Weekend of Champions to Honor 2005 Women's Gymnastics Team

The 2005 Nebraska women’s gymnastics team will be honored on the field at Memorial Stadium for Saturday’s Nebraska vs. Northwestern football game. The team will be recognized as a part of Nebraska’s Weekend of Champions, honoring the 1995 football and volleyball and 2005 women’s gymnastics, baseball and volleyball programs. The 2005 team won the Big 12 Conference championship and finished sixth nationally after advancing to the NCAA Super Six Finals.

Coach Dan Kendig’s 12th season at the helm of the Husker program was one of his most successful, as his team defeated eight nationally ranked squads in 2005. Kendig appreciates the honor that has been given to his program and looks forward to the weekend with the 2005 team.

“I think it’s awesome to have people who have been successful in the past to come back and be recognized,” said Kendig.

The Huskers were led by nine-time All-American Richelle Simpson, who was the 2005 South Central Regional Co-Gymnast of the Year. An NCAA All-Around and Floor Exercise Champion in 2003, Simpson provided a spark in Nebraska’s run to the NCAA Super Six Finals as a senior in 2005, winning Big 12 Conference titles in the all-around and floor exercise before an injury prior to the Super Six cut her season short. The Toronto, Ontario, native was a standout outside of the gym as well, becoming NU’s first AAI American Award winner in 2005, an honor given to the nation’s top gymnast on the basis of athleticism, academic excellence and civic responsibility. She was also an NCAA Top Eight Award winner, the highest honor given by the NCAA.

A pair of first-team All-Americans joined Simpson in leading the Huskers in 2005. Emily Parsons captured the first of her 11 All-America honors in 2005. The freshman from St. Charles, Mo., was named a first-team All-American in the floor exercise in 2005 while being named second-team All-American in vault, balance beam and all-around in 2005. Parsons also captured Big 12 Newcomer of the Year recognition.

Michele Zabawa, a sophomore from Omaha, was a Big 12 Conference champion with a score of 9.90 on the uneven bars, while being named a second-team All-American on bars. Jamie Saas, a senior from Aurora, Ill., was a second-team All-American on the uneven bars and a third team All-Big 12 performer in the floor exercise. Desire’ Sniatynski was also named a second-team All-American in the uneven bars in 2005.

 Kristi Esposito won her third first-team All-America honor that year, as she was named an All-American on the balance beam. The sophomore from Slidell, La., finished in a tie for national runner up on the beam.

After a slow start to the year in which the Huskers lost to three straight top 10 teams, the Huskers went on a furious streak of victories including a victory over top-ranked Utah and a first-place finish at the Master’s Classic, leading to Nebraska’s first-ever No. 1 ranking. The Huskers defeated Iowa State, Oklahoma and Missouri at the Big 12 Championships and took second in the NCAA South Central Regional, qualifying them for the NCAA Preliminaries. Three straight victories to close the round led to the Huskers’ fifth NCAA Super Six berth. The Huskers finished sixth in a star-studded group that included, Georgia, Alabama, Utah, UCLA and Michigan.

These Husker teams will be honored at half-time at the Nebraska vs. Northwestern football game.