Trip for one. While the rest of the team continues preparation for the USA Gymnastics Collegiate Championships, Alison Siegel-McAfee (Sr., Oakland, Ca./Redwood Christian) is bound for the NCAA West Regional Saturday night (Apr. 6) in Corvallis. Siegel-McAfee is one of three at-large all-arounders who qualified, along with six teams. Next week the team leaves for the national meet, which is Apr. 11-13 in Springfield, Mass.

All about the regional. This is the second trip to the Division I regional in as many years for Siegel-McAfee, who qualified for the vault as a junior. Kristen Strid (Jr., Kingsburg, Ca./Kingsburg Joint Union) was an alternate for balance beam this year. Siegel-McAfee will rotate with Oregon State, the host team, and will begin on vault. Rounding out the field is Utah, Oklahoma, Southern Utah, Washington and Boise State. The other at-large all-arounders are Deni Albright of San Jose State and My-Lan Dodd of California. The top two teams and the top two all-around competitors (who are not on an advancing team) will receive an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, April 18-20. In addition, the event winners at the regional championships will advance to the national championships (in that event only) if they are not part of a qualifying team or the all-around qualifiers.

Finishing on top. The Falcons and Siegel-McAfee finished the regular season on top, posting their first wins since mid-February by sweeping a pair of home meets with Alaska Anchorage by scores of 191.900 to 184.825 and 191.925 to 186.575. Siegel-McAfee won two events in each meet en route to the all-around title and her four-event total of 39.050 in the second meet was second only to he school record of 39.125, set a year ago. The first night, she took first on vault (9.775) and beam (9.825), reinforcing her national rankings of No. 2 on vault and No. 4 on beam. Not one to be satisfied with anything less than her best effort, she came back on the second night and won beam (with a season-best 9.850) and floor (9.875).

Senior moment. Also making the most of her final home meet was fellow senior Courtney Stump (Sr., Poulsbo, Wa./Charles Wright). She hit beam and floor routines in both meets, continuing her season long streak of contributing towards the team total on floor. Stump's scores of 9.700 and 9.625 were enough for fourth place both nights, and raised her season average to 9.588 on that event.

Rollercoaster ride. Two different days, two different vaulting outcomes. In the first meet vs. Alaska, Siegel-McAfee captured her fourth vaulting title this season with a score of 9.775. Elisabeth Kinglsey (Fr., Kennesaw, Ga./Harrison) took second with a 9.675, followed by Jennifer Christman (So., Fairfield, Ca./Benicia) with a 9.600. The team effort helped the Falcons equal their best vault total of the season, racking up 48.125 points. It was quite a different story just two days later. Kingsley, with a season-high 9.725, outscored Siegel-McAfee for the top position, and Christman and Corrie McDaniel (Fr., Lawrence, Ks./Lawrence), two strong, steady competitors, both struggled with their vaults. The team scored almost a point lower on the event, earning only 47.175 points.

McDaniel shines bright. Although only a freshman, McDaniel has proven that she is ready to compete with the big dogs. She scored 9.625 and 9.700 on bars, and earned top honors on the event in both competitions. Her roundoff entry vault is a beauty, and scores on average 9.400. With a season high of 9.800, beam doesn't seem to tough for her either. She is a pretty good floor competitor as well, ranking No. 4 nationally with an RQS of 9.830, thanks to strong performances against Alaska. Put it all together, and Coach Laurel Tindall has herself a very strong all-around gymnast. Currently, McDaniel is No. 8 in USA Gymnastics.

Beam team. Beam is known to bring even the strongest teams to a crashing finish. The four inch apparatus can be tough to conquer when the pressure heats up. The good news for Seattle's beam team is that they seam to be headed in the right direction. They have scored 47.925 and higher in each of the last five meets, and have broken the 48.00 mark in the last two meets. Annastasia Ahr (So., San Antonio, Tx./Blessed Hope Academy) deserves some of the credit, along with Strid. Together, they have hit 20 routines scoring 9.55 and higher. Ahr finished third in both meets last week, with scores of 9.700 and 9.650. Strid, having lost her 10 consecutive meet sticking streak in the first meet against UAA, came back on the second night and hit for a 9.625.

Other strong performers. The team is chalked full of talent. Kari Kelly (Fr., Yakima, Wa./Eisenhower) has scored a 9.475 in seven of the last nine meets, with a season-high of 9.725 coming in the next-to-last meet. She is also a part of the foundation on vault, having contributed towards the team total in every meet. Rachael Anderson (Jr., Yakima, Wa./West Valley), last year's most consistent floor competitor, has an average of 9.456 on the event. She finished last week's meets with an outstanding floor performance, scoring 9.625.

Gym shorts. The Falcons will be competing at the national meet for the 20th consecutive year. Joining them in the field are defending champion Air Force, Texas Woman's, UC Davis, Centenary, Cornell, Southern Connecticut and UC Santa Barbara. It is an identical field to that of 2001...Ahr set a new career high on bars with a 9.550...Stump has an average of 9.588 on floor, and has scored above a 9.50 on floor in each of the last ten meets. Her season high is a 9.75, scored at UC Davis...Due to injuries, Courtney Amonsen (Sr., Redmond, Wa./Inglemoor) has yet to see action this season...Julie Evin (Fr., Vancouver, Wa./Mtn. View) has not competed this season while recovering from a back injury...All-America vaulter Missy McLaughlin (Sr., Federal Way, Wa./Decatur) is out for the season with an ankle injury.