No. 12 Stanford (9-4, 3-2 Pac-12)
No. 5 Utah (5-1, 3-1 Pac-12)
Sat., Feb. 20 • 2 p.m. (PT)
Maples Pavilion • Admission is free.
Television • Pac-12 Networks
Live Statistics • Available via GoStanford.com
STANFORD, Calif. – No. 12 Stanford takes on its second top-five opponent of the season when it plays host to No. 5 Utah on Saturday at 2 p.m. (PT) in Maples Pavilion.
It is the final home meet of the season and the Cardinal will honor its four seniors Melissa Chuang, Jenna Frowein, Ivana Hong and Taylor Rice. The quartet will be recognized before the meet during introductions and after the competition in a special ceremony. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and stick around after the meet to honor the seniors.
Stanford (9-4, 3-2 Pac-12) most recently played host to Utah (5-1, 3-1 Pac-12) in 2014 and picked up a 197.000-196.300 victory. The Cardinal hit 24-of-24 routines and six Stanford gymnasts recorded collegiate bests to earn the win. Stanford is 2-0 all-time against the Utes at home.
The Cardinal is coming off a 196.650-196.150 victory this past weekend at Arizona. Elizabeth Price swept the individual event victories to help Stanford register its second-highest score of the season – falling just .025 short of tying its season high.
Five Stanford gymnasts combined for nine top-three finishes and the Cardinal tied or set season-bests in three-of-four events to outscore the Wildcats in three-of-four events.
Highlights from Stanford's victory at Arizona.
Consistently One of the Best in the Country
• Stanford is one of seven teams in the nation to make at least seven Super Six appearances in the past 14 years (2002-15). (Alabama-13, Utah-11, Georgia-10, UCLA-9, Florida-9, Stanford-7, Nebraska-7)
• Stanford returned to the NCAA Championships for the 12th time in the past 15 years in 2015, six gymnasts combined for nine All-America honors and the Cardinal finished fifth at the NCAA Championships with a 197.250 – the team’s second-highest score ever at an NCAA Championships competition.
• A misconception about the Cardinal is that it starts slow and comes out of nowhere during championship season. However, it should not be a surprise and is not a fluke, as evidenced by the team consistently finishing among the top in the nation.
• The Cardinal coaching staff enters each season with a carefully calculated outline of goals for different points during the season. A major focus for the beginning of the season is on consistency, building depth in lineups and health. As the season continues, the Cardinal adds difficulty and unique elements to routines to ensure it peaks during postseason competition.
Price Dominates in the Desert
• Elizabeth Price has won the all-around in each of the five meets she has competed in the event this season, including a season-best 39.650 this past weekend at Arizona. She is ranked first in the nation in the all-around. Price swept the individual event victories with wins in the all-around (39.650), vault (9.875), bars (9.975), beam (9.875) and floor (9.925).
• Price has scored 9.825 or higher in 21-of-23 performances this season and 9.900 or higher in 32-of-48 performances during her collegiate career. She has registered 18 individual event victories in 28 possible events this season.
• Price was named the Pac-12 Gymnast of the Week each of the first three weeks of the season.
Elizabeth Price is ranked first in the nation in the all-around. (Photo by Hector Garcia-Molina)
Hong Provides Leadership
• Ivana Hong has been a leader in and out of the gym throughout her career and has continued her role in her final season. Hong had her four-week streak of at least one individual event victory snapped this past weekend at Arizona. She still scored a 9.875 on bars and 9.750 on beam. Hong has three individual wins on beam and one on bars.
• Hong was named the Pac-12 Specialist of the Week on Feb. 2 for her standout performances on bars (9.900) and beam (9.925) at the Metroplex Challenge.
Consistency from McNair
• Nicolette McNair continued her consistency, contributing scores in all three events and tying for second on vault (9.850) and bars (9.875). She has scored 9.800 or higher in 17-of-18 routines this season
• McNair has hit 89-of-95 routines (94 percent) on vault, bars and beam in her career.
A Welcome Return
• Melissa Chuang missed the 2015 season due to injury but has made immediate contributions in 2016. She scored a season-high 9.700 on vault at Arizona.
• At Georgia (Jan. 18), Chuang provided the decisive performance on beam with a 9.900 to earn the victory for the Cardinal. She also contributed scores on vault and floor.
Consistency Counts
• Danielle McNair continues to contribute scores on a weekly basis, including season-bests of 9.825 on vault and a 9.800 on bars at Arizona.
• McNair performed the first beam routine of her collegiate career against Arizona State (Feb. 8) and earned a 9.700. McNair has scored 9.700 or higher in all 12 performances this season.
Daum Returns
• Junior Rachel Daum missed the first three meets of the season as she recovered from a minor injury. She contributed scores on bars beam (9.800) and floor (9.650) at the Metroplex Challenge and rested against Arizona State. She added scores on 9.800 on floor and 9.675 on beam at Arizona.
A Fresh Start
• Freshman Taryn Fitzgerald has been a solid addition to Stanford’s lineup on vault, beam and floor. She only competed vault at Arizona but posted a career-high 9.850.
• Fitzgerald competed in three events at Georgia and made significant contributions. She produced a 9.725 on floor and contributed a 9.775 on beam to help spark a strong finish by the Cardinal in the event.
Doing It All
• Taylor Rice was Stanford’s primary all-around competitor a year ago and has picked up where she left off. The 2015 Pac-12 First Team selection in the all-around earned her first victory of the season in the event with a 39.075 against Arizona State. She went 39.100 in the all-around at Arizona, falling .100 shy of her season best.
• Rice has competed in the all-around in 15 of the past 20 meets, dating back to the 2015 season opener.
Saturday’s Opponent: Utah
• The Utes are coming off a 197.125-196.250 victory against Washington. Utah is hitting its stride and has broken the 197-point mark in each of its past three meets.
• The Utes were led against Washington by Brenna Hughes who went 39.575 in the all-around and Sabrina Schwab who placed first on bars (9.925).
In the Rankings
• Stanford is ranked in the top 25 in the following events based on its season average:
Vault: 15th, 48.983
Bars: 10th, 49.129
Beam: 8th, 49.029
• Stanford gymnasts are ranked in the top 25 in the following events based on their season average:
All-Around
Elizabeth Price, 1st, 39.545
Vault
Elizabeth Price, T-7th, 9.892
Bars
Elizabeth Price, T-8th, 9.883
Nicolette McNair, 20th, 9.858
Beam
Elizabeth Price, 18th, 9.845
Floor
Elizabeth Price, T-19th, 9.896
