Pitt Gymnastics Signs Four During Early Period
11/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
Nov. 15, 2009
PITTSBURGH -
The Pitt gymnastics program, led by head coach Debbie Yohman, announced the signing of four National Letters of Intent on Friday.
The Panthers will welcome Nicole Galluzzo, Maya Ketner, Kori Macdonald and Katie O’Rourke to the squad as part of the 2010 signing class.
“Coming on the heels of this year's freshman class we will have a stellar group of underclassmen to help lead us in the future,” Yohman said. “These four young women have talent, experience and a confident ‘swagger’ that leads us to believe that they will continue to succeed at an even higher level this year and as they begin their collegiate careers.
“Katie (O’Rourke) is the elegant technician; she can do anything on beam (her favorite event), her bars have skyrocketed from being her weakest event to big time, and her vault and floor are solid, making her an all-around dynamo,” Yohman continued. “Maya (Ketner) and Nicole (Gullazzo) are the power gymnasts — strong vaults, big bars, they hit on beam and they perform lights out on floor.
“Kori (Macdonald) completes the group with the most unique skill set and potentially the most difficulty on bars, beam and floor. All four are excellent students with high academic and gymnastics goals, and they all possess the leadership qualities that we are continuing to cultivate for our program. They should garner considerable attention in the Junior Olympic program this year and we look forward to having them at Pitt next fall.”
Galluzzo, a four-time Junior Olympic national qualifier, will come to Pitt from Old Brookville, N.Y. As a Level 10 gymnast from Gold Medal Gymnastics on Long Island, Galluzzo is coached by Tammy Marshall, who helped lead her to the 2009 Level 10 Region 6 all-around and floor exercise championships. Galluzzo also finished third on the vault and fourth on the beam.
In 2009, Galluzzo took fourth on the floor and finished 19th in the all-around at the Junior Olympics. Also in 2009, she was the New York state bar champion. In 2008, she finished 22nd in the all-around and in 2007, Galluzzo finished 26th. Galluzzo, the daughter of Frank and Linda Galluzzo holds a 4.0 grade point average at North Shore High School and is interested in pursuing a degree in engineering, or in the medical field.
Ketner, a native of Okemos, Mich., is a Level 10 gymnast from Geddert’s Twistars, who is a two-time Junior Olympic National qualifier coached by John and Kathryn Geddert. Ketner took 12th in the all-around, second on the bars and 11th on the floor in 2009, while finishing 26th in the all-around and sixth on bars in 2008.
At the 2009 Level 10 Region 5 meet, Ketner took the all-around, vault and bars titles and finished second on floor. The daughter of Patrick Ketner and Alexandra Walker, Ketner will graduate from Okemos High School.
Macdonald will come to Pitt from Colonie, N.Y., where the Level 10 gymnast is coached by Bob and Jo Piehler at World Class Gymnastics Academy. In 2009, Macdonald won the state title on the bars and finished sixth in the all-around.
The daughter of Mike and Miya Macdonald, Kori was 22nd on the vault as a 2009 Junior Olympic National qualifier and at the Region 6 championship, finished second on bars and third in the all-around and on the beam. Macdonald would like to pursue a degree in the science and technology field.
O’ Rourke, a native of Springfield, Va., is coached by Tatiana Perskaia, Alex Vorobyov and Marina Gerom at the Capital Gymnastics National Training Center, where she is a Level 10 gymnast. In 2009, O’Rourke earned NIT All-Around Champion honors, while finishing second on the beam and floor and fourth on the vault and bars.
Also in 2009, O’Rourke took 12th in the all-around, eight on the beam and 12th on the floor in the Region 7 championships. In 2008, she was the region all-around and beam champion and is a two-time Junior Olympic National qualifier (2007, 2008).
Pitt will host its annual Blue and Gold inter squad meet on Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. at Fitzgerald Field House.