I can’t believe we’re already in the middle of February! Divisions 2 and 3 continue to make big things happen. Oshkosh posted the highest home score in program history and Centenary posted an ENORMOUS 48.975 on beam, as their gymnast Ashley White won the all-around over D1 and D2 gymnasts. Rhode Island’s vaulters outscored Springfield’s, the #3 vault team in D3, and Gustavus scored the third-highest score in program history in a victory over Hamline.

Air Force 190.25, Cortland 187.25

Air Force spent the weekend in New York State, beginning with a meet with D3 Cortland on Friday night. Cortland scored a season high 47.475 on vault, which beat Air Force by half a point. Rachel Filipski came up big for Cortland on vault, winning the event with a 9.7. Bailey Gildemeyer placed second with a 9.55. Arianna Turso led the Red Dragons on bars with a 9.425, followed by a 9.4 from Meghan Cobb. Cortland put up some strong routines on beam, with Amanda Scanlon tying for first place with a 9.725, followed by Turso (9.675), and Emily Nagy (9.55). McKenna Passalacqua tied for first on floor with a 9.725.

Eau Claire 182.65, Stout 180.4

This meet was super close after the first two rotations, but ultimately, Eau Claire pulled ahead after a stellar floor rotation to win the meet. Eau Claire was led by Julia Stedman (9.45) and Hannah Wendel (9.425) on vault, while Lauren Zurowski (9.45) and Jessica Dhaene (9.3) posted the top bar scores of the meet. Both programs had shockingly similar beam rotations that were only separated by 0.05, each with a solitary 9.525 as the top score (Kelly Huseman from Stout and Liz Stubbs from Eau Claire). Stubbs also led the BluGolds in a stellar floor rotation with a 9.45, followed by a 9.375 from Stedman and a 9.325 from Zurowski. Stout bested Eau Claire on vault by about 0.4, with the top two scores of the meet coming from Kaylee Jondahl (9.525) and Huseman (9.475). Jondahl also led the Blue Devils on bars (9.275), floor (winning the meet with a 9.625), and won the all-around by default (36.6).

LaCrosse 188.25, Gustavus 179.475

LaCrosse pulled out a win by a huge margin over fellow WIAC team Gustavus, opening with a huge vault rotation that counted four scores of 9.5 or better from Kari Willett (9.5), Lauren Wilson (9.5), Samantha Wiekamp (9.65), and Dani Barmore (9.675). Wilson won bars with a 9.675, followed by a 9.55 from Amy Enright and a 9.5 from Barmore. LaCrosse also came up huge with a stellar beam rotation that included a 9.625 from Barmore and a 9.6 from Leah Spankowski. Elsa Spitzmueller hit a huge floor set and scored a 9.7. Gustavus struggled on bars but otherwise remained consistent on the other three events, led by their star, Alex Kopp, who won the all-around for the day with a 37.05, and led the team on vault (9.575), bars (9.1), and floor (9.575). Lauren Kershner placed third in the all-around with a 35.675, including the second best beam routine for the Gusties (9.275).

Illinois State 192.275, Winona State 186.825

Winona went up against D1 Illinois State and scored one of their best scores so far this season, which included a stellar vault rotation that trailed Illinois State by only half a point. Eboni Jackson came up huge with a 9.725 (third place finish), followed by Jade Donaldson who scored a 9.625. Brooke Hiestand scored a 9.55, and Emily Goldman scored a 9.5. Despite putting up some strong routines on bars, Winona had to count a 7, which dropped their bar total to a 45.2. Katie Pipp placed third on bars with a 9.625, while Katie Carling placed fourth with a 9.5. Jackson led the team on beam with a 9.675, followed by Carling’s 9.575. Winona struggled to stay in bounds on floor, but still managed some solid scores from Hiestand (9.625), Carling (9.55), and Veronica Peterson (9.425).

Yale 192.275, West Chester 191.125, Rhode Island 176.325

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Yale may have been victorious in this meet, but D2 West Chester definitely made them work for it. West Chester actually outscored Yale on vault, with strong performances from rockstar Majesta Valentine (9.675) as well as Maia Curry (9.625). Valentine also led the Golden Rams on bars (9.7) and floor (9.775) while winning the all-around with a 38.775. Meghan Brannon continues to be the rock that anchors the bar lineup as she posted a solid 9.65. West Chester hit 6-for-6 on beam, and counted all scores of 9.6 or better.  Emily Loughery contributed solid scores on beam (9.6), and floor (9.65), while Selena Swanger scored 3 9.525s on vault, beam, and floor. This was RIC’s first of two meets this weekend, and they had some major bars and floor struggles, but put up one of their highest vault and beam totals this season. Courtney Osborne continues to be one of their most dependable gymnasts, hitting all four of her events and leading the team on bars (8.85), and floor (9.05), and putting up the second highest score on vault (9.5), and beam (9.375). Kyndel Yett led the team on vault in only her second time competing the event with a huge 9.525, while teammate Cailee Mallory, also competing for the second time on beam, posted a 9.45.

Whitewater 190.6, Oshkosh 187.2

Both teams posted season high scores in this meet, but Whitewater pulled out a big win, and has now improved to the #1 spot in Division 3. Whitewater swept the top 3 vault scores, with Katie Fiorilli posting a 9.725 to win, followed by a 9.675 from Lewa Evans and a 9.6 from Destiny Patrick. UW-W’s bar lineup (currently #2 in D3) swept the top 4 scores with a 9.7 from Mackenzie Smith, 9.6 from Lisa O’Donnell, 9.45 from Fiorilli, and 9.425 from Courtney Pickett. Pickett won beam with a 9.7, just edging out O’Donnell’s 9.675, but on floor, it was O’Donnell’s 9.75 who edged Pickett’s 9.725 for the top two scores. O’Donnell won the all-around with a 38.55, while Pickett was third with a 37.55. Oshkosh’s 187.2 is the highest home score in program history, and they were only 0.05 away from tying Whitewater on beam. Their bars and beam team scores were season highs. Krystal Walker led the team on beam (9.625), and floor (9.55), while taking second in the all-around with a 37.875. Kim Robertson led the Titans on vault with a 9.55, while Emily Ryan contributed strong scores on vault (9.425), and bars (9.4).

Iowa State 194.725, Texas Women’s 191.55, Centenary 190.275

What a meet! D1 Iowa State won, but D2 TWU and D3 Centenary definitely held their own and put up some serious scores. TWU counted 3 scores in the 9.7s on vault from Schyler Jones (9.725), Katie Simpson (9.75), and Mallory Moredock (9.775) to catapult them to a huge 48.55 team score on vault. Alyssa Kelly posted a team high 9.775 on bars, followed closely by Simpson’s 9.75. Kelly, along with Taylor Vincent, scored a pair of 9.8s on beam, while Jones led the team on floor with a 9.7. The real stars of the meet were Centenary’s beam lineup, who posted a… get ready for this… 48.975 on beam, blasting away the other teams on beam by a point! Um, holy crap? A division 3 team! Centenary’s beam queens dropped a 9.55, and counted a 9.725 from Taylor Le Moal, 9.775 from Megan Desjardins, 9.8 from Kellie Slater, 9.825 from Ashley White, and a 9.85 from Navia Jordan. Slater and White posted team high scores of 9.625 on vault, and White led the team on bars (9.75), and floor (9.75), while WINNING the all-around with a 38.95.

UNH 194.1, Southern Connecticut 190.425

SCSU posted a season high score at UNH, and actually came within four tenths of tying them on vault. The Owls counted three 9.675s on this event from Alexandra Avendano, Kylyn Dawkins, and Nicole Pruchnik. Rachel de la Torre and Kathleen Aberger led the team on bars with a pair of 9.6s. Aberger also placed second on beam with a 9.775 against some really serious competition from UNH. Dawkins and Avendano contributed a pair of 9.65s on beam as well. Pruchnik came up huge on floor, tying for third place with a 9.8. In addition to their season high 190.425, the Owls’ vault, bars, and beam totals were also the highest for them so far this season.

Kentucky 195.8, Kent State 194.625, Ball State 194.375, Lindenwood 190.95

Despite having a couple hiccups, Lindenwood still was able to put up a decent score despite the notable absence of standout Kierstin Sokolowski, who is out with an injury. The Lions were led on vault (their best event of the meet) by a pair of 9.65s from Valeri Ingui and Kayla Macmullen. Courtney Heise scored a 9.825 on bars which tied for third place on the event. Ingui and Rachel Zabawa contributed Lindenwood’s top beam scores of 9.7, while Katey Oswalt led the team on floor with a 9.725.

Air Force 191.525, Cornell 191.225, Brockport 187.625, Ithaca 185.9

Brockport put up another solid score despite not having their best meet, while Ithaca made some major improvements despite only putting up five gymnasts on vault and floor. Bridgette Schaal anchored Brockport’s vault (9.625) and floor (9.725) lineups and posted team highs on both. Casey Sullivan contributed a pair of 9.6s on vault and floor, while Meghan Cash led the Eagles on bars with a 9.55. Erica Roth had Brockport’s highest beam score (9.5), and freshman Taylor Keough scored a 9.7 on floor, where Brockport continues to dominate, as they counted all scores of 9.6 or better. Ithaca was led by three strong performances from Megan Harrington, who led the Bombers on vault (9.45) and bars (9.55), and posted Ithaca’s second highest floor score (9.55). Ithaca improved on beam, and actually outscored Brockport on that event. Kendra Balcerak scored a 9.5, followed by Lynley Choate with a 9.425. Carolyn Nichols continues to be a rock on floor, where she scored a team high 9.625.

Springfield 184.25, Rhode Island 177.9

RIC’s season high score was not enough to top Springfield, who really brought their A game on beam and floor. Marissa DeAngelo added yet another all-around title to her ever-growing collection, scoring a 37.6 and posting Springfield’s top vault score (9.375). Bri Kerr anchored bars with a huge 9.45, and Springfield counted 3 scores of 9.4 or better on beam from Lauren White (9.4), DeAngelo (9.45), and Jessica Clemens (9.475). Nicole Silva anchored floor with a huge 9.55 in her home state, followed by DeAngelo’s 9.525. RIC opened on vault where they actually beat Springfield, the #3 vault team in Division 3, and swept the top 3 vault scores. Freshman Kyndel Yett won the event with a 9.425, followed by a 9.4 from Erin Shea, and a 9.375 from Emma Hartan. Courtney Osborne remained super consistent, leading the team on bars (8.95) and beam (9.225), and taking second in the all-around with a 36.525. Ali Otis led the Anchorwomen on floor with a 9.2.

Gustavus 183.4, Hamline 181.725

Gustavus continues to gain momentum, as they scored the third highest score in program history and posted season high scores on bars, beam, and floor to upset Hamline. Alex Kopp continues to be a rock for the Gusties, as she led the team on all four events, and won vault (9.475), beam (9.45), floor (career high 9.7), and the all-around (37.775). Kopp also took second on bars (9.15). The Gusties killed it on beam, sweeping the top 5 scores, including strong performances from Rachel Thiner (9.3), and Lauren Kershner (9.275). Hamline beat Gustavus on bars and floor, but a 43.175 on beam was ultimately their downfall. Sela Fadness led the Pipers on vault (9.425), followed by Rosie Geise (9.4). Briana Bridgeford won bars (9.175). Hamline totally dominated on floor, counting all scores of 9.3 or better, including a 9.55 from Fadness, and a 9.425 from Danielle Dudley.

Article by Sarah Chrane