March 26, 2012

Marie Case & Rachel Goldenberg, Gymnastics

Gymnasts Marie Case (Erie, Pa.) and Rachel Goldenberg (Doylestown, Pa.) have been named the Kent State Student-Athletes of the Week.

Case, a sophomore, was named the Mid-American Conference's Gymnast of the Year, the conference office announced following the 2012 MAC Gymnastics Championships. Joining Case among the conference's elite gymnasts was Goldenberg, a senior, who was selected as the MAC's Specialist of the Year along with Northern Illinois' Megan Melendez.

This season, Case owned the highest all-around average score in the MAC (38.947) and had both the highest season average in the conference on both the balance beam (9.753) and floor exercise (9.861). In the season finale against Cornell March 18, Case scored career highs in both events – 9.925 on the beam and 9.950 on the floor – which both rank in the top 10 in Kent State history. She was also selected as the MAC's Gymnast of the Week four times, including the final three weeks of the season. Case finished second in the all-around competition at the MAC Championships, with her best effort coming with a tie for fifth on the floor exercise (9.850) to lead Kent State.

Goldenberg was the Mid-American Conference's top performer on the vault throughout the 2012 regular season, averaging 9.833 to lead the MAC while posting the highest single score (9.900) leading to the MAC Championship. Goldenberg was also a top performer on the floor exercise, where she had three first-place finishes against MAC competition. Goldenberg was also a three-time MAC Specialist of the Week honoree. She tied for second overall on the vault with a 9.875 at the MAC Championships.

The honor marks the third straight season Kent State boasted the conference's top gymnast. Christine Abou-Mitri won the award outright in 2010 while Christina Lenny was the co-gymnast in 2011.

Kent State will await the announcement on Monday (March 26) of the field for the 2012 NCAA Gymnastics Championships. Regional action, which will take place April 7, will be at six venues leading to the national championship in Duluth, Ga., April 20-22.