SAINT PAUL, Minn. - The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater gymnastics team punched their ticket to the program's ninth consecutive trip to the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association Division III Championships with the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference/NCGA West Regional title Sunday afternoon. The Warhawks' totaled 191.750, set a program record on the bars and registered three individual champions, the third season in a row UW-Whitewater has had multiple champions, to capture the team's fourth title in six seasons. 

The top three teams in each region advance to the national championships. The Warhawks third-best team total in school history secured their place in the finals. UW-Whitewater will be joined by West Region representatives UW-La Crosse and UW-Stout. The Blue Devils leap-frogged Winona State in the final rotation to punch their ticket to the championships. East Region representatives were determined by Saturday's regional with Ursinus, Brockport State and SUNY-Cortland advancing to the championships.

The regional meet format is an eight-team flighted meet. Four teams compete in each flight with one flight on the competition floor at a time. 

UW-Whitewater opened the meet hosted by Hamline University the best way possible, with a school record in the bars. The Warhawks hit all six of their routines with the scoring five placing among the top ten in the event individually. Courtney Pickett (Brentwood, TN/Brentwood) tied for second with a score of 9.725. Stephanie Cross (Arizona City, AZ/Casa Grande Union) performed a routine scoring 9.700 to tie for fourth and Grayson Esslinger (Oshkosh, WI/Oshkosh West) added a 9.675 to tie for sixth. Katie Fiorilli (Solon, OH/Solon) and Cici Talcott (Kentwood, MI/East Kentwood) tied for eighth with identical scores of 9.650 to register a 48.400, the high event score for any team on any event in the meet. 

The Warhawks kept the momentum going in their next rotation on the balance beam. UW-Whitewater totaled 47.525, the seventh highest total in the program record book. In her first meet competing in the competition rotation, Kate Mierow (Brookfield, WI/Brookfield Central) performed a routine that scored 9.625 to win the event and secure her spot in the individual finals at the NCGA Championships. Mierow is the fourth Warhawk to capture the WIAC beam title in program history. Hannah Lee (Clarksville, TN/Clarksville) and Fiorilli added scores of 9.500 to tie for sixth in the event. Pickett's routine brought a 9.475 from the judges for tenth. 

Talcott, performed her signature Michael Jackson routine on the floor scoring 9.75 to tie for second and lead the Warhawks to an event total of 47.600. Lee (9.575), Steffi Heuer (Clarksville, TN/Middle College at APSU) (9.525), Pickett (9.475) and Fiorilli (9.300) rounded out UW-Whitewater's scoring five.

With UW-La Crosse and UW-Whitewater in separate flights, the Eagles made a push for the title in their final rotation, the floor exercise. The Warhawks headed to the vault for their final event of the evening and sealed the title with the second-highest vault total in program history, 48.225. Four Warhawks finished in the top five led by Fiorilli who earned her second career individual WIAC championship with a score of 9.775. Fiorilli is the third Warhawk to earn a conference title in the event adding the championship to her all-around title from a year ago. Chloe Rehberg (Cary, IL/Cary-Grove) and Talcott tied for second with scores of 9.650. In fifth, Pickett added a 9.625. 

For the second straight season, a Warhawk stood on top of the podium as the all-around awards were announced. Pickett topped the competition with a total of 38.300, tied for seventh-best in the Warhawk record book becoming the third UW-Whitewater gymnast to win the event in program history. Fiorilli finished second in the all-around, just one tenth behind her teammate. 

Qualifiers for the NCGA Individual Finals were determined by a national qualifying score this season. Nine gymnasts from each region advance for the opportunity to compete in the individual championships based on a combination of season average and regional score. An additional tenth gymnast may be included on each event from each region if the regional winner was not already included in the nine-gymnast qualifier list. 

The unofficial list of qualifiers includes ten Warhawks. The beam will be dominated by Warhawks with six of the ten spots occupied by gymnasts sporting the purple and white. The vault and the bars each have four UW-Whitewater qualifiers and Talcott is the team's lone representative on the floor. Two Warhawks will compete in the all-around competition held during the team championships on the first day of the NCGA finals. 

Unofficial List of UW-Whitewater Qualifiers
Katie Fiorilli (Solon, OH/Solon) - Vault, Bars, Beam, All-Around
Courtney Pickett (Brentwood, TN/Brentwood) - Vault, Bars, Beam, All-Around
Cici Talcott (Kentwood, MI/East Kentwood) - Vault, Bars, Floor
Chloe Rehberg (Cary, IL/Cary-Grove) - Vault
Stephanie Cross (Arizona City, AZ/Casa Grande Union) - Bars
Grayson Esslinger (Oshkosh, WI/Oshkosh West) - Bars
Hannah Lee (Clarksville, TN/Clarksville) - Beam
Kristen Shackleton (New Lenox, IL/Lincoln Way Central) - Beam
Steffi Heuer (Clarksville, TN/Middle College at APSU) - Beam
Kate Mierow (Brookfield, WI/Brookfield Central) - Beam 

UW-La Crosse will play host to the NCGA Championships this season. The team finals and all-around competition are slated for Friday, March 27 with the individual finals to follow on the 28th. More information regarding the national finals will be posted as it becomes available.