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Last Week in College Gym: December 10

During the offseason, it can be difficult to keep up with all the news and training updates happening across the teams. So each week, we will provide a curation of the most exciting upgrades, as well as other important news happening in the college gym world. Note the majority of the training updates highlighted will feature new skills and not someone training their same routine from the past season, for example.

Finally, note we are only able to share links to updates posted on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and not Instagram Stories or Snapchat. However, we will try to note any clips of note that we see on those disappearing platforms.

Michigan Quad Brings Surprises

The Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan at Michigan exhibition was full of surprises. We saw Michigan’s Natalie Wojcik dominate the competition, as well as Olivia Karas’ return to Crisler. Abby Brenner put up a stellar vault, while Wolverine Maggie O’Hara competed bars for the first time in her career—she also exhibitioned beam and floor with a fun Star Wars set. Unfortunately, the stream featured very little of the away teams; look for increased coverage of the MAC conference throughout the season here at College Gym News.

UIC Mixed Pairs Puts on a Show

Ahem, #saveUICgym. The annual UIC mixed pairs exhibition featured an excellent all around program from senior Mikailla Northern—who had been questionable with health issues—as well as strong work on all four from freshman Alisa Sheremeta. She competes a one and a half to front layout stepout that truly floats. Northern has upgraded her first floor pass; she now performs a one and a half through double tuck, rather than a front through. Check out clips on the UIC Instagram story highlights from the event.

On the men’s side, we saw a huge Yurchenko double from sophomore Kaleb Booth, as well his dynamic floor set, chock full with a double Arabian, double front and full-in dismount. Asad Jooma also stood out despite some rocky moments; his big vault will be nationally competitive again this year. We’ll keep an eye out for YouTube videos from the event—last year the Flames uploaded everything!

Keep in mind, too, that UIC is in the middle of fundraising efforts to save both teams. You can order a T-shirt to support the programs and make a donation here.

William & Mary holds Green & Gold Intrasquad

William & Mary streamed the beam and floor rotations from its Green & Gold intrasquad on Facebook live (video 1, video 2). Highlights included lovely beam work from Katie Waldman, Madison Dwyer, Evan Pakshong and Samantha Sakti. The Tribe also brought difficulty on floor with two E-passes, a full-in and a front double full from Sakti and Elizabeth Snoddy, respectively. Expect Sakti to be a standout for the Tribe this season.

Anna Martucci Adds Events

A perpetual MAC floor star, Northern Illinois’ Anna Martucci is a possible all arounder for her senior season.

Cal Shows Off Vault Depth

The Golden Bears are looking to ramp up their 10.0 start values as seen in a highlight video of their latest intrasquad. The freshmen are looking particularly promising, as Milan Clausi and Talitha Jones are vaulting Yurchenko one and a halfs while Abi Solari is training a handspring front tuck full. To add to that, senior Sylvie Seilnacht, juniors Cassidy Keelen and Rachael Mastrangelo, sophomore Kyana George and freshman Maya Bordas all showed off clean Yurchenko fulls.

Utah Holds Red Rock Preview

The Utes were back in the Huntsman Center for their annual Red Rock Preview in front of over 5,000 fans. Senior MaKenna Merrell-Giles, junior MyKayla Skinner and sophomore Alexia Burch competed in the all around. Junior Missy Reinstadtler, usually a steady all arounder, had a sprained ankle and was limited to bars and beam. On vault, only Merrell-Giles and Skinner showed 10.0 start values, with a Yurchenko one and a half and a Yurchenko double, respectively. If you’d like a detailed rundown on the event, you can read our live blog.

Arizona State Men Hold Maroon and Gold

The ASU men’s team held its annual Maroon and Gold intrasquad meet last week. Check out some routines you can expect to see from the Sun Devils on vault, parallel bars and high bar.

N.C. State Holds Red and White Exhibition Meet

N.C. State held its annual Red and White meet this weekend and showed many season-ready routines. Highlights included a lovely bar routine from sophomore Lauren Kent and a perfect eight-for-eight rotation on beam. A replay of the meet can be found here.

Instagram Story and Snapchat Roundup

Allison Smith shows 10.0 Vault

Redshirt sophomore Allison Smith performed a Yurchenko one and a half during the Michigan quad exhibition on December 2, per the team’s Instagram Story. She vaulted in every competition for Eastern Michigan in 2018 with a full.

New Hampshire Reveals Possible Beam Lineup

New Hampshire posted a number of beam clips on its Instagram Story that appear to show the ideal lineup order. First up was Danielle Doolin, followed by Hannah Baddick, Courtney Bondanza, Riley Freehling, Hailey Lui and Danielle Mulligan as the anchor. Emma Winer and Ava Watkins showed exhibition routines.


Article by the editors of College Gym News

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