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Friday night chalk. If it’s Friday, then it must time for the chalk dust to fly. In the second of four consecutive road meets, the Seattle Pacific University gymnastics team crosses a time zone to the Idaho capital for a quadrangular Friday night (Mar. 2). The Falcons (1-8) face host Boise State (5-7), 11th-ranked Oregon State (6-4) and Mountain Pacific Sports Federation main rival UC Davis (5-5). The next meet, Mar. 9, will be a duel on the Aggies’ home floor.

The task at hand. Coach Laurel Tindall knows the next three meets will be pivotal in preparing for nationals. Seeking to establish some depth and consistency against some nationally-ranked Division I programs, Tindall would like SPU to hit its peak when it returns home for Senior Night on March 23, against Washington. Seattle Pacific hosts the MPSF Championships Mar. 30.

At the halfway mark. Although it was not enough to out-do Oregon State (196.975) and host Washington (195.800), Tindall had to be pleased with her team's 190.050 across town last week. The Beavers posted their 11th-best all-time team total and won all but the uneven bars. Coming back from a shaky performance on bars and beam at home the previous week, Seattle Pacific was solid on vault (48.150), beam (a season-high 47.700) and floor (48.075). The downfall, again, was bars (46.125). It was the third meet in a row which the Falcons have scored above 190, although their score has been sliding on each occasion.

National rankings. Seattle Pacific has been wedged solidly in fourth in the USAG rankings in each of the five weeks it has appeared. Maryland's Towson and '05 national champion Rutgers have had a six week hold on the top two spots, and Texas Woman's, last year's national meet winner, was third. Less than two points separate the top four. Cornell rounds out the top five. By event, SPU ranked 2nd on vault, No. 3 on floor exercise, No. 4 on balance beam and No. 5 on bars.

Gym Schwartz. Amongst an extremely competitive all-around mix, Seattle Pacific's Brianna Schwartz (So., Bonney Lake, Wa./Sumner) took a turn toward the top of the Falcon heap last week, compiling a career-high 38.375 in the four event competition. Schwartz’s scores of 9.575 on vault and bars, her 9.475 on beam and her season-best 9.750 on floor exercise erned her fifth place behind three OSU competitors and a Husky, with the Beavers’ Tasha Smith in first with an impressive total of 39.550.

Back in the swing of things. For the first time since fracturing her hand during preseason, Sarah Sullivan (Sr., Salem, Or./Sprague) competed in four events last week as she moved into the bars lineup. Sullivan's 9.775 floor exercise routine was her best mark. She added a 9.725 on vault and 9.625 on beam but swung for a just a 8.650 on the parallels. Debra Huss (Sr., Orangevale, Ca./Bella Vista) will look forward to the Idaho contest as she turned in an uncharacteristically off-performance in the all-around at Washington. Huss posted Seattle Pacific's top individual score of the night with a 9.800 on balance beam. She swung a 9.650 on bars, but had problems on vault (8.700) and floor (9.200) and totaled a 37.350 for the all-around.

Gym shorts. Seattle Pacific managed to score just 188.375 in last year’s Boise visit. In the year since that meet, only the 187.575 at Air Force was lower. On the up side, two years ago SPU hit for 192.650 in Boise...Three Falcons–Schwartz, Sullivan (9.775) and Kristin Bryant (Sr., Anchorage, Ak./West Anchorage)–turned in floor performances above 9.750. Bryant also launched a 9.775 on vault…Amber Lundgren (So., Temecula, Ca./Temecula Valley) scored a 9.450 on vault and managed 9.275 on the floor mats… Melissa Daniels (So., Salinas, Ca./N. Monterey Cty.) vaulted 9.625 and Christie Chinaka (Jr., Honolulu, Hi.) swung 9.525 on bars and negotiated a 9.350 on beam…Ashley Domres (Jr., Scottsdale, Az./Scottsdale Christian) balanced a 9.450 beam score with a 9.525 on floor exercise…For the first time all season, Tindall had sufficient healthy bodies to compete six athletes in each event…Top recruit Kelli Bates (Fr., Port Orchard, Wa./South Kitsap), an 11-time All-American at YMCA nationals, Katelyn Degner (Fr., Hillsboro, Or./Glencoe), Aubrie Stavig (Jr., Albuquerque, NM/ Sandia) and Danna Nelson (So., Maple Valley, Wa./Tahoma) are all likely to miss the rest of the season with injuries. Nelson competed in two meets and ranked among the national leaders on beam...This is the first season since 1997 in which SPU does not have any back-to-back meets on consecutive days...Currently, UC Davis is the team to beat for MPSF No. 1 seed, with the Falcons, Alaska Anchorage and Air Force following in order.

Tickets, please. Ticket prices for all SPU regular season meets are $5 for general admission, with students and senior citizens $3. Group and team rates are available by phoning (206) 281-2085 in advance.

SPU Coaches. Laurel Tindall is synonymous with Seattle Pacific gymnastics, having either competed or coached each of the program’s 34 years. Under her guidance, SPU has won three national championships (1986, ‘92, ‘97) and, individually, her gymnasts have taken 19 titles. Now in her 32nd year, Tindall has been honored as national coach of the year four times and two years ago, 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 seventh season as an assistant coach. Siwek was a two-time All-America and a member of the 1997 national championship team. Anna Leiferman is in her first year on the staff. She was a member of the team in 2003 and ‘04.

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 Collegiate Gymnastics Information Center or Mountain Pacific Sports FederationWebsites.