ED MATTHEWS / Staff

Annie Castellano poses for a portrait inside her family's restaurant, The Capri Fish House, on Wednesday, July 2, 2008. Castellano will appear in an episode of American Gladiators on Monday, July 7, 2008.

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You can call her pipsqueak or pint size. But that might not be advisable.

She’s calling herself “Baby Bear.” That’ll do for now.

And if she keeps this up, Annie Castellano could be calling herself something else — winner.

Castellano, 20, made it through her first round match-up on “American Gladiators” on Monday night. And by finishing the final challenge with one of the four best times this season — 3 minutes — she guaranteed herself a spot in the show’s semifinals.

It wasn’t easy, but the 4-foot, 11-inch girl from Boston, whose parents own The Capri Fish House restaurant on Isles of Capri, jumped, swung and climbed her way to the next round.

Although she only successfully completed one event in the first part of the show (and scored one point in another contest), Castellano held a slim lead over her opponent, a 52-year-old stock broker.

But that didn’t matter as she quickly jumped out in front in the final challenge, aptly named the Eliminator. She’ll have to do better, though, if she wants to compete for the title. The best time for a woman this season is nearly a minute faster, a lot of ground to make up in the semifinals.