The University of Alabama women’s gymnastics coach Sarah Patterson will be the guest speaker at the 2013 Escambia County University of Alabama Alumni and Friends annual meeting and membership drive.
The meeting will be held Tuesday, September 10 at the Country Club of Brewton. Registration will begin at 6 p.m. followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m.
“The Escambia County University of Alabama Alumni and Friends group is excited about the upcoming annual meeting to be held on Tuesday, September 10 at the Country Club of Brewton,” Miriam McDaniel, president of the Escambia County Alabama’s University of Alabama Alumni and Friends club, said. “UA women’s gymnastics coach Sarah Patterson will be the keynote speaker. Coach Patterson is the last coach appointed by Bear Bryant during his tenure as Athletic Director at the University of Alabama, and under her leadership which started in 1978 she has built the program into one of the most successful in the history of college gymnastics, boasting six NCAA championships. In addition to Coach Patterson, Tide Treasures will be set up with Alabama items and memorabilia for sale, raffle tickets will be sold for chances to win cute door prizes, and of course a delicious buffet dinner will be served. So join or renew your membership and make plans to be with us at this fantastic event.”
According to their bio on www.rolltide.com, in their 36 years at Alabama, Sarah and David Patterson have built a program that has excelled and thrived at the highest levels in all areas of the collegiate experience, leading the Crimson Tide to championship performances in the gym and the classroom while making a difference in the community around them.
In 2012, Alabama won its second NCAA championship in a row, marking the first time the Crimson Tide gymnastics program has won back-to-back national titles. Over that two-year span, 10 gymnasts earned 29 All-America honors.
That sustained greatness led to the Pattersons becoming the only coaches in collegiate gymnastics history to win NCAA titles in four different decades – with the first coming in the 1980s, followed by two in the 1990s, one in the 2000s and now two in the 2010s.
With six NCAA championships to her credit, Sarah has joined Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant for the most career national championships by a Crimson Tide head coach.
The Tide has not missed an NCAA Championships appearance since, making it 30 in a row in 2012, the second longest streak in the history of collegiate gymnastics.
During that 30-year span, Alabama became one of just four teams in collegiate gymnastics history to win an NCAA championship. The Tide has also finished in the top six 28 times, including 21 top-three finishes.
Alabama followed the 1988 NCAA crown with national championships in 1991, 1996, 2002, 2011 and 2012. The Tide collected SEC titles in 1988, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2003, 2009 and 2011.
Individually, Alabama gymnasts have earned 277 All-America honors and 23 individual NCAA championships. Seven times a member of the Crimson Tide has earned the Honda Award, presented annually to the nation’s top gymnast. UA gymnasts have also earned the NCAA Today’s Top VIII Award – presented annually to the nation’s top-eight senior student-athletes, regardless of gender or NCAA division – four times.
Patterson-coached athletes have earned 22 NCAA and SEC postgraduate scholarships, another figure that is best in the nation, as well as 175 Scholastic All-America and 246 SEC Academic Honor Roll accolades.
The event will be $25 per person. Guests are asked to RSVP by Thursday, September 5. For more information, contact McDaniel at 251-363-2020 or by fax at 251-809-8485. McDaniel can also be reached by email at mmcdaniel@indata.us.
Membership for the group is $15 for individuals or $25 for family. Please make checks payable and mail to: Escambia County Alumni Chapter, P.O. Box 1662, Brewton, Alabama, 36427.