"She's a freshman, let's see what she can do," said Penn State assistant women's gymnastics coach Bill Lorenz, as he and coach Steve Shephard exchanged glances of skepticism and doubt.

Meredith Hoover, in her first collegiate season, would be competing in her first NCAA Regional competition as Penn State's anchor on the balance beam, a daunting task for even the most experienced of gymnasts.

At the very least, Hoover's freshman year had been filled with ups and downs, successes and failures that had prepared her for the tense moment.

1/18/03. Penn State faced No. 17 New Hampshire in its first home competition of the season, and looked to bounce back from its fifth-place finish in the Super Six competition a week before.

Attracting 2,857 fans, the meet would serve as Hoover's formal introduction to Rec Hall. Less than a year removed from Dublin Coffman H.S. in Dublin, Ohio, Hoover could have buckled under the pressure, but instead chose to overcome it, scoring a 9.850 on the beam and 9.750 on the floor exercise.

The Ann Carr award, given to the Penn State gymnast who records the most inspiring routine of the evening at each home meet, found its way into Hoover's possession by the end of the evening.

1/27/03. While most of the eastern seaboard was recuperating from a night of Super Bowl celebration, Hoover was slumped on a sofa, recovering from an exhausting early Monday morning workout and jetlag due to a weekend meet in Denver, Colo.

With three falls on the beam, Penn State required Hoover to put points on the board, and she responded positively, scoring a 9.850 to lead the Nittany Lions to victory.

2/22/03. Attracting 4,142 fans at the Bryce Jordan Center, Penn State would be facing Hoover's hometown rival Ohio State Buckeyes. For weeks, Hoover had been practicing the full in, or full twist in the first flip, pass in order to strengthen an already solid floor routine. With Penn State trailing by .015 points going into the final rotation, Hoover's time had come. As the gymnast's distinctive big band music played in the background, Hoover began her routine and waltzed her way to the far corner of the floor to launch the full in.

Sprinting at full speed, Hoover had a clean takeoff but landed awkwardly. Backpedaling quickly and flailing her arms, Hoover stepped out of bounds but remained on her feet and concluded the routine strongly, scoring a 9.675.

"I was disappointed that I didn't hit with the full in," Hoover said, "but I was glad to finish solidly."

3/29/03. With Michigan and Iowa headlining a strong conference field, the Big Ten Championships proved to be a true test for Penn State. The balance beam was the concluding event for Penn State, a team that had been unable to shatter the 196-point barrier or solve its continuing beam problems at any point in the season. Scoring a 9.850 on the beam and gaining 9.800 points earlier in the evening on the floor, Hoover helped Penn State achieve an overall score of 196.650 and continue on to the NCAA Regionals held last weekend.

4/12/03. Right before its rotation on the beam at regionals, Penn State decided to shuffle its lineup and place Hoover in the final position, to anchor the rest of the team. In a sea of mostly Michigan fans in Ann Arbor's Crisler Arena, Hoover watched as two teammates fell before her, placing even more pressure on the freshman.

"I was really nervous, but once I got up on the beam, I was fine," Hoover said.

With a near-perfect routine, Hoover exceeded all expectations and showed much poise and maturity, scoring a 9.9 and finishing second individually of the six teams in the competition.

4/15/03. The 2003 season may have ended just three days before, but 2004 is already in sight. In a private meeting between coaches and players, the women's gymnastics team voted Hoover and Kelly Streicher co-captains for the upcoming season, quite an achievement for the up-and-coming freshman. Penn State women's gymnastics assistant coach Jessica Bastardi, however, believes that Hoover is the right person for the position.

"Meredith does whatever it takes, inside and outside the gym, to be successful," Bastardi said. "She has a great personality, and she has emerged as a leader on this team."

Through victory and defeat, Hoover has become a stronger gymnast by the day.