gymnastics re-cap
Chants of “Southern Utah!” drowned in the ears of more than 2,500 fans as the SUU Thunderbirds grabbed a win against the Aggies Monday, 196.000-192.250.
“SUU was phenomenal,” USU head coach Ray Corn said. “That 196 tonight was well-earned and well-deserved.”
The Aggies walked away with disappointment as they saw their fourth loss of the season.
In spite of USU seizing the first three places in the vault, it was no match for Southern Utah, who dominated the bars, balance beam and floor exercise events with five solid first-place finishes in every event.
“I’m just waiting for the season to get started,” Corn said. “For some reason we can’t get it going. We warmed up superbly, and I thought it was going to be the night (of success).”
Freshman Jasmine Minion, who has the best average vault score on the team so far this season, captured first place on vault, scoring a 9.850, followed by fellow teammate junior Nicki Felley and sophomore Heather Heinrich, who both tied for the second place finish of 9.825.
On bars, there was a five-way tie among the T-Birds and Aggie freshman Nicole Simoneau, who all topped a 9.850.
Simoneau has won the bars routine four of the past five meets.
Aggie gymnasts started out on the bars, where they suffered one fall that put them in a hole, and by the half mark, the T-Birds were leading, 97.725-96.600.
Before the first two rotations were over, two mishaps occurred for the Aggies, as Felley cut her foot on the vault board and senior Megan Tschida’s right leg started to go numb after her routine on the uneven parallel bars.
“We pressed a little too hard, and the drama that took place after the first two events led to tacky performances on floor and beam,” Corn said.
Senior Kelly Patterson stepped in and took Tschida’s place on the balance beam, her first time competing this season, and marked a 9.675.
In addition, Heinrich’s knee was hurting and affected her performance on the balance beam, where she suffered a fall and scored a 9.200, but she performed her best this season on vault, where she set a personal record of a 9.850.
“I thought Heather had a sensational meet along with Nicki leading us in the all-around,” Corn said.
Despite Felley’s cut foot, she finished her routines.
“All kudos to Nicki. She didn’t stop, but she did take a fall on floor as a result of her foot,” Corn said. “We need to get this team healthy, and somehow, someway, we have to get a meet without drama and having to make the line-up changes.”
Although the team experienced downfalls, there were some bright things that came out of the meet, Corn said, such as vaulting.
After Tschida was out, Jackie Dillon stepped in for her and scored a 9.625 on the floor.
On the balance beam, USU saw personal records set by freshman Lyndsie Boone and Patterson, both marking a 9.675.
In addition, Boone accomplished two more personal records, when she presented a 9.725 on floor and a 9.700 on the vault.
“It’s a big step in the right direction, and every day I work on the little things that get me better and better. I’m happy with it,” Boone said.
On the floor exercise, Southern Utah creamed Utah State, capturing the first five finishes and catapulting their season-best score to a 49.275.
The T-Birds all recorded 9.8 range scores with sophomore Elise Wheeler claiming first place as she recorded the best fourth place finish in SUU’s gymnastics history with a 9.925.
Minion was the first Aggie to place, coming in the sixth spot with a 9.775.
“Elise Wheeler has been that capable of a floor worker her entire career,” SUU head coach Scott Bauman said. “She pegged every one of her landings, and those were tough tumbling passes.”
On the beam, SUU junior Kellie Dangerfield had a capital performance, recording a career high of 9.900.
“Kelly did not even wobble on beam. She is one of the premier beam workers in the country,” Bauman said.
The first Aggie to place was Boone, who came in fifth place.
Southern Utah’s performances on beam and floor are the best marks in the Western Athletic Conference.
Utah State now has a 1-4 overall record. SUU improved to 5-0.
“We are getting closer, and I am not giving up on this team by any means,” Corn said. “This is the second time the third meet we’ve been heading towards a 194, and we buckle.”
-candice.sandness@aggiemail.usu.edu