March 29, 2004

Raleigh, N.C. - NC State gymnastics coach Mark Stevenson will appear on News 14 Carolina's Sportsnight tonight to discuss the Wolfpack hosting the 2004 Southeast Regional Gymnastics Championships this Saturday. Sportsnight, a daily half-hour sports talk show, can be seen tonight at 10:00 on News 14.

NC State will be hosting the the 2004 Southeast Regional Gymnastics Championships this Saturday in Reynolds Coliseum at 6 p.m. Six teams, five all-around competitors and one individual event specialist per event were named to each of the six regions across the country. The top two teams and the top two all-around competitors from each regional will receive an automatic berth to the national championships in Los Angeles, Calif., April 15-17, hosted by the University of California, Los Angeles.

This is the first time NC State has hosted the regionals, and also the first time the regionals have been held in the state of North Carolina. Obviously the NCAA Regional here in Raleigh, N.C., is going to be a big event, as only two teams advance to the NCAA Championships.

The field of teams that are coming to NC State is perhaps the toughest of the six regions, with five of the teams are ranked in the top-25. Defending national champion UCLA heads the field, as the Bruins are currently the top ranked team in the country. UCLA feature six national team gymnasts from various countries, and have a team high score of 198.875 this season. Led by the EAGL conference's gymnast of the year, No. 12 North Carolina has set almost every school record this season. The Tar Heels coming in with a 28-2 record, placed second at the EAGL Championships. No. 13 Nebraska has posted a top score of 198.000 this season, and finished fourth at the Big 12 Championships. West Virginia won its fifth EAGL Championships just last weekend with a meet record 197.050. The Mountaineers are currently ranked 21st this week. No. 22 NC State finished just behind WVU and UNC at the EAGL Championships in third. The Wolfpack (20-12) has posted six scores this season that ranked in the top-10 all-time for team scores. The final team is Maryland, the only team not ranked in the top-25, the Terps finished fifth at the EAGL Championships and are No. 31 nationally.