Coach Judi Avener wants to avenge the worst loss of her entire career.

The women's gymnastics team wants to re-establish itself as the best team in the region.

In last year's NCAA Northeast Regional Competition, top-seeded Penn State crumbled under its overconfidence and lack of concentration to fall to fourth-seeded Ohio State, 188.175-185.925.

The Lady Lions (17-3) are again seeded first in tomorrow night's NCAA Northeast Regional Competition in New Hampshire, followed by New Hampshire, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Bowling Green, Kent State and Indiana (Pa.).

Penn State is better prepared physically and mentally for this year's meet, but Avener is concerned the gymnasts could again fall prey to overconfidence.

"I don't want that to happen again and yet I realize that's a distinct possibility," she said. "I think that we look pretty good but we could fall apart just as easily as UNLV did or the Lady Lion basketball team."

Although the Lady Lions, ranked No. 12 nationally, defeated the Lady Buckeyes twice this year in regular-season meets, Avener said that doesn't mean the Lady Lions will have no problem winning this competition.

Penn State defeated Ohio State twice last year in regular-season meets but still lost the regional competition by more than two points.

"We had a lot of breaks on the bars and beam," Rene Lyst said.

The Lady Buckeyes could once again pose a threat, but Avener expects New Hampshire to be the Lady Lions' strongest contender.

She said New Hampshire scores consistently in the 187-range, but scored in the 189-range earlier in the season.

"We can easily droop to a 189," Avener said.

After last year's loss, the Lady Lions made a list of objectives they had to reach to become a better team.

Their first goal: never underestimate your opponent. The gymnasts treated every opponent this year as if it were the best team it had ever met.

Their second goal: establish team unity. Practices were designed to make the gymnasts work so hard that "only the tough survived." The team got rid of a lot of dead weight and the gymnasts became more supportive of one another.

Their third goal: improve their physical condition. The team lost about 85 pounds and has lifted weights and done aerobics regularly in addition to regular practices.

This past week, the Lady Lions watched a tape of last year's performance.

"We had a lot of falls that shouldn't have been falls." Lyst said. "We thought 'Oh my God, you suck, and I can't believe you fell' when we saw the tape".

But this year the gymnasts believe in themselves and are dedicated to performing well for the team. They have learned to control their routines rather than have their routines control them. Now they fight to stay on the bars and beam instead of just falling off and giving up.

"It's hard to fight someone who's desperate because they feel like 'I don't care what I have to do to get this job done, I'm going to do it,' " Avener said.

Having greatly improved since last season, the Lady Lions no longer have anything to prove to themselves. They are, however, anxious to prove themselves to their opponents. They want to be respected again.