with a 39.400. She added an event title on the beam.
Canadian National Team's alternate for the 2012 Olympics in London.
Majoring in exercise and sport science with an option in therapy and allied health.

KAYTIANNA MCMILLAN QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about Kaytianna McMillan, a junior from Coburg, Oregon:

One of just nine gymnasts in Oregon State history to record a score of 9.90 or better on each apparatus in her career.
Suffered a season-ending knee injury on the final routine (vault) at the 2015 NCAA Norman Regional; her recovery continues and began the season competing only on the balance beam ... the Beavers are hopeful she will be return to the bars lineup at Lindenwood.
2015 Pac-12 All-Conference second team on the floor exercise.
Tied for balance beam title (9.85) at NCAA University Park Regional in 2014 qualifying to NCAA Championships on the the event.
Won three event titles as a rookie - two on beam and one on bars; and three more in 2015 - two on bars and one on floor.
Has 'hit' 50 of 54 routines in her career.
Kaytianna trained at the National Academy of Artistic Gymnastics - the same gym as other OSU greats Chari Knight, Jami Lanz and Chelsea Tang among others including OSU head coach Tanya Chaplin.
Four-time Junior Olympic Nationals qualifier and won the Level 10 national titles on beam and all-around in 2013.
Majoring in human development and family science with an option in human services.

RISA PEREZ QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about Risa Perez, a senior from Las Vegas, Nevada:

Has 'hit' 77 out of 85 routines in her career.
Won three event titles in 2015 for the Beavers; two on floor and one on beam.
Transferred to Oregon State from Arizona State in the fall of 2014.
Competed in beam and floor lineups for the Beavers 12 out of 13 meets last season.
Has cut and choreographed her floor routines since she was a Level 8 gymnast.
Also helped choreograph several of her current teammates' floor routines this season.
Majoring in liberal studies.

DANI DESSAINTS QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about Dani Dessaints, a sophomore from Las Vegas, Nevada:

Has 'hit' all nine of her routines in her college career.
Anchored the Beavers' vault and bars units in the season-opener posting career-bests on both events.
Battled injuries as a freshman competing only seven routines.

SILVIA COLUSSI-PELAEZ QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about Silvia Colussi-Pelaez, a junior from Oakville, Ontario:

Has 'hit' all 22 of her routines in her college career.
Transferred to Oregon State from Florida following spring term of 2014.
Competed as a member of Spain's national team.
Successfully performed a sideways aerial on balance beam – a first in World or Olympic competition – the skill is now named the Colussi-Pelaez. She has not used the skill in competition at the collegiate level.
Younger sister, Mariana, is a freshman for the Beavers in 2016.
Majoring in chemical engineering.

JAMIE RADERMACHER QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about Jamie Radermacher, a senior from Tualatin, Oregon:

Recorded the first event title of her career tying for first on the floor (9.875) in the season opener against Auburn last week.
Late addition to the 2015 squad after transferring from Eastern Michigan.
Battled injuries at EMU.
Cracked the floor lineup late in the 2015 season competing three times.
Aggravated a previous injury at regionals and was unable to compete at nationals.
Has 'hit' 13-16 career routines.

ERIKA AUFIERO QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about Erika Aufiero, a senior from Sparks, Nevada:

Suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice leading up to the season opener.
Earned first team All-America honors on uneven bars in 2015.
Owns 15 career event titles; 13 on bars and two on vault.
Chosen as one of the team's captains in 2015 and '16
Earned All-Pac-12 honors on uneven bars in 2013 and on vault in 2015.
Has 'hit' 57 of 62 routines in his career.
Erika's sister, Breyanna, competed at Utah State.
Majoring in finance with a specialization in accountancy.

MISCELLANEOUS QUICK HITTERS
Here are some quick hitters about the rest of the team:

Junior Megan Jimenez performed in the vault lineup in all 13 meets in 2015. She also performed on the floor once. She has 'hit' all 26 of the routines in her career.
Junior Taylor Ricci performed on the vault seven times in 2015. In addition, she competed on floor once. She has 'hit' all 10 of her career routines.
Both Jimenez and Ricci were forced into the floor exercise lineup for the first time in their careers at 2015 NCAA Championships due to injury. Both are favorites to step into multiple vacant lineup spots in 2016.
Sophomore Shireen Khamedoost began the 2015 near the top of the bars lineup for the first seven meets. She has 'hit' all nine of her routines.
Mary Jacobsen, a freshman, performed on three events in her first college meet, including leading off on vault and floor. Posted the Beavers' second-highest score on bars (9.800).
Freshman McKenna Singley opened the season in the bars and beam lineups and exhibitioned on vault and as the alternate on floor. Could become a factor in the all-around.
Freshman Mariana Colussi-Pelaez 'hit' the first routine of her career on the bars in the season-opener.

WHICH WAY DO WE GO?
The Beavers, like every other team in the country, are seeking to qualify to the NCAA Championships and the Super Six. But to reach that goal teams must get through NCAA Regionals. In 2016, regionals will be held at Alabama, Georgia, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Utah. The top two finishers at each regional will advance to the NCAA Championships in Fort Worth, Texas.

CONFERENCE OF CHAMPIONS
The Pac-12 Conference has seven out of eight of its teams ranked in the Top 36, which is the number of teams that qualify to NCAA Regionals. UCLA is ranked No. 5, Utah is tied at No. 7, Arizona is No. 10, California is 11th, Oregon State is 12th, Stanford is 22nd and Washington ranks 36th.

THREE FOR 2017
In November, two gymnasts signed the National Letters of Intent to join the Oregon State gymnastics program for the 2016-17 academic year. Isis Lowery (Melbourne, Australia) and Brianna McCant (Frisco, Texas) are scheduled to enroll in Oregon State this coming summer. In addition, 2015 signee Sabrina Gill (Oakville, Ontario) is slated to join the program for the 2017 season as well. Gill opted to defer her enrollment while she trains for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro for Team Canada.

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