UF gymnastics still hungry despite success

Rhonda Faehn made a symbolic demand of her third-ranked Florida gymnastics team prior to leaving for today's SEC Championships in Duluth, Ga.

Faehn told her gymnasts to leave their SEC Championship T-shirts and rings at home.

"I don't want our athletes thinking back to last year," Faehn said. "Last year was a phenomenal accomplishment. But if they relax because of that, it's a recipe for trouble."

Defending an SEC Championship is an unusual situation for the Gators. Florida captured its first SEC title since 1989 by scoring a 197.325 at last year's SEC Championships in Duluth, Ga.

It was a signature moment for Faehn and her gymnasts. So much so, the team removed a giant SEC sign from the arena and crammed it onto the plane on the flight home. That sign still hangs in the team's practice studio inside the O'Connell Center.

"It meant a lot," sophomore Melanie Sinclair said. "It was that one moment that made us stand out because we've always been the underdog. To step up and take that winning spot was a big deal."

Sinclair, though, seems to have taken her coach's message to heart.

"We're not going in thinking about what we did last year," Sinclair said. "This is a different year. A different time. We've got a different mind-set."

Florida has already been humbled this season. The Gators' two losses have come to SEC foes Alabama and Georgia. The Gators lost by .025 to Georgia on Jan. 18 in the O'Connell and then fell by .100 to Alabama on Feb. 29 in Tuscaloosa.

"I think that was a positive," Faehn said. "I don't ever want to lose. But the positive thing about losing is you learn from it. I think that made them even more hungry."

It showed during Florida's last meet. The Gators were nearly flawless in a season-ending 197.70 to 196.875 win over then-No. 2 Utah in the O'Connell Center on March 14.

"We've been building every week up to this," senior Ashley Reed said. "I think we're the most ready for this meet out of all of them."

This year's field is once again loaded. The meet will feature six teams ranked in the GymInfo top 13 including No. 1 Georgia, No. 3 Florida, No. 5 LSU, No. 6 Alabama, No. 11 Arkansas and No. 13 Auburn.

Georgia and Alabama had won the previous 17 SEC titles prior to Florida winning it last year.

"I would say it's one of the more wide open (SEC Championships)," Faehn said. "Georgia being ranked No. 1 right now, I think they are the favorite. But there are several other teams that would beg to differ."