Seniors Lissette La Fex In The All-Around And Melissa Doucette As A Vault Alternate Selected For NCAA Gymnastics Regional

Indianapolis, Indiana-The 2014 National Collegiate Women's Gymnastics Championships regional selections have been announced, and University of Bridgeport seniors Lissette La Fex (Diamond Bar, Calif.) and Melissa Doucette (Somersworth, N.H.) were among those who hear their names called.  La Fex will be one of five all-around competitors who are not on a qualifying team to compete in the University Park Regional hosted by Penn State University on Saturday, April 5.   Doucette was named an alternate as an individual on the vault.

Six teams, five all-around competitors (who are not on a qualifying team) and one individual event specialist per event (who has a minimum Regional Qualifying Score [RQS] of 9.4) were named to each of the six predetermined host sites.

The top-18 teams are seeded nationally, based on RQS, and placed into the bracket. Teams 19-36 are organized into three pods (19-24, 25-30 and 31-36) and placed geographically at one of the six sites, beginning with teams 19-24 followed by teams 25-30 and then finally teams 31-36. Seeding determined at the time of regional selections will be maintained throughout the championships. All-around competitors and event specialists are assigned to their respective geographic region.

In the event of a tie for the last berth into regional competition and for seeding purposes, the team, all-around competitor or individual event specialist with the highest score, not including the six used to calculate the regional qualifying score, will qualify. If a tie still exists, the process is continued until the tie is broken.

The qualifying teams and individuals are listed below. All regionals will be conducted April 5, with start times of either 4 or 6 p.m. local time.

University Park Regional (Host: Penn State)) – 4 p.m.

Teams
1. Florida
2. Oregon State
3. Penn State
4. New Hampshire
5. Kentucky
6. Maryland

All-Around Competitors                                             Individual Event Specialists
1. Brittney Harris, Pittsburgh                                    Vault – Maebelle Pacheco, Pittsburgh
2. Lissette La Fex, Bridgeport                                             Alt. – Melissa Doucette, Bridgeport
3. Diana Walters, Brown                                           Uneven Bars – Melanie Jorgensen, Cornell
4. Caroline Morant, Brown                                                   Alt. – Alexandra Chretien, Brown
5. Michelle Shnayder, Brown                                    Balance Beam – Katie O'Rourke, Pittsburgh
Alt. – Morgan Traina, Yale                                                   Alt. –Lindsay Offutt, Pittsburgh
                                                                                Floor Exercise – Katie O'Rourke, Pittsburgh
                                                                                            Alt. – Lindsay Offutt, Pittsburgh

The top two teams and the top two all-around competitors (who are not on an advancing team) from each regional will receive an automatic berth to the national championships in Birmingham, Ala., April 18-20, hosted by the University of Alabama and the Alabama Sports Foundation. The top two teams from the University Park, Fayetteville and Seattle regionals will compete in one of the semifinals, and the top two teams from the Minneapolis, Athens and Baton Rouge regionals will compete in the other semifinal.

In addition, the event winners at each regional site will advance to the national championships (in that event only) if they are not part of a qualifying team or an all-around qualifier.

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE 2014 NCAA WOMEN'S GYMNASTICS SELECTIONS RELEASE