Jan. 12, 2002

AMHERST, Mass. - The University of Massachusetts women's gymnastics team dropped a 187.900-185.175 decision to Rutgers in its season opener here on Saturday. With the loss, UMass falls to 0-1, while Rutgers evens its record at 1-1.

The Minutewomen were led by junior Katie Teft (Grand Rapids, Mich.), who recorded meet highs on both uneven bars and balance beam. Teft, the UMass school record holder in both events, recorded a 9.775 on uneven bars and a 9.575 on balance beam.

Rutgers was led by Katie Russo, who totaled 38.175 in the all-around. She also recorded the meet high on floor exercise, tallying a 9.800.

"I thought we competed hard today," head coach Dave Kuzara said. "This meet was good for our youngsters to get a taste of what it's like to compete on the collegiate level. We learned what we need to work on this week before our next meet."

The Minutewomen will return to action next weekend, as they travel to New Haven, Conn., to take on Yale on Sunday. The meet is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m.