Abby Stack leaps into the air during her floor performance at the NCAA Championship Friday at Stegeman Coliseum.

Gym Dogs already looking forward to 2009

'Future looks good' for team

By: TYLER ESTEP

Posted: 4/29/08

The terms "drop-off" and "rebuilding year" are ones often invoked in sports, and when a team wins four straight national championships, one would expect them to pop up fairly regularly.

Not so for Georgia gymnastics, which will graduate one of the most decorated classes in gymnastics history in May. Just as they have over Coach Suzanne Yoculan's 25-year career in Athens, the Gym Dogs look to retain and add to the talent that has made them nine-time national champs.

"The future looks good," said sophomore Grace Taylor, who captured the NCAA individual beam title on Saturday. "I'll definitely look at the future and smile."

The Gym Dog class of 2008 (Audrey Bowers, Nikki Childs, Megan Dowlen and Katie Heenan) leaves Athens with four NCAA championships as a team, 19 All-American honors, and a wealth of experience.

Next season's seniors look to be just as strong, if not stronger.

Courtney Kupets (2007 Honda Award winner, five-time individual NCAA champion, 10-time All-American) will be back from an Achilles injury, and Tiffany Tolnay (12-time All-American) earned All-American status in the all-around, bars, beam and floor last weekend. Add Paige Burns and Abby Stack to the mix, and it is, yet again, a formidable senior class.

"Looking at the senior class that's going to be here next year in Kupets and Stack and Tolnay and Burns, they're all amazing girls and they're going to be fighting again," said Heenan, Georgia's all-time scoring leader.

"There's no doubt in my mind that they will be a contender for the national title again next year."

Let's not forget about the younger Gym Dogs. Taylor (beam) and sophomore Courtney McCool (floor) are coming off of their first individual national titles last weekend, while classmate Marcia Newby earned her first All-American honors on vault.

With that trio leading the way, next season's junior class looks to be a threat as well.

"We're going to do it next year and the year after that as a class, as individuals and as a whole entire team," said McCool, who also garnered her first All-American title on floor this season.

Once again, it gets deeper. Will-be sophomores Cassidy McComb and Hillary Mauro made huge impacts at their first national meet - McComb, the SEC's Freshman of the Year, charted 9.900s on all three of her events and was an All-American on floor, and Mauro earned her first All-American bid on floor.

"Mauro's my girl. Mauro's going to be huge, no pun intended," said Taylor of her 4-foot-7-inch roommate.

The incoming freshman class is, as always with Georgia gymnastics, a laundry list of some of the best high school and elite gymnasts in the country.

Amber Trani of Richlandtown, Pa., represented the U.S. in the Pan-American Games last summer, taking second on the vault.

Gina Nuccio will come to Athens from Naperville, Ill., after being a two-time Junior Olympic National All-Around Champion.

And Kathryn Ding of Reno, Nev., will round out the freshman class, bringing her experience as a Junior National team member to Stegeman Coliseum.

Needless to say, the Gym Dogs will be a force to be reckoned with in 2009, even without the class of 2008.

"I think the only thing we get to keep with us is the lessons we've learned about how important team chemistry is, and how much more important the team is than one person," Taylor said.

"No matter how incredible or superhuman one person can be, when it comes down to it, it's all about us fighting for each other."

"I have to say watch out, because they're hot," Heenan said.