Cougars open season with Deseret First Duel Friday

PROVO, Utah –  No. 3 Utah hosts BYU's women’s gymnastics team in the season opener for the Deseret First Duel Friday at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

“Our focus for the meet should be hitting routines and sticking landings,” BYU head coach Guard Young said. “We should not be worried about the scores. They are what they are. We can also focus on supporting each other no matter what is happening.”

The Cougars opened their 2015 season by scoring a 193.350 when Utah won at BYU's Marriott Center under previous head coach Brad Cattermole. 

BYU's new head coach came to BYU from the University of Oklahoma where he was an assistant men's gymnastics coach. In nine seasons at OU, Young, a former Olympian, was a part of four NCAA championship teams and five NCAA runner-up teams. Young looks to continue this trend and take his team to the NCAA championship.

"I really want to see everyone supporting each other's efforts as well as fight," Young said. "Being the first meet of the year things may not go as planned. I want to see how each athlete handles it when they need to make a quick adjustment."

The 2016 BYU team features 12 returners, four freshmen and one transfer. For more information on the season outlook, see the 2016 season preview.

The meet begins at 6 p.m. MST and will be televised live on the Pac-12 Network.