Thon's move to Rec Hall forces gymwomen to Jordan Center

By GWENN MILLER
Collegian Staff Writer

After two weeks on the road, the Penn State women's gymnastics team is back home.

Well, sort of.

The No. 6 Lady Lions will take on No. 2 Alabama at 7 p.m. today in The Bryce Jordan Center, which is a change from the team's usual Rec Hall location. The meet was moved to the Jordan Center due to the 1999 Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon that is being held in Rec Hall.

The venue change will involve a few minor adjustments for the team, which has not competed in the Jordan Center before. Two differences are the location and size of the crowd.

Since Rec Hall is a smaller facility, the crowd that gymnastics meets usually draw fills the seats. However, the same size crowd in the Jordan Center will look extremely sparse.

"We're a little worried about crowd support and attendance," said senior tri-captain Missy Leopoldus.

At a press conference earlier in the season, Penn State coach Steve Shephard said it would be harder to have energy in the crowd at the Jordan Center, but it would give the athletes the good experience of competing in the atmosphere of a championship meet. And like their coach, the Lions are keeping things in perspective.

"The gymnastics, the equipment and the judging will all be the same," said senior tri-captain Ellen Casey.

Another factor in the meet will be the Lions' ability to ignore the Tide's reputation and simply hit their routines. Thus far in the season, Penn State has not allowed rankings and numbers to affect its performance. By adopting this strategy, the team has defeated Florida, which was the national runner-up in 1998, and UCLA, which was ranked fourth in the nation going into the meet.

The Tide finished third in NCAAs last year and are currently strong contenders in the 1999 season. Their only two losses came at the hands of defending national champion Georgia, which is currently ranked No. 1 in the nation. In each loss, Alabama was beaten by less than a point.

While the Tide is known on a national level, they and the Lions have a more personal history. In 1998, Penn State traveled to Tuscaloosa, Ala., in hopes of coming away with a win, but was defeated 195.575-193.100, something the Lions do not want to happen again.

"Our difficulty level is very comparable and we've come close to beating them in the past," said Leopoldus. "We have the talent and the ability to beat them and it would be a good last home meet."

Leopoldus and fellow seniors Casey and Janae Whittaker will be honored tonight, which is even more incentive for the team to stay focused on its goal of simply winning the meet.

Said Casey: "We're looking at this like it's just business as usual."