This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Back when Utah's gymnastics team scheduled Boise State, UC Davis and No. 24 SUU for its home opener, having three teams visit seemed like a nice way to kick off the home schedule since the presence of several teams often makes for a hugely entertaining night.
But now it looks like Friday's 7 p.m. meet at the Huntsman Center should be entertaining from a pure competitive standpoint too.
Utah, which moved up two spots to No. 4 in the national rankings, beat BYU 196.9-193.35 in the opener for both teams Friday and will be the heavy favorite again.
However, the rest of the meet should be close. UC Davis finished second in the NorCal Classic with a 194.35 to Cal's 195.175, upsetting Stanford (193.45) in the process, while SUU nearly beat Arizona State, losing just 194.2-193.925.
Friday's meet is the opener for the Broncos, who were picked to finish ahead of SUU in the Mountain Rim Conference.
"All three teams are really good so it's not going to be a walk in the park for us," Utah coach Greg Marsden said.
The effort by SUU was particularly impressive, considering the Thunderbirds were on the road. They had the upset within reach, but suffered two falls on the balance beam to score 48.075 on the final rotation while ASU went ahead with a 48.9 on floor.
Leading SUU's effort was Danielle Ramirez, who scored 9.825 on the vault, 9.75 on the bars and 9.775 on the balance beam.
"It's going to be a competitive meet," Marsden said. "At one point in our meet last year Boise State was ahead of us and they've always done a good job.
In the rankings
Utah State broke into the rankings at No. 23 following its 193.75-186.675 win over Air Force. The Aggies compete at Denver on Saturday.
Utah's Tory Wilson is ranked No. 3 in the all-around with a 39.45, Wilson and Georgia Dabritz are tied for sixth in the vault with 9.925s, Baely Rowe is fifth on the balance beam (9.9) and Wilson is sixth on the floor (9.9).
Utah is ranked third on the floor (49.225) and beam (49.2), fourth on the uneven bars (49.175) and fifth on the vault (49.3).
In review
Even though film reviews of meets often reveal more mistakes than are first noticed, Marsden remained happy with his team's effort at BYU.
"We looked a little nervous on bars which isn't a total surprise since it was the first event," he said. "We weren't aggressive enough on some of the elements but there weren't issues that can't be fixed. Overall it was a great first meet and we have a lot to be positive about."
Going fast
The Utes have sold a school-record 7,012 season tickets, making Marsden and Utah's marketing department believe Friday's home opener will draw a large crowd. Opening at BYU, then holding a popular quad meet plus the excitement over winning the school's first Pac-12 title last year has led to increased interest in the team, Marsden said.
"There seems to be a lot more talk and buzz about the season," Marsden said. "We think opening at BYU really helped because it got people talking about it, but we have another week to promote the home meet."
The Utes have averaged more than 14,000 fans the last five seasons, including last year's record average of 14,376. —
Top 25
1 • Oklahoma 197.625
2 • LSU 197.125
3 • Florida 196.925
4 • Utah 196.9
5 • Michigan 196.6
6 • Alabama 196.225
7 • Georgia 195.6
8 • Nebraska 195.3
9 • Illinois 195.175
10 • California 195.025
11 • Minnesota 194.95
12 • Arkansas 194.9
13 • Stanford 194.863
14 • Bowling G. 194.775
15 • Penn St. 194.675
15 • Ohio State 194.675
17 • Denver 194.5
18 • Arizona 194.375
19 • G. Wash. 194.325
20 • Arizona St. 194.2
21 • Auburn 194.15
22 • Mich. St. 194.075
23 • Utah St. 193.975
24 • E. Michigan 193.925
24 • SUU 193.925 —
Southern Utah, Boise State
And UC-Davis at Utah
O Friday, 7 p.m.
TV • None