Earlier this month, Linkin Park invaded the Bryce Jordan Center on their Projekt Revolution 2003 tour. However, for Penn State women's gymnast Kate Stopper, the band's music is more than a tour stop.

Stopper's floor exercise music features the unique blend of Linkin Park's rock/rap sound of songs off of its debut album, Hybrid Theory.

"Kate wanted to use Linkin Park," Penn State women's gymnastics assistant coach Jessica Bastardi said. "She wanted to use something a little harder because that intensity inspires her."

As Stopper prepares herself to perform her routine, the beginning of "A Place For My Head" is heard, followed by segments of "Papercut" and "In The End." Since lyrics are not allowed in floor routine music, student coach Sarah DiPasquale craftily cut and mixed the songs to make a powerful hybrid segment.

"Floor music needs to be upbeat, powerful and dynamic so that it matches the characteristic of the personality of the performer," Penn State women's gymnastics coach Steve Shephard said. "Kate is definitely that."

In fact, the buoyant and powerful segment that Stopper performs matches her aggressive style of gymnastics. This style has led to Stopper scoring a 9.925 in the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships, which tied her career best, set earlier in the season versus West Virginia.

When asked about how they felt about a Penn State women's gymnast being inspired by and using their music for a floor routine, Linkin Park's Chester Bennington, Rob Bourdon, Brad Delson, Joseph Hahn, Phoenix and Mike Shinoda all were in agreement that it was neat.

"Wow, really," they said shaking their heads, "that is cool."

Stopper has used the band's music for two years, but due to an injury last year, she did not get to demonstrate her routine as much as she had liked. For that reason, she decided to use the music again this year.

"You have to have a connection with your floor music in order to go out there and really enjoy it," Bastardi said. "Especially when you are hearing the same piece of music day after day after day."

Since Linkin Park is a popular band among adolescents, college students who see her floor routine and hear the music like it.

"It is more upbeat and more associated to the college student," Stopper said. "When my music plays, they think it is pretty cool and it is a lot more fun to show it off."

As Stopper shows off the moves that Bastardi and DiPasquale choreographed, her vigorous attitude plus the crowd's energy produce a memorable routine that leaves the audience humming the Linkin Park tunes.

"When an athlete enjoys their music they really tend to perform better," Shephard said. "It makes it a lot more fun for them."

With Linkin Park being the inspiration for Stopper the past two years, she will look to find another rock segment that suites her style and can create the same vibes that she felt by using the unique hybrid blend of Linkin Park.

"I am looking for something new," Stopper said. "I am thinking about some Metallica or the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but I am not sure."