California bound. After holding their own with a respectable score against two Division I teams, the Seattle Pacific University gymnastics team travels south to California for a weekend of competition. The Falcons (1-2) face the tough task of back-to-back meets, beginning Friday night (Feb. 3) with a three-way meet at San Jose State (5-5) with Illinois-Chicago (1-3). On Saturday (Feb. 4), SPU visits longtime rival UC Davis (0-3) for a dual. The Falcons return home to host San Jose State Feb. 10.

It’s about time. Historically, Seattle Pacific has struggled in its travels to San Jose and Davis. In 11 trips to each of those destinations, the Falcons have never won on the Spartans’ home floor and have managed just two victories over the Aggies. But that trend could be about to change. Besides having the law of averages on its side, SPU owns a higher scoring average than either team going into the week. They should certainly get their share of encouragement as four members of the team hail from the Golden State, including top all-arounder Debra Huss (Jr., Orangevale, Ca./Bella Vista), who is a Sacramento area product.

Live and learn. When a team like Seattle Pacific takes on elite gymnastics programs like Washington and Arizona State it serves as a tool to dig deep and ultimately learn. Although they suffered several falls, the Falcons had their closest encounter with Washington on the Huskies’ home floor in 14 years. SPU, with a total of 190.225, was 1.300 points behind the UW (191.525). Both teams bowed to Arizona State’s resounding 195.175. The Sun Devils won all four events, scoring 49 points or higher on all but bars. The Falcons’ best event was floor exercise, in which they totaled a season-high 48.450. The meet broke a five-year streak of the Falcons scoring 191 points or higher at Washington.

No. 2 at No. 1. For the second week in a row, Seattle Pacific leads the USA Gymnastics Collegiate Championship overall rankings and once again tops vault, beam and floor. Coach Laurel Tindall’s Falcons, whose season average is 191.037, aim to surpass last season’s streak of five consecutive weeks atop the division. Currently trailing SPU are Texas Woman’s (190.875) and Rutgers (189.670). The Falcons seek to compete at year’s national meet Apr. 13-15 in Ithaca, N.Y. They finished third in ‘05.

All-around and on top. Back to just three four-event competitors, the all-arounders continue to prove their leadership through top scores and rankings. Sarah Sullivan (Jr., Salem, Or./Sprague) had the team’s strongest all-around performance (38.050) last week, followed by Jaynie Reynolds (Sr., White Rock, BC/Marriot) (38.000). Sullivan’s floor performance (9.825) improved upon last week’s score and placed her in fifth at Washington. She also finished sixth on beam (9.750), to rank second in that event, as well as in all-around. She was No. 3 on floor. Reynolds improved her bar and beam scores from the previous meet, tying for fifth on bars (9.600) with Huss. Reynolds ranks No. 2 in the division on vault and is third in all-around.

Highs and lows. Tindall didn’t see the typical shine from all-arounder Huss, who posted her first sub-38 score since the third meet of her career. The big hit came on beam with a career-low score of 8.850. Previously, Huss had never scored below 9.200. Despite one less than ideal meet, the USAG rankings still favor Huss on floor exercise, and she is No. 2 on bars. Kristin Bryant (Jr., Anchorage, Ak./West Anchorage) contributed solid marks for the team on vault (9.725) and floor (9.750). Brianna Schwartz (Fr., Bonney Lake, Wa./Sumner) improved last week’s floor score, dancing a 9.625 and Amber Lundgren (Fr., Temecula, Ca./Temecula Valley) debuted with a 9.500 on floor exercise.

Gym shorts. The Falcons are seeking their first win in the last five regular season road meets. They have scored 191 or higher only once in six meets at San Jose and Davis over the past three seasons...Ashley Domres (So., Phoenix, Az./Scottsdale Christian) posted season-high scores on bars and beam (9.525 and 9.650, respectively). She is ranked ninth in the USAG on beam...Danna Nelson (Fr., Maple Valley, Wa./Tahoma) contributed to the team beam score with a solid 9.625 debut...Melissa Daniels (Fr., Salinas, Ca./N. Monterey County) vaulted a 8.925...Schwartz earned a 9.500 on vault and scored 9.000 on bars...Reynolds scored 9.625 on vault, 9.600 on bars, 9.625 on beam and 9.150 on floor...Sullivan vaulted 9.450 and swung 9.025 on bars...Huss launched 9.225 on vault and scored 9.600 on bars and 9.750 on floor...SPU also owns the top scoring average in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, ahead of Alaska Anchorage, UC Davis and Air Force.

SPU Coaches. Coach Laurel Tindall is synonymous with Seattle Pacific gymnastics, having either competed or coached each of the program’s 33 years. Under her guidance, SPU has won three national championships (1986, ‘92, ‘97) and, individually, her gymnasts have taken 19 titles. Now in her 31st year, Tindall has been honored as national coach of the year four times and last year she was the MPSF coach of the year. Originally, Tindall competed for the Falcons, winning a national crown on vault as a senior. She then succeeded George Lewis as head coach. Tindall is a charter member of the Falcon Legends Hall of Fame. Kathy Siwek returns for her sixth season as an assistant coach. Siwek was a two-time All-America and a member of the 1997 national championship team. Kristen Strid is back for her third year on the staff after having completing her career in 2003 as a three-time All-America and national champion on bars. Four-time all-American Corrie McDaniel joins the coaching staff this season.

Tickets, please. General admission tickets for all SPU home gymnastics meets are priced $5, with students, youth and senior citizens $3 with proper identification. Teams or groups can qualify for discount rates by calling 206-281-2085 in advance.

Missing links. For the latest and best information on Seattle Pacific University athletics, stay where you're at -- on The Falcons Online. For updated standings and statistics, see the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web site. For updated gymnastics standings and statistics, see the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation web site, or the Collegiate Gymnastics Information Center.