Nov. 17, 2011
PHOTOSTEMPE, Ariz.--Arizona State women's gymnastics head coach John Spini announced today that four gymnasts have signed letters of intent to study and compete for the Sun Devils. The level-10 signees, Alexandra Cope of Allentown, Pa., Kristine Levin of Frisco, Texas, Stephanie Miceli of Bethpage, NY and Risa Perez of Las Vegas, Nev., will attend Arizona State starting in the fall of 2012.
"We are very excited to welcome these four gymnasts to the Sun Devil family," said Spini. "We look forward to having them represent Arizona State both athletically and scholastically."
Cope joins the Sun Devils from Parkettes Gymnastics where she placed second on floor in her region and fourth in all-around competition. With her top-five finishes, Cope qualified for her second-consecutive trip to Junior Olympic Nationals. Cope also took home the top honors in both all-around and floor at the 2011 Parkette Invitational meet.
Alex Cope
"Alex comes from the Parkettes where [current Gym Devil] Morgan [Steigerwalt] is from," said Spini. "She is very hard working. Alex will come in and do a really good job on beam, bars and floor, with floor being one of her better events."
Levin joins the Sun Devils from the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy based in Dallas, Texas. Placing in the top-10 in every event in which she competed, Levin also qualified for her second-consecutive appearance at the Junior Olympic Nationals. On her way to qualifying, Levin placed third on floor and sixth in all-around in her respective region.
"Kristine has great lines and is a great bar worker," said Spini. "Her lines and her elegance is something that we really like here at ASU. I think she is really going to a solid bar and beam worker for the Sun
Devils."
Kristine Levin
Miceli joins the Sun Devils from Gold Medal Gymnastics Center where she took the top spot on beam in every meet leading up Junior Olympic Nationals. The New York native swept almost every event at regionals, finishing first on beam, bars, floor and all-around. At JO Nationals, Miceli finished one place short of going undefeated on beam the entire season, finishing in second place. She also placed fifth on floor and sixth in all-around at JO Nationals.
"Stephanie Miceli is just the total package," said Spini. "She is going to be very dynamic and has a lot of power and consistency on beam. She's a huge workhorse and a four-event athlete. She is very, very talented and also is coached very well. "
Stephanie Miceli
Perez joins the Sun Devils from GymCats Gymnastics, where she is known as a skilled dancer. The Nevada native took top honors on floor at regionals to qualify for the Junior Olympic National Championships. At JO Championships, Perez finished third on bars, seventh on beam and eighth overall in all-around. She also finished in the top-10 on beam in every meet in which she competed in 2011.
"I think Risa Perez is going to bring a lot of spunk and personality," said Spini. "She is going be a beautiful floor worker for us and is also a good beam worker. I think if she does what she is capable of, she is going to come in and help us on all four events."
Risa Perez
"With the recruiting class we brought in last year, this year and the kids we're currently looking at, I think we're going to be back in the top-10 consistently, if not shooting for spots in the Super Six.," said Spini. "With these girls we're going to be very competitive and back in the national limelight, no doubt."
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