Gymnasts hope to make nationals

While talking about Courtney Bumpers, gymnastics coach Derek Galvin sounded just a wee bit like Ron Burgundy.

His message was clear: Courtney is good. I mean, really good. Hey, everybody, come and see how good she is!

"Anyone who has ever considered coming to a gymnastics meet and hasn't done it yet, they need to do it this year, because Courtney will graduate," Galvin said.

"Anyone who misses an opportunity to see her compete, I put it on par with never having seen Mia Hamm play soccer here or Michael Jordan play basketball here."

By the beard of Zeus, did he really say that? Mia Hamm, Michael Jordan and Courtney Bumpers in the same sentence?

What Galvin meant was: She's kind of a big deal. People should know her.

Among her many career accomplishments, the three-time first-team All-American captured NCAA national titles in floor exercise each of the last two years. She holds North Carolina records on vault, floor exercise and all-around. And she's still got one year left as a Tar Heel, which means students have one year left to see her.

And it should be one thrilling year for the "news team," which opens its season at the George Washington Invitational today in D.C. and is very solid throughout.

Junior Christine Robella will play the role of Bumpers' co-anchor.

"This is a very special team," Galvin said. "Courtney Bumpers and Christine Robella are two of the top all-around gymnasts in the nation."

The Tar Heels also are looking to seniors Mikel Hester and Cecilia Liu, junior Courtney Turco and sophomores Sarrie Rubin, Alice Xu and Shawna Kelly to make major contributions.

As for season goals, UNC aims to qualify for the NCAA Championships for the first time in school history.

"We've missed (nationals) the last couple of years by - the smallest deduction you could have in gymnastics," said Liu, who specializes on bars.

Knights of Columbus, that hurts!

Galvin said he feels this team finally can make nationals but knows his gymnasts must keep their heads on a swivel because the gymnastics world is like a vicious cockfight.

"We need to keep people healthy, we need to be consistent with our routines," he said. "The young ladies on this team have to believe in each other," he said.

No problem, said the seniors.

"We're really motivated this year," Liu said. "There's not one person that's a weak link."

Bumpers added, "A lot of teams have one or two people that are anchoring the team down, but this year - everybody's full force - It's exciting."

Whether she admitted it or not, though, Bumpers certainly is this team's lead anchor. She's the story of the year, just like Ling Wong the panda, so don't miss her!

Now you stay classy, Chapel Hill.

 

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.