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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Anissa Madrid was the top scorer in two events Friday during the first semifinal session, helping Seattle Pacific advance to the team finals at the USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate Championships at Cadet West Gym.

The four-team finals, that determine the national champion, are scheduled for 6 p.m. Pacific Time on Saturday at Air Force.

That venue could change as the USAF Academy facility will not be available if the federal budget issues shut down U.S. government operations. Potential places to relocate the meet include the nearby Olympic Training Center and a local gymnastics club in Colorado Springs.

"You never think that something like this could happen," SPU coach Laurel Tindall said of the possible venue change for the championship meet. "Obviously everybody is in the same boat, so we would all have to adjust."

Defending national champion Bridgeport recorded the top score of 192.775 in the first semifinal. SPU's second-place mark of 191.050 was its third-highest score of the season. Temple was third with 190.750 points followed by fourth-place Centenary at 190.475.

The Falcons reached the team finals for the first time since 2007, when they were the USAG meet runners-up at Brougham Pavilion in Seattle. SPU won national titles in 1986, 1992 and 1997 and is competing at the championship meet for the 29th time in the last 30 years.

The other two championship contenders will come from Friday's second session that includes top-seeded Texas Woman's University, Cornell, Air Force and Pennsylvania.

In all four events, the top-five scoring gymnasts from each session qualify for the individual finals on Sunday at 1 p.m. PST.

Six SPU gymnasts will vie for individual titles, including Madrid who was the top qualifier in both the uneven bars and balance beam. The senior from Seattle's Kennedy High School earned the silver medal on the beam last year.

In Friday's competition, Madrid tied for top beam honors with a score of 9.825 that tied her career high. She also matched her collegiate best on bars with a first-place score of 9.700.

SPU junior Corrine Wise (Seattle, Wash./West Seattle HS) will also compete for the beam championship after receiving a fourth-place semifinal score of 9.80.

Junior Samantha Taylor (San Carlos, Calif.) will join Madrid in the bars finals after posting a mark of 9.60 that was good for fifth place Friday.

Two Falcons are in the field for the floor finals. Junior Sherah Veron (Broken Arrow, Okla.) tied for third in the preliminaries with a score of 9.775 and senior Bri Steigauf (Richfield, Minn.) tied for fifth at 9.750.

The SPU gymnasts were in third place through three rotations. They needed a stellar showing in their final event to overcome a 0.35-point deficit and move into a top-two qualifying position.

The Falcons delivered in the clutch with a mark of 48.325 on the beam that propelled them ahead Temple.

"We've been working hard to never give up, taking the motto that 'It's not over 'til it's over,'" Tindall explained.

"We were exceptional on beam. Corrine (Wise) started the beam with a 9.8 and Anissa (Madrid) ended it with a 9.825. You can't do much better than that."

The coach's daughter, freshman Kai Tindall (Brier, Wash./Mountlake Terrace HS), tallied a 9.30 on beam.

SPU opened the meet on the floor and suffered falls in two of the opening three routines en route to a team score of 47.40.

The vault was next and the Falcons compiled a score of 47.70. Veron was the team's top performer with a mark of 9.625.

The Falcons produced a 47.625 on the third apparatus, registering the second-best bars score of the first session.

The USAG Collegiate Championships feature NCAA Division II members and Division I schools that choose to adhere to the limit of 7-1/2 scholarships. This year's championship field includes five Division I schools and three Division II entries.


USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate Championships
Cadet West Gym/Colorado Springs, Colo.
Friday, April 8, 2011

Team Semifinals (Session 1)
1, Bridgeport 192.775
2, Seattle Pacific 191.050
3, Temple 190.750
4, Centenary 190.475

Individual Event Qualifiers (Sunday, April 10)

Vault
1, Monica Mesalles, Bridgeport, 9.850
2t, Natalie Sameri, Bridgeport, 9.725
2t, Alexandra Uscatu, Temple, 9.725
4, Christy Martinez, Centenary, 9.700
5t, Kamri Riles, Bridgeport, 9.675
5t, Kaitlyn Watson, Temple, 9.675

Uneven Bars
1, Anissa Madrid, Seattle Pacific, 9.700
2, Corrine Williams, Temple, 9.650
3t, Emily Turik, Bridgeport, 9.625
3t, Stephanie Wright, Centenary, 9.625
5, Samantha Taylor, Seattle Pacific, 9.600

Balance Beam
1t, Anissa Madrid, Seattle Pacific, 9.825
1t, Monica Mesalles, Bridgeport, 9.825
1t, Emily Repko, Bridgeport, 9.825
4t, Corrine Wise, Seattle Pacific, 9.800
4t, Kristina Beck, William & Mary, 9.800

Floor Exercise
1, Monica Mesalles, Bridgeport, 9.875
2, Emily Repko, Bridgeport, 9.825
3t, Sherah Veron, Seattle Pacific, 9.775
3t, Jessica Watts, Bridgeport, 9.775
5t, Bri Steigauf, Seattle Pacific, 9.750
5t, Emily Luftey, Brown, 9.750
5t, Marisa Schneider, Centenary, 9.750