PISCATAWAY, NJ – Rutgers senior gymnast Kristen Marino (Hillsborough, NJ) was named the East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) Specialist of the Week. This is the second time this season that Marino has received the award, which honors gymnasts who compete in less than three events.

A competitor on vault and bars, Marino led the Scarlet Knights at Maryland (March 15), where she finished second on vault with a 9.825 and tied for third on bars with a 9.850. Her score on vault tied the third-highest in RU history, a mark she has now set three times this season. Marino also owns the second-highest score on vault, the 9.850 she posted against No. 4 Arizona State and No. 25 California (Feb. 28). She is third all time among the bars records for scoring a 9.925 against Bridgeport and Temple (Feb. 22).

A graduate of Middletown North HS, Marino is eighth in the Northeast region with a 9.835 regional qualifying score (RQS) for bars, sitting 15th for vault with a 9.770 RQS.

Marino is the first RU gymnast to receive the award twice in her career, let alone the same season. She also is the only EAGL gymnast to receive the specialist award twice this year, the first in which the honor has been awarded. She joins former teammate Katie Russo (1999-2002) and Meredith Behson (1994-1997) as only the third RU gymnast to receive the league honor.

Marino and the Scarlet Knights will conclude the 2003 regular season at North Carolina Saturday, March 22, at 2 p.m.