Gymnasts Receive NCAA Championship Rings
10/23/2011 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
Oct. 22, 2011
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The defending NCAA Champion Alabama Gymnastics team received their championship rings Saturday during halftime of the Alabama-Tennessee football game in front of 101,000-plus fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
"To be able to stand in front of 101,000 fans as national champions is what you strive for every day as both an athlete and a coach," Sarah Patterson said. "For David and I, this was the 10th time we have received championship rings during an Alabama Football halftime, and I can tell you the feeling never gets old and that we were as excited to share this moment with this team as we were with our very first championship team in 1988."
The Crimson Tide won its fifth NCAA Championship, seventh Southeastern Conference title and 26th regional championship last season as well as earning a program-best 3.71 team grade point average.
Individually, Kayla Hoffman earned the Honda Award, given annually to the nation's top gymnast. She was also named the SEC Female Athlete of the Year and the CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year. Geralen Stack-Eaton won the Tide's 22nd individual national championship when she brought home the 2011 NCAA floor exercise title. Hoffman, Stack-Eaton, Kim Jacob, Marissa Gutierrez, Ashley Sledge, Sarah DeMeo and Diandra Millinercombined to earn 13 All-American honors last season.
Academically, all 17 members of last year's team earned a 3.2 or better GPA while five - Hoffman, Jacob, Rachel Terry, Lindsey Fowler and Ria Domier - earned a perfect 4.0 for the year. That five, along with Stack-Eaton, DeMeo, Milliner, Megan Mashburn, Alyssa Chapman, Ashley Priess, Becca Alexin, Jordan Moore and Hannah Toussaintearned Scholastic All-American honors, which requires a 3.5 or better GPA.
While enjoying the glow that comes with receiving their championship rings to the cheers of a packed Bryant-Denny Stadium Saturday night, Alabama immediately returns to work on Sunday with the annual Ghosts and Goblins Intrasquad, starting at 1:30 p.m. The event will be held in the Tide's practice gym in Coleman Coliseum and is open to the public.
Players Mentioned
