Basic math would say that when the Penn State women's gymnastics team lost two seniors to graduation last season, its 13-woman roster would shrink to 11. And when two highly anticipated freshmen are added into the mix for this season, that number gets bumped back up to 13.

Yet the Nittany Lions have only 11 gymnasts on their roster this season, and only nine who are able to compete at this time.

The question then becomes, why don't the numbers match up and what will it mean for the team whose goal again this season is to make it to the national championship in April?

The first mathematical discrepancy comes from the fact that one of the two freshmen recruits Penn State signed last spring quit gymnastics altogether for personal reasons.

Emilie Fournier was a 2000 Canadian Olympic gymnast and Penn State gymnastics coach Steve Shephard was excited to welcome her to his team. Although Fournier could not be reached for comment, the ankle injury Fournier incurred that prohibited her from competing in the 2000 Olympics was cited by Shephard as possibly part of the reason for Fournier's decision to quit gymnastics.

In addition to the loss of Fournier, Penn State also lost sophomore Richelle Simpson, an all-arounder for the Nittany Lions during her freshman campaign. Over the summer, Simpson transferred to Nebraska.

"She (Simpson) has exceeded our expectations," Nebraska coach Dan Kendig said. "She is very team-oriented and is a perfect fit into our group. She's done a terrific job for us and will continue to do that."

Those expectations must have been exceeded when Simpson scored the top score in the all-around for her team and third in the all-around overall with a 39.30 in her first meet as a Cornhusker against Georgia.

Simpson scored a 9.95 on floor, 9.75 on vault, 9.80 on bars and a 9.80 on beam.

"It really didn't give us a chance to replace her," Shephard said about Simpson's transfer. "Combined with Emilie not showing up, it really hurt us."

Despite the losses, Penn State is not at a loss for talent, and Shephard is the first to reiterate that fact.

The Lions return junior co-captain Leslie Bair (all-around) and junior all-arounders Katie Rowland and Katie McAvoy, who were staples on the team last season. Rowland was the only Penn State gymnast to compete in the NCAA Championship at the conclusion of last season, where she finished tied for 18th in the floor exercise with a 9.85.

McAvoy was also scheduled to compete on vault, but had to withdraw after suffering an injury during practice the week before the event.

Rowland's sophomore season saw her break or tie four school records. Rowland set a new school record in the all-around and tied the school record on vault and uneven bars.

Although Rowland and McAvoy should be highlights on the team again this season, departures isn't the only problem the Lions will have to face.

Co-captain Nikki Bongiovanni will be missed during competition while recovering from recent shoulder surgery. Bongiovanni will sit out this season and use her fifth year of eligibility next season.

Penn State will also miss seeing its only freshman, all-arounder Kate Stopper, in action until she recovers from surgery on her big toe.

"It's brought the team close," Bair said about the problems the team has dealt with. "Things aren't going our way, but it has allowed people to step it up a lot."

In fact, the team's motto for the season is "Stepping It Up" and the team showed it's doing just that at its first meet of the season on Friday at the SEC Challenge at Florida.

Junior Julie Stolosky competed in three events for Penn State after only partaking in exhibition events last season. Junior Lisa Campagnolo stepped up her competition, participating in all four events for the Lions, and sophomore Kelly Streicher, injured last season, also competed in the all-around.

Although the No. 12 Lions finished sixth behind No. 2 Georgia, No. 4 Alabama, No. 1 UCLA, No. 7 Florida and No. 11 Louisiana State, they are proud and confident going into the rest of the season.

"I think that overall we did pretty well," Bair said. "Obviously there were some errors, but for what we have we did a great job."

Mathematically speaking, the team has its fair share of problems to overcome this season and although the odds have not been in Penn State's favor so far, the team isn't letting that get to it.

"Katie Rowland, Leslie Bair and Katie McAvoy are strong kids to have back," Shephard said. "Those kids will be heavily counted on. They are quality athletes. We still have the team that can compete on a national basis although the depth is not where we want it to be. It will be a challenging year, but we are up for the challenge."