Four Continents Pairs Free Skate Results

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Ded. -	StN.
1	Kirsten MOORE-TOWERS / Dylan MOSCOVITCH	CAN	130.45	68.14		63.31	7.75	7.61	7.93	8.14	8.14	1.00	#7
2	Meagan DUHAMEL / Eric RADFORD	CAN	128.74	68.06		60.68	7.54	7.43	7.50	7.82	7.64	0.00	#4
3	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	117.04	59.03		58.01	7.21	7.11	7.14	7.36	7.43	0.00	#6
4	Felicia ZHANG / Nathan BARTHOLOMAY	USA	114.32	61.27		54.05	6.64	6.43	6.75	6.96	7.00	1.00	#5
5	Paige LAWRENCE / Rudi SWIEGERS	CAN	113.54	61.15		52.39	6.61	6.39	6.57	6.71	6.46	0.00	#1
6	Cheng PENG / Hao ZHANG	CHN	112.36	62.67		50.69	6.46	6.11	6.32	6.54	6.25	1.00	#3
7	Wenting WANG / Yan ZHANG	CHN	94.30	51.96		42.34	5.54	5.14	5.21	5.36	5.21	0.00	#2

Total

FPl.	Name	Nation	Points	SP	FS
1	Meagan DUHAMEL / Eric RADFORD	CAN	199.18	1	2
2	Kirsten MOORE-TOWERS / Dylan MOSCOVITCH	CAN	196.78	2	1
3	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	170.10	3	3
4	Felicia ZHANG / Nathan BARTHOLOMAY	USA	167.30	4	4
5	Cheng PENG / Hao ZHANG	CHN	164.82	5	6
6	Paige LAWRENCE / Rudi SWIEGERS	CAN	162.30	7	5
7	Wenting WANG / Yan ZHANG	CHN	145.56	6	7
WD	Alexa SCIMECA / Chris KNIERIM	USA

Four Continents Pairs Short Program Results

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Ded. -	StN.
1	Meagan DUHAMEL / Eric RADFORD	CAN	70.44	40.33		30.11	7.50	7.14	7.71	7.57	7.71	0.00	#6
2	Kirsten MOORE-TOWERS / Dylan MOSCOVITCH	CAN	66.33	36.47		29.86	7.32	7.11	7.50	7.64	7.75	0.00	#8
3	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	53.06	28.06		26.00	6.46	6.36	6.43	6.54	6.71	1.00	#5
4	Felicia ZHANG / Nathan BARTHOLOMAY	USA	52.98	29.60		24.38	6.07	5.86	6.11	6.25	6.18	1.00	#4
5	Cheng PENG / Hao ZHANG	CHN	52.46	27.95		24.51	6.39	5.93	5.96	6.29	6.07	0.00	#1
6	Wenting WANG / Yan ZHANG	CHN	51.26	28.87		22.39	5.68	5.43	5.54	5.68	5.68	0.00	#2
7	Paige LAWRENCE / Rudi SWIEGERS	CAN	48.76	25.13		25.63	6.61	6.25	6.18	6.54	6.46	2.00	#7
WD	Alexa SCIMECA / Chris KNIERIM	USA											#3

US Nationals Pairs Short Program Results

Place	Start No.	Name	Score
1	6	Marissa Castelli, SC Of Boston Simon Shnapir, SC Of Boston	62.27
2	4	Felicia Zhang, SC of New York Nathan Bartholomay, University of Delaware FSC	53.19
3	9	Alexa Scimeca, DuPage FSC Christopher Knierim, Broadmoor SC	52.79
4	10	Haven Denney, Broadmoor SC Brandon Frazier, All Year FSC	52.48
5	1	Lindsay Davis, All Year FSC Mark Ladwig, Red River Valley FSC	51.65
6	5	DeeDee Leng, DuPage FSC Timothy LeDuc, Eastern Iowa FSC	50.84
7	7	Gretchen Donlan, SC Of Boston Andrew Speroff, SC Of Boston	49.81
8	3	Kiri Baga, FSC of Bloomington Taylor Toth, DuPage FSC	48.13
9	2	Tarah Kayne, Southwest Florida FSC Daniel O'Shea, Skokie Valley SC	47.74
10	8	Tiffany Vise, Coyotes SC of Arizona Don Baldwin, Los Angeles FSC	44.41
EW		Caydee Denney, Broadmoor SC John Coughlin, Kansas City FSC
EW		Caitlin Yankowskas, Colonial FSC Joshua Reagan, Stars FSC of Texas

US Nationals Senior Pairs Preview

Donlan and Speroff are the highest ranked team returning to U.S. Nationals this season.  They claimed the pewter medal at nationals this season and received acclaim for their Sleeping Beauty free skate.  She has a balletic quality and a Russian pairs look to her skating that this team uses to their advantage but they have struggled with their side by side jumps.  They have kept their free skate from last season but have struggled in their short program at their international events this season.  They have not yet met the short program minimum for Worlds so if they are named to the team they will have to meet the minimum at Four Continents.

Castelli and Shnapir have never stood on a national podium and finished 5th the last two seasons.  In the off season, they focused on their whole package and have traveled to Canada for their programs.  They won a bronze medal at NHK Trophy this season and are entering nationals as the favorites.   They have a throw triple axel and a throw quad salchow in their arsenal but will be going for clean programs here.  The spotlight will be on them in a way they haven't experienced before but if they stay focused and hit their programs like they have all season, they should be able to not only land on the podium for the first time but claim the top spot.

Scimeca and Knierim are a brand new team that are experiencing quick success this season.  They both competed at nationals last season with other partners and finished 10th and 7th respectively.  After teaming up this summer, they found chemistry both on and off the ice and were able to win gold at Cup of Nice over reigning European Bronze Medalists Stolbova and Klimov.  That win earned them a trip to NHK Trophy as a substitute where they finished 4th.

Zhang and Bartholomay had a great showing at nationals last season and despite skating a day before the top teams in the early groups they had a standout performance that was still being talked about the next day.  She was injured at Sectionals so they skated through most of their elements but if she is healthy they have a good shot at challenging for the podium.

Also in the mix are veteran team Vise/Baldwin, new team Kayne/O'Shea and the new pairing of Davis/Ladwig.  Reigning Junior Champions Denney and Frazier will also make their senior debut after competing as juniors internationally this fall.

My podium predictions:
Gold: Castelli/Shnapir
Silver: Scimeca/Knierim
Bronze: Donlan/Speroff
Pewter: Zhang/Bartholomay

Bios of the competitors:
Baga/Toth: She represents the Figure Skating Club of Bloomington and he represents the DuPage Figure Skating Club.  They won bronze at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.  Nationally, they have the 3rd best short program, 4th best free skate and 4th best total scores.

Castelli/Shnapir: She is 22 and he is 25 and they represent the Skating Club of Boston.  They placed 5th at Skate America and won bronze at NHK Trophy.  They are the 2009 World Junior bronze medalists.  They placed 9th in Novice in 2007, are the 2008 Novice bronze medalists, the 2009 Junior bronze medalists, placed 10th in Seniors in 2010, 5th in 2011 and 5th in 2012.  Internationally, they have the 8th best short program, 10th best free skate and 9th best total scores.

Davis/Ladwig: He is 32 and represents the Red River Valley Figure Skating Club.  They finished 7th at Skate Canada and 6th at NHK Trophy.

Denney/Frazier: She is 17 and he is 20.  She represents the Broadmoor Skating Club and he represents the All Year Figure Skating Club.  They placed 4th at JGP USA.  They are the 2008 Intermediate Pairs bronze medalists and reigning Junior Champions.

Donlan/Speroff: She is 19 and he is 24 and they represent the Skating Club of Boston.  They placed 6th at Skate America.  They finished 8th in Juniors in 2010 and 8th as Seniors in 2011.  They are the reigning pewter medalists.

Kayne/O'Shea: She represents the Southwest Florida Figure Skating Club and he represents the Skokie Valley Skating Club.  They won gold at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.  Nationally, they have the 4th best short program, 2nd best free skate and 2nd best total scores.

Leng/LeDuc: She represents the DuPage Figure Skating Club.  He is 22 and represents the Eastern Iowa Figure Skating Club.  They won silver at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.  Nationally, they have the 2nd best short program, 3rd best free skate and 3rd best total scores.

Scimeca/Knierim: She is 21 and represents the DuPage Figure Skating Club.  They placed 4th at NHK Trophy.  He is 25 and represents the Broadmoor Skating Club.  They won gold at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.  Nationally, they have the best short program, free skate and total scores.

Vise/Baldwin: She is 26 and represents the Broadmoor Skating Club.  He is 35 and represents the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club.  They finished 6th at Skate Canada and 6th at Rostelecom Cup.  They placed 8th in 2011 and 9th in 2011.

Zhang/Bartholomay: She is 19 and represents the Skating Club of New York.  He is 23.  They finished 8th at nationals last season.  They won silver at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.  Nationally, they have the 5th best short program, free skate and total scores.

NHK Trophy Pairs Free Skate Results

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Ded. -	StN.
1	Vera BAZAROVA / Yuri LARIONOV	RUS	126.41	63.04		63.37	7.89	7.82	8.00	8.11	7.79	0.00	#7
2	Kirsten MOORE-TOWERS / Dylan MOSCOVITCH	CAN	115.49	56.56		59.93	7.68	7.39	7.43	7.64	7.32	1.00	#6
3	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	112.66	55.33		58.33	7.07	7.21	7.21	7.50	7.46	1.00	#5
4	Alexa SCIMECA / Chris KNIERIM	USA	108.69	58.87		49.82	6.46	5.89	6.43	6.29	6.07	0.00	#3
5	Anastasia MARTIUSHEVA / Alexei ROGONOV	RUS	105.18	53.76		51.42	6.68	6.39	6.32	6.57	6.18	0.00	#4
6	Lindsay DAVIS / Mark LADWIG	USA	98.09	50.62		48.47	6.29	5.86	6.00	6.18	5.96	1.00	#2
7	Nicole DELLA MONICA / Matteo GUARISE	ITA	79.39	38.08		43.31	5.64	5.29	5.25	5.68	5.21	2.00	#1

FPl.	Name	Nation	Points	SP	FS
1	Vera BAZAROVA / Yuri LARIONOV	RUS	192.02	1	1
2	Kirsten MOORE-TOWERS / Dylan MOSCOVITCH	CAN	180.63	2	2
3	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	174.51	3	3
4	Alexa SCIMECA / Chris KNIERIM	USA	163.10	5	4
5	Anastasia MARTIUSHEVA / Alexei ROGONOV	RUS	162.25	4	5
6	Lindsay DAVIS / Mark LADWIG	USA	143.70	6	6
7	Nicole DELLA MONICA / Matteo GUARISE	ITA	121.53	7	7

NHK Trophy Pairs Short Program Results

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Ded. -	StN.
1	Vera BAZAROVA / Yuri LARIONOV	RUS	65.61	34.67		30.94	7.75	7.54	7.93	7.75	7.71	0.00	#7
2	Kirsten MOORE-TOWERS / Dylan MOSCOVITCH	CAN	65.14	35.12		30.02	7.46	7.14	7.54	7.71	7.68	0.00	#6
3	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	61.85	33.64		28.21	6.86	6.86	7.25	7.07	7.21	0.00	#5
4	Anastasia MARTIUSHEVA / Alexei ROGONOV	RUS	57.07	31.07		26.00	6.75	6.21	6.61	6.68	6.25	0.00	#3
5	Alexa SCIMECA / Chris KNIERIM	USA	54.41	30.77		23.64	6.11	5.50	6.11	5.96	5.86	0.00	#1
6	Lindsay DAVIS / Mark LADWIG	USA	45.61	22.44		23.17	6.04	5.57	5.71	5.89	5.75	0.00	#2
7	Nicole DELLA MONICA / Matteo GUARISE	ITA	42.14	20.21		22.93	5.96	5.68	5.46	5.93	5.64	1.00	#4

NHK Trophy Pairs Preview

Pang/Tong, Volosozhar/Trankov, Kavaguti/Smirnov and Duhamel/Radford have all earned their tickets to Sochi while Denney/Coughlin and Berton/Hotarek await the outcome of this event.

Bazarova and Larionov started off their season with a silver medal at home at Rostelecom Cup.  They have struggled to put together two clean programs and land the side by side jumps but in this field they should be able to claim the top spot.  They need a 4th place finish or higher to qualify for the Final.

Moore-Towers and Moscovitch have approached the season with a new vigor, determined to reclaim their spot at the top Canadian pairs team.  They finished a disappointing 4th at Cup of China and will need a silver medal or better to qualify for the Final, which they should be able to do in this field.

Castelli/Shnapir and Martiusheva/Rogonov can qualify if they win the gold medal.  While this would be a tall order, Castelli and Shnapir have been gaining confidence all season and if they can sneak past Moore-Towers and Moscovitch for the silver medal, they can send their teammates Denney and Coughlin to the Final.

Scimeca and Knierim earned their spot at this event by winning Cup of Nice earlier this season.  They are still a relatively new team in their first season together but could be a spoiler at this event if they can clean up their free skate.

My podium predictions:
Gold: Bazarova/Larionov
Silver: Moore-Towers/Moscovitch
Bronze: Castelli/Shnapir

Bios of the competitors:
Moore-Towers/Moscovitch, CAN: They placed 4th at Cup of China.  Their personal best is 177.43.  She is 20 and he is 28.

Della Monica/Guarise, ITA: They placed 15th at Worlds.  They finished 7th at Rostelecom Cup.  Their personal best is 142.53.  She is 23 and he is 24.

Bazarova/Larionov, RUS: They finished 6th at Worlds and are the reigning European Silver Medalists.  They won silver at Rostelecom Cup.  They are the 2011 European Bronze Medalists and 2007 World Junior Silver Medalists.  Their personal best is 193.79.  She is 19 and he is 26.

Martiusheva/Rogonov, RUS: They placed 5th at Rostelecom Cup.  They are the 2009 World Junior Silver Medalists.  Their personal best is 151.10.  She is 17 and he is 24.

Castelli/Shnapir, USA: They placed 5th at Skate America.  They are the 2009 World Junior Bronze Medalists.  Their personal best is 164.19.  She is 22 and he is 25.

Davis/Ladwig, USA: They placed 7th at Skate Canada.  Their personal best is 122.26.  She is 20 and he is 32.

Scimeca/Knierim, USA: This is their Grand Prix debut.  She is 21 and he is 25.

Ice Challenge Senior Pairs Results

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Deduction -	StN.
1	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	60.44	33.80		26.64	6.50	6.58	6.83	6.58	6.83	0.00	#5
2	Danielle MONTALBANO / Evgeni KRASNOPOLSKY	ISR	42.87	24.07		18.80	4.83	4.50	4.92	4.75	4.50	0.00	#1
3	Gretchen DONLAN / Andrew SPEROFF	USA	41.36	20.30		22.06	5.67	5.33	5.58	5.50	5.50	1.00	#2
4	Stina MARTINI / Severin KIEFER	AUT	37.23	20.03		18.20	4.67	4.33	4.67	4.58	4.50	1.00	#3
5	Elizaveta MAKAROVA / Leri KENCHADZE	BUL	31.67	16.53		16.14	4.00	3.92	4.17	4.00	4.08	1.00	#4

Free Skate

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Deduction -	StN.
1	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	114.42	56.62		58.80	7.25	7.17	7.50	7.33	7.50	1.00	#5
2	Gretchen DONLAN / Andrew SPEROFF	USA	94.07	47.07		48.00	5.83	5.67	6.08	6.25	6.17	1.00	#3
3	Danielle MONTALBANO / Evgeni KRASNOPOLSKY	ISR	91.04	48.98		43.06	5.50	5.08	5.50	5.50	5.33	1.00	#4
4	Stina MARTINI / Severin KIEFER	AUT	77.09	40.30		36.79	4.58	4.33	4.75	4.75	4.58	0.00	#1
5	Elizaveta MAKAROVA / Leri KENCHADZE	BUL	68.62	38.28		31.34	4.17	3.67	3.92	4.00	3.83	1.00	#2

Total

FPl.	Name	Nation	Points	SP	FS
1	Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR	USA	174.86	1	1
2	Gretchen DONLAN / Andrew SPEROFF	USA	135.43	3	2
3	Danielle MONTALBANO / Evgeni KRASNOPOLSKY	ISR	133.91	2	3
4	Stina MARTINI / Severin KIEFER	AUT	114.32	4	4
5	Elizaveta MAKAROVA / Leri KENCHADZE	BUL	100.29	5	5

Indy Pairs Challenge Schedule and Competitors

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:   (Schedule may change due to number of entries)

Friday, August 3:

Senior SP

Junior SP

Saturday, August 4:

Senior FS

Junior FS

Senior

Andrews/Anderson
Baga/Toth
Castelli/Shnapir
Davis/Ladwig
Donlan/Speroff
Kayne/O'Shea
Vise/Baldwin
Zhang/Bartholomay

Bautista/Harris, PHI
Lawrence/Swiegers, CAN
Moore-Towers/Moscovitch, CAN
Purdy/Marinaro, CAN
Steele/Schultz, CAN

Junior

Belt/Johnson
De la Mora/Wilson
Fields/Pacini
Fujimoto/Barsi-Rhyne
Goldberg/Dolkiewicz
Oltmanns/Santillan
Pearce/Silecky
Shaughnessy/Morgan
Zaitsev/Stevens

Jones/Beharry, CAN

U.S. Nationals: Senior Pairs Short Program

Vise/Baldwin:

Bautista/Harris:

Donlan/Speroff: 32.17 TES + 25.60 PCS = 57.77 and into 1st place

• She has such beautiful extension through all of these transition moves 
• Nice triple twist with a good catch
• Side by side triple toes were pretty good, not completely together on the landing though
• Really nice entry to the hip hold with a perfect split position and an easy transition to the hand to hand hold with a one arm exit
• Huge throw triple salchow with a gorgeous landing
• Nice death spiral position right into the pairs spin; a little slow but nice positions and use of the arms

Fehr/Biver: 15.25 TES + 16.12 PCS = 31.37 and into 4th place

• They are skating to Madagascar
• Nice press up to a stomach hold with her in a catch foot position
• She doubles the side by side loops
• I'd like to see her legs a little more stretched out in the death spiral
• Double twist but she is completely vertical
• She two foots the landing of the throw triple salchow
• They need more speed and power through this step sequence
• They're really traveling on the pairs spin and not a lot of speed

Denney/Coughlin: 33.90 TES + 27.98 PCS -1.00 = 60.88 and into 1st place

• They are skating to East of Eden
• Huge triple twist
• Good unison on the triple toes
• Nice press into the lift but she could stretch through her positions more; exit into a fish dance lift
• She can't hang on to the throw triple flip and falls but it was huge
• I'd like to see her lower in the death spiral
• Good speed in the pairs spin with nice positions and a nice connection
  

Poapst/Knierim: 29.42 TES + 24.01 PCS = 53.43 and into 3rd place

• They are skating to Once Upon a December
• Big triple twist
• Nice throw triple salchow, maybe a little two footed on the landing
• Good side by side double axels (he actually singled, on the playback)
• Nice air positoin in the lift with a change of position to a hand to hand lift with one arm hold
• Nice death spiral but I'd like to see her do something with her free arm
• Nice unison and expression through the step sequence
• Nice fast pairs spin with good positions
  

Scimeca/Dimitrov: 29.75 TES + 22.18 PCS= 51.93 and into 4th place

•  A little crashy on the landing of the triple twist
• Not great landings for either of them on teh side by side triple salchows 
• She hangs on to the throw triple flip even with an awkward air position
• Nice low death spiral but he really lowers her onto the ice after the change of hold
• Nice hip lift hold with her on her side and a cartwheel exit
• Not a lot of speed in the first half of the pairs spin and a few of her positions could be more stretched out with her shoulders lowered

Zhang/Bartholomay: 27.82 TES + 21.75 PCS = 49.57 and into 5th place

• They are skating to Gershwin's piano concerto
• She bobbles right at the beginning on a simple opening pose
• Not a lot of height on the triple twist
• Side by side triple toes; no unison on the landing and he has some struggles
• Really nice landing on the throw triple 
• Good positions in the dance spin and while there's not a lot of speed it remains consistent
• Nice stretched out position from her in the lift although the position in the platter is less appealing
• He is really a nice performer and sold that step sequence to the crowd
• Interesting flip over his shoulder into the death spiral
• She is really flat in her death spiral and it look like she touched down to the ice at one point

Andrews/Le Duc: 24.55 TES + 21.80 PCS -1.00 = 45.35 and into 7th place

• Nice speed at the top of the program with a solid double twist
• She falls on the side by side triple salchows
• She two foots the landing of the throw triple toe
• Lift straight up from the spiral and she holds the position with an exit into a dance lift
• Nice death spiral position from her before the change of hold, but really flattens out after
• A loss of unison at the top of their step sequence; when they separate into different choreography some of it doesn't seem to mesh but that may be a timing issue as well
• Some nice positions in the pairs spin with good speed
  

Marley/Brubaker: 36.26 TES + 29.54 PCS = 65.80 and into 1st place

•   They are skating to Singing in the Rain
• Nice side by side triple toes--she really hangs on to hers!
• I love this dance transition in the middle in the hold
• Nice easy triple twist and you can tell she's thrilled when she lands it
• Nice positions in the pairs spin and they could use a bit more speed through some of the transitions
• Really great height and distance on the throw triple and she squeaks her free leg out
• A really charming step sequence and you can hear the crowd cheering for them 
• Nice position in the lift with a good change to the hand to hand hold with a one arm exit
• Good death spiral position for her, he has to put a hand down as he loses his balance but they hang on to it
• They have the crowd on their feet!

Castelli/Shnapir: 33.83 TES + 26.73 PCS = 60.56 and into 3rd place

• They are skating to Phantom of the Opera
• She has a gorgeous arabesque line
• Super speed in to the triple twist but a bad landing
• Good side by side triple toes
• REally nice speed and interesting changes of positions in the pairs spin but I'd like to see her relax her shoulders in the upright catchfoot position
• Huge throw triple salchow and she really hangs on to the landing
• Good death spiral but she starts to flatten out halfway through
• He presses her up from the knee with a change in rotation during the lift
• He really flings her around in some of these transitions in some unique moves
  

Evora/Ladwig: 33.67 TES + 28.60 PCS -1.00 = 61.27 and into 2nd place

• Her dress is stunning on her and the color really suits her well
• Nice triple twist with a fast rotation
• She stumbles and falls on the side by side triple toes
• Good positions in the pairs spin with a nice exit out of the element
• Really nice throw triple loop with good ice coverage and a solid landing
• Nice step sequence with good edges and nice transitions
• Hip hold lift with her on her side into a beautiful hand to hand lift and a drop to the fish for an exit
• Good death spiral position with a nice change of hold
  

Cain/Reagan: 28.07 TES + 24.97 PCS = 53.04 and into 7th place

• They are skating to Moon River
• Her costume is so elegant
• She has such wonderful expression on the ice and I love that they do the majority of their step sequence in a dance hold
• Rock solid triple salchows
• With her long legs she gets nice positions in the lift and a nice cartwheel exit
• She steps out of the throw triple flip
• Nice double twist
• He is really a strong and solid pairs partner since they are nearly the same height and he has no problems getting her up in the lifts and throws
• Nice position in the pairs spin with decent speed

Place	Start No.	Name	Score
1	10	Mary Beth Marley, DuPage FSC Rockne Brubaker, All Year FSC	65.80
2	12	Amanda Evora, Southwest FL FSC Mark Ladwig, Red River Valley FSC	61.27
3	5	Caydee Denney, Broadmoor SC John Coughlin, KS City FSC	60.88
4	11	Marissa Castelli, SC Of Boston Simon Shnapir, SC Of Boston	60.56
5	3	Gretchen Donlan, SC Of Boston Andrew Speroff, SC Of Boston	57.77
6	6	Andrea Poapst, Broadmoor SC Christopher Knierim, Broadmoor SC	53.43
7	13	Ashley Cain, Stars FSC of TX Joshua Reagan, Stars FSC of TX	53.04
8	7	Alexa Scimeca, DuPage FSC Ivan Dimitrov, Individual Member	51.93
9	8	Felicia Zhang, SC of NY Nathan Bartholomay, University of DE FSC	49.57
10	1	Tiffany Vise, Broadmoor SC Don Baldwin, Los Angeles FSC	45.65
11	9	Cassie Andrews, IN World Sk Acad FSC Timothy LeDuc, Eastern IA FSC	45.35
12	2	Kloe Chanel Bautista, All Year FSC Tyler Harris, SC Of Boston	42.16
13	4	Rita Fehr, Eau Claire FSC Peter Biver, St. Paul FSC	31.37

U.S. Nationals Senior Pairs Preview

Evora and Ladwig are the veterans of this event, having competed at nationals since 2003 and claiming four medals.  They've never won gold and were runner up to two different teams over two seasons.  While they finished just off the podium at both of their Grand Prix events this is looking like their year to finally claim the national title, especially if they can land their side by side jumps.

Denney and Coughlin teamed up at the end of last season and their partnership came together quickly.  They finished 4th and 5th at their two Grand Prix events but seemed to slip a little in their second event.  They have big throws and lifts as Denney is nearly a foot shorter than Coughlin but are still working on smoothing out the edges on some of their other elements and making their skating as seamless as possible.

Marley and Brubaker took home the pewter medal from nationals last season only months after starting their partnership.  They made their Grand Prix debut this season and won bronze at Coupe de Nice, a senior B event.  Marley was injured at the beginning of the season, causing them to withdraw from Nebelhorn Trophy, but since then they've improved between competitions as they had more training time behind them.  One of their weakest elements is the twist but that has been showing improvement at each event.  Marley has put her singles career on hold to focus on pairs this season.

Donlan and Speroff are a beautiful team to watch with great lines which leads to wonderful positions in their lifts.  They play on this strength with a ballet themed free skate that showcases them perfectly.  Their biggest weakness is their side by side jumps.  If they can land them they could really make a run at the podium and put themselves in contention to be a top U.S. pair team.

Cain and Reagan made history when they became the first pair team to win Novice and Junior titles in consecutive seasons.  They went on to finish 4th at Junior Worlds last season behind a trio of teams that already had Junior World titles and competed on the senior level.  They debuted on the Grand Prix this season, finishing 6th.  They had a nice outing on their short program but really struggled on their free skate.  Cain is tall with long legs which lends to some nice positions in their lifts.  She is also pulling double duty, competing in the junior ladies event at nationals.

Castelli/Shnapir, Vise/Baldwin and Poapst/Knierim are also in the mix.

My podium predictions:
Gold: Evora/Ladwig
Silver: Denney/Coughlin
Bronze: Marley/Brubaker
Pewter: Cain/Reagan

Bios of the competitors:
Kloe Chanel Bautista/Tyler Harris: She is 19 and represents the All Year Figure Skating Club.  He is 23 and represents the Skating Club of Boston.  They finished 10th in Juniors in 2011.  They won bronze at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.  

Gretchen Donlan/Andrew Speroff: She is 18 and represents the Skating Club of Boston.  He is 23 and represents the Skating Club of Boston.  They finished 8th in Juniors in 2010 and 8th in 2011.  They won gold at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.

Alexa Scimeca/Ivan Dimitrov: She represents the DuPage Figure Skating Club.  They won pewter at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.

Felicia Zhang/Nathan Bartholomay: She is 18 and represents the Skating Club of New York.  They won silver at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.  

Cassie Andrews/Timothy LeDuc: She is 18 and represents the Indiana World Skating Academy Figure Skating Club.  He is 21 and represents the Eastern Iowa Figure Skating Club.  They placed 9th at Junior Worlds last season.  They are the reigning Junior bronze medalists.

Ashley Cain/Joshua Reagan: She is 16 and represents the Stars Figure Skating Club of Texas.  He is 22 and represents the Stars Figure Skating Club of Texas.  They finished 4th at Junior Worlds last season.  They placed 6th at Rostelecom Cup and 4th at Coupe de Nice.  They are the 2010 Novice Champions and reigning Junior Champions.

Marissa Castelli/Simon Shnapir: She is 21 and represents the Skating Club of Boston.  He is 24 and represents the Skating Club of Boston.  They placed 7th at NHK Trophy and 4th at Ondrej Nepela Memorial.  They are the 2009 World Junior bronze medalists.  They placed 9th in Novice in 2007, are the 2008 Novice bronze medalists, the 2009 Junior bronze medalists, placed 10th in 2010 and 5th in 2011.

Caydee Denney/John Coughlin: She is 18 and represents the Panthers Figure Skating Club.  He is 26 and represents the Kansas City Figure Skating Club.  They finished 4th at Skate America, 5th at NHK Trophy and won bronze at Nebelhorn Trophy.  They have the 10th best short program score, 8th best free skate and 9th best total score internationally.

Amanda Evora/Mark Ladwig: She is 27 and represents the Southwest Florida Figure Skating Club.  He is 31 and represents the Red River Valley Figure Skating Club.  They placed 11th at Worlds and 6th at Four Continents last season.  They placed 4th at Cup of China and Trophee Eric Bompard.  They placed 12th in 2003, 10th in 2004, 5th in 2005, 7th in 2006, are the 2007 pewter medalists, finished 5th in 2008, are the 2009 pewter medalists, 2010 silver medalists and are the reigning silver medalists.

Rita Fehr/Peter Biver: She is 15 and he is 35.

Mary Beth Marley/Rockne Brubaker: She is 16 and represents the DuPage Figure Skating Club.  He is 25 and represents the All Year Figure Skating Club.  They finished 8th at Four Continents last season.  They placed 7th at Skate America and won bronze at Coupe de Nice.  They are the reigning pewter medalists.

Andrea Poapst/Christopher Knierim: She is 19 and represents the Broadmoor Skating Club.  He is 24 and represents the Broadmoor Skating Club.  They won gold at Ice Challenge.  They are the reigning Junior silver medalists.

Tiffany Vise/Don Baldwin: She is 25 and represents the Broadmoor Skating Club.  He is 34 and represents the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club.  They finished 6th at Skate America and 7th at Nebelhorn Trophy.  They placed 8th in 2011.