Gymnasts get first win
The Aggie gymnastics team hardly had time to enjoy their Spring Break, competing in three separate meets since classes ended two Fridays ago.
Competition began for USU Friday, March 6, at home against University of Pittsburgh. Ten hours after the first meet ended, the team was aboard a flight heading to San Jose State, where Sunday they took on the Spartans in a head to head match up. Five days after that the Lady Ags were back in the Spectrum to take on in-state rival BYU.
The Aggies came away from the three meets with their first win of the season after beating BYU 193.825-191.975.
Lyndsie Boone won her first and second all-around titles of the season, tying her career-high of 38.700 in the meet against Pitt and pulling in a 38.600 in the win against BYU.
USU beat their season high on the balance beam twice, scoring above 48.000 for the first time this season against Pitt with a 48.275, then a week later the team did it again scoring 48.450 on the apparatus against BYU.
During their meet against Pittsburgh, Haley Hogan received the outstanding gymnast of the night award for her consistent high scores in the three events she competed in, the vault, beam and floor.
USU started the night against Pitt on the vault with a 9.525 from Hogan, a 9.575 from Rebecca Holliday, a 9.500 from Nicole Simoneau and a 9.625 from Nicki Felley, Jackie Dillon and Boone.
The Aggies then moved to the bars where Holliday started things off with a personal-best 9.725. Boone tied her career-high of 9.750, lone senior Felley got a 9.650, Brandie Dickson a 9.625 and Dillon racked up a 9.675 before Simoneau finished things off with a 9.825. The team tallied their third-highest bar score of the season with 48.625. The 96.600 total put them slightly behind Pitt who has totalled 97.650
The usually low-scoring beam was the next apparatus for USU. Boone started for the Aggies bringing in a 9.600 and redshirt freshman Erica Huelsmann followed with a career-high of 9.700. Felley was next bringing in 9.175, followed by Hogan’s career-best 9.725, Holliday’s 9.750 and Simoneau’s 9.500.
Floor was the closing rotation for the Aggies. Boone was once again first up, tying her season-high with a 9.725. Hogan was next and brought in a 9.525, Holliday followed with a 9.125, Huelsmann a 9.625 and Felley closed out the meet with a 9.800. The 47.800 on the floor gave the ladies a total score of 192.675. The 192.675, though, wasn’t enough to bring down the Panthers’ winning score of 194.550.
After a short sleep and an even shorter plane ride the Aggies arrived at San Jose State for their last road meet of the regular season. Utah State scored a 48.100 on bars, 47.725 on vault, 48.225 on floor and a 47.100 on beam for a total score of 191.150. The 48.225 on floor was the Aggies fourth-best event total this season. San Jose State received a 48.550 on vault, 48.800 on bars, 47.650 on beam and a 49.150 on floor for a 194.150 team total.
Simoneau earned her fifth bars title, outscoring the field with a 9.850 her sixth score of 9.800 or higher in a row. Apart from her five bars titles Simoneau has also taken the event title for the beam twice.
At SJSU Holliday was USU’s top all-around finisher in third place with 37.850. Felley was fourth at 37.825 and Boone was fifth with 37.575.
The team then returned to Logan to face BYU Friday. Four different Aggies won titles for individual events: Dillon on vault, Simoneau on the bars, Felley on the floor and Boone in the all-around. Friday the 13th didn’t phase the Lady Ags as they posted season-bests on the beam with 48.450 and on the vault with a 48.350. Their floor score of 48.875 was their second best on the year.
The night was full of season-high scores. On the vault Hogan tied her season-best with 9.625, Simoneau’s 9.575 was enough for her season-high on the vault and her score of 9.875 on the bars tied her season-high, her 23rd 9.800 or higher in 26 career meets, and 11th this year. Simoneau also had her season-best on the beam, scoring a 9.800. Along with Simoneau on the beam, Hogan tied her season-best of 9.725. The team’s consistent beam scores blasted them past their season-best score on the apparatus, giving them a 48.450.
The floor is where the Aggies put BYU away. Felley’s score of 9.850 beat her season-high and put her on top of the competition in the event.
The Lady Ags close out their regular season meets at home against the Thunderbirds of Southern Utah University, whom USU lost to earlier this season, 194.750-191.925 in Cedar City.
–c.h.j@aggiemail.usu.edu