Dec. 1, 2008

LOGAN, Utah - Utah State head gymnastics coach Jeff Richards has announced that Diana Karavida, Amelia Montoya and Amanda Watamaniuk (pronounced What-ta-ma-nook) have signed letters of intent to compete for the Aggies beginning in the 2010 season.

"They'll definitely come in and help us our right away. With only losing one senior from this season's roster, bringing these three in should make a big impact for our team," Richards said of his first recruiting class as USU head coach. "All three of these gymnasts are terrific student-athletes, they are successful both academically and in gymnastics."

Karavida is a native of Elk Grove Village, Ill., where she competes for Illinois Gymnastics Institute (IGI) for Todd Gardiner, the same gym as current Aggie redshirt-freshman Erica Huelsmann. Karavida won the Illinois state crown on beam as a junior as well as finishing third on beam at the Level 10 Senior B Regionals with a 9.525. In the all-around at the regionals, Karavida was 13th with a 37.125 total as well as 16th on floor (9.275), 19th on vault (9.300) and 22nd on bars (9.025). In 2007, she was fifth in the all-around and seventh on floor at Level Nine at the national meet. She is the daughter of Michael and Donna Karavida.

"Diana comes from a very well established gym and they turn out a lot of good kids, including fellow Aggie gymnast Erica Huelsmann. They've always produced a lot of successful college gymnasts," Richards said. "She'll compete in the all-around for us, but her true strengths are beam and vault. Her strongest event is beam, that's where she has the most skill level and bonus in her routines."

Montoya hails from Mission Viejo, Calif., where she competes at South Coach Gymnastics, the same club that produced current USU freshman Rebecca Holliday. Her current coaches are former Chinese Olympian Xiaoping Li and Jia Wen. Montoya was 20th in the all-around at last spring's Region I Level 10 Senior B meet with a 35.300 score. She was also 11th on beam (9.100) as well as tied for 15th on bars (8.825), tied for 19th on vault (8.975) and 23rd on floor (8.400). At the Southern California State Championships, Montoya was ninth in the all-around for Level 10 Senior B with a 35.275, as well as third on floor with a 9.400. She is the daughter of Angel and Laura Montoya.

"Beam is also Amelia's strength. She's a hard worker and a very determined gymnast," Richards said. "She'll be in the all-around but her strongest events are beam and floor, but beam is by far where she excels. She's from the same gym at South Coach Gymnastics as (freshman) Rebecca Holliday, who is also great on the beam, so they've had a great deal of beam success. They have a lot of difficulty in their routines."

Watamaniuk is a Dayton, Ohio, native, and competed for Gym-Nation club, where her coaches were Patrick Jordan and Sandi Hinson. At the Level 10 Senior B Regionals last spring, Watamaniuk was 20th in the all-around with a 36.500. She was also 17th on bars (9.125), 19th on both beam (8.925) and floor (9.150) as well as 20th on vault (9.300). She is the daughter of Scott and Lori Watamaniuk.

"I've worked with Amanda the past four or five years at Lake Owen Gymnastics Camp in Wisconsin, and I've been impressed with seeing her talent progress," Richards said. "She's a hard worker. I see her competing in the all-around but her best events are bars and floor. She'll come in and compete right away."

Utah State finished last season with a 6-18 overall record and 2-6 WAC mark, finishing fifth at the WAC Championships meet. While USU did not qualify as a team to the NCAA North Central Regional Gymnastics meet, the Aggies sent six individuals. The Aggies, who were ranked No. 38 in the final rankings, return six letterwinners, including four all-WAC honorees.

USU kicks off the season with the Blue and White Exhibition on Saturday, Dec. 6 at 2 p.m. at the HPER gym.

The Aggies officially open the season on Saturday, Jan. 10 at Kentucky. USU's home-opener is on Friday, Jan. 16, against Central Michigan.

All USU home meets begin at 7 p.m. at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

Gymnastics tickets are available through the USU Ticket Office at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, online at www.UtahStateAggies.com and clicking on "tickets" in left column, or by calling 1-888-U-STATE-1 or (435) 797-0305.

-USU-