After almost missing its flight departing from Philadelphia, The
No. 11 Penn State women's gymnastics team arrived in snowy Denver, Colo., site of its NCAA Regional competition, early yesterday afternoon.

"They had to basically hold the plane for us," Penn State head coach Steve Shephard said. "But we made it; so far, so good."

Early travel troubles do not look to hold back the Nittany Lions, who are looking to rebound from their second-place finish in the Big Ten Championships two weeks ago. The Lions finished second to rival Michigan, losing the title by only .100 of a point.

The Lions' 33rd consecutive Regional appearance features another highly competitive field which consists of five out of the six teams competing ranked in the top 25.

The team will have to improve on last meet's score to come out in the top two to advance to the NCAA Championships to be held in Salt Lake City, Utah April 26-28.

Penn State has advanced to the NCAA Championships 25 times in the team's history.

One of the six teams traveling to Denver this weekend is two-time defending NCAA champion, the University of Georgia.

The Gym Dogs, led by former Penn State gymnast Suzanne Yoculan, come into the meet ranked No. 2 in the nation.

The Gym Dogs will be the highest-ranked opponent that the Lions have faced all season long.

"Georgia has a great team just like they have in the past few years," Shephard said. "Last year they came into Regionals in 12th place, and they rallied all the way back to win it all. I have a lot of respect for their program."

The remaining schools competing include host school No. 14 Denver, No. 23 Brigham Young University, Big Ten rival No. 25 Minnesota, and Utah State.

With all of the strong competition, the Lions look to be peaking at just the right time.

Five members of the Nittany Lion squad notched season highs in their respective individual events at the Big Ten Championships including senior Amie Olaes, who tore her ACL on her successful landing following her bars routine.

After sitting out last season with a torn ACL, Olaes competed on the un-even bars in every event this season, averaging a score of 9.773. She scored a 9.800 or better in the last four consecutive meets.

According to Shephard, Olaes's role may have to change following her injury, but she is still a valuable member of the team.

"It's always tough to lose someone, especially a senior," Shephard said. "But she will still help our team with coaching, motivation and by showing her leadership ability."

Though Olaes' injury does hurt the team, the Lions still boast some of the best talent in the Big Ten and the country.

Sophomore Brandi Personett was named first-team All-Big Ten, with fellow gymnasts sophomore Katie Perret and senior Stephanie Sullivan being named to the second team.

Boasting talent as well as a solid lineup through the order, Shephard does not think it is unreasonable for his gymnasts to leave Denver with a NCAA Regional title.

"Finishing second at Big Tens by only one tenth was a good lesson for this team," Shephard said. "This meet will be very similar and if we minimize our mistakes, anything can happen. We're prepared."