The second week of competition season is here! Today’s quad meet features some teams that aren’t necessarily the flashiest or the highest-ranked, but ones that should be able to match up well against each other. The battle for the top team score could be a close one, with Ball State starting the season with a 194.1 and Rutgers starting out with a 194.7. Ball State had to count a 9.25 on beam at Florida last weekend, so if the Cardinals can hit at least five routines, they have the potential to upset the home team. As for the Scarlet Knights, the key to the meet will be confidence on bars. Rutgers had a shaky bars performance at the Super 16 meet, so it’ll have to cut out some mistakes in order to hold off Ball State.
As for Towson, the 2023 campaign hasn’t begun yet. The Tigers finished 34th overall in 2022 after losing to North Carolina in the Raleigh regional play-in. This team could also be in the mix for that first-place team score. Towson only lost three postseason routines this offseason, so its lineups should look fairly similar to last year. Although, the Tigers are at a slight disadvantage given that this is the team’s first meet of the year, so some first-meet jitters are to be expected.
While the battle for first place will probably be a main focus for today’s meet, don’t look past UW-Oshkosh. The Titans scored their best season opening score with a 190.4 last weekend. Oshkosh may not be able to realistically challenge the other teams at this quad meet, but the Titans will be looking to prove that they top the WIAC for a reason.
They’re warming up right now, the announcers are saying that we’ll see mostly Rutgers routines.
ROTATION ONE: RUTGERS VT, BALL STATE UB, OSHKOSH BB, TOWSON FX
Jones (RU): Yurchenko full, nice height and distance, a tiny hop in place on the landing. 9.75
Lorente-Garcia (RU): Yurchenko full, lots of distance but took a big hop back. Slight leg bend but a lot better than last week! 9.65
Pagliaro (RU): Yurchenko full, super high but she also took a big hop backwards. 9.65
Joyner (RU): Yurchenko full, slight pike down and a tiny hop back. 9.75
Aird (RU): Yurchenko full with some nice amplitude but a pike at the end, took a decent sized step back. 9.7
Leese (RU): Awesome Yurchenko 1.5! She had great form in the air, great distance, and just the tiniest hop on the landing. 9.875
Teter? (BSU): Starts off on the high bar with a blind full HUGE Tkatchev connected to a bail. Little short on the last handstand. Blind into a double front half dismount and she sticks it!
Stewart? (TU): Starts with a front layout to Rudi, her chest is down on her landing. Tour jete half to split full. Next is a double back, she opens a little too early and steps forward. Super quick routine.
The commentators aren’t telling me who’s competing if they aren’t from Rutgers, so I’m doing my best to tell who’s who.
Buffington? (UWO): Starts with a front aerial to back handspring series, super pretty. Switch leap split jump could use a little more split position. Nice piked front toss to beat jump. Finishes with a tucked roundoff 1.5 with a big step on the landing.
Tisler (TU): Front tuck through to double back, nice controlled landing. Switch half to double stag half. Second pass is a double pike, she squats on the landing but saves the fall.
AFTER ONE: Towson 48.925, Ball State 48.9, Rutgers 48.725, Oshkosh 47.375
Well we mostly saw Rutgers vaults in the first rotation, and they had a decent lineup. Most of the vaults had lots of amplitude and good form in the air, but the landings killed them. I only saw two floor routines from Towson, but from what I saw, the Tigers just need to work on their endurance to get through their last passes.
ROTATION TWO: TOWSON VT, RUTGERS UB, BALL STATE BB, OSHKOSH FX
Bertola (RU): Starts on the high bar with a Ray. Nice Pak down to the low bar. Good last handstand. Blind full into a double back with a small hop backwards. 9.65
Ortiz (RU): Starts with a blind into a piked Jaeger. Shootover down to the low bar with some flexed feet. Blind full into the double back, a little over on the blind full and a small hop on the landing. 9.725
Aird (RU): Great first handstand. Blind to a SUPER high piked Jaeger. Gorgeous shootover. Awesome last handstand into a stuck double layout dismount. Only thing was she piked the dismount down. Super pretty routine! 9.8
Adams (RU): Blind full to Tkatchev, pretty far over on the blind full. Connects to a bail to the low bar. Short on the last handstand, but sticks her half in half out dismount. 9.65
Joyner (RU): First handstand is great. Blind into a Jaeger. Very pretty shootover. Great last handstand into a double layout dismount. Slight leg separation and pike down and a tiny hop on the landing. Overall good routine!
Balser (RU): Starts off with a gorgeous handstand into a blind into a Jaeger. Really pretty Pak, then her pirouette was right on top of the bar. Great handstand into her double layout dismount, great form and a stick! Wow, that was a great routine, amazing handstands and amazing lines. 9.875
Jarvis? (UWO): Starts with a nice high double pike. Tour jete to wolf full, slightly flexed feet throughout. Front tuck through to double back and she stepped out of bounds. 9.8, maybe they didn’t see the out of bounds or maybe I have the wrong gymnast/score.
Waldo (BSU): Front aerial, looks like she was supposed to connect it. Breaks the connection but goes into a front tuss to beat jump. Goes for the front aerial again and falls. Switch leap straddle quarter. Finishes with a tucked front 1.5. 9.025
Pfister (BSU ex): Very pretty flic lay to start. Side aerial to sissone, slightly broken connection. Switch leap switch leap straddle quarter, nice positions. Finishes with a side gainer full
AFTER TWO: Towson 97.95, Rutgers 97.625, Ball State 97.4, Oshkosh 96.05
Rutgers hit all of its bar routines, but scores were low because of low handstands and hops on landings. Those things are fixable, so this lineup does show a lot of potential, especially with Balser anchoring!
ROTATION THREE: OSHKOSH VT, TOWSON UB, RUTGERS BB, BALL STATE FX
Pagliaro (RU): Switch leap to switch half to beat jump, a little less than 180. Pretty flic lay series but falls. Finishes with a front gainer full dismount with a small hop. It’s a shame that she fell, the rest of the routine was pretty. 9.275
Battavio (RU): Solid flic lay to start out. Split jump to split full with great positions. Nice solid aerial, no wobbles at all. But of course then she wobbles on the full turn because I said that. Finishes with a tucked front full with a tiny hop forwards. Solid routine after a fall! Should get them back on track. 9.75
Aird (RU): Starts with a nice candlestick mount, very well executed. Wow, really pretty flic lay, great lines and solid landing. Great switch half to split jump. Dismounts with a front gainer full with a decent sized step forward. That was a very pretty routine. 9.85
They’re telling us Grace Vaillancourt got a 9.925 on bars. I wish we could’ve seen it!
Ortiz (RU): Really nice flic flic lay to start out. Split jump to stag jump. Finishes with a side gainer full with a small hop.
Joyner (RU): Super solid full turn. Flic lay, the layout was super high. Switch leap to switch half with a wobble. Finishes with a double full with a decent sized step. 9.75
Zannella (RU): Split jump to ring jump. Flic flic lay series, super solid landing. Really solid full turn. Finishes with an aerial to tuck 1.5 with a big step. 9.725
Leese (RU ex): Front toss to back handspring series. Split jump to split three quarter. Finishes with a tucked front full dismount to a stick.
Manifold (RU ex): Starts with a flic lay, small wobble on the landing. Side aerial to beat jump with a small wobble again. Switch leap to split three quarter. Finishes with a front full with a tiny hop.
AFTER THREE: TOWSON 147.1, RUTGERS 146.55, BALL STATE 146.45, TOWSON 144.4
I only saw beam routines this rotation, but they were some good routines! Rutgers had a fall on the first routine but the rest of the lineup was able to hit some awesome routines. Pretty much every routine was super solid up until the dismount, so the Scarlet Knights will be looking to work on the landings, but other than that this lineup shows major potential.
ROTATION FOUR: BALL STATE VT, OSHKOSH UB, TOWSON BB, RUTGERS FX
Pagliaro (RU): Starts with a nice double pike to a controlled lunge. Next is a front handspring front layout front full, really nice form. Switch half to wolf full. Finishes with a Rudi, her chest was a little low on the landing, but overall a good routine! 9.825
Wood (RU): Starts with a Rudi into a layout stepout, a little crooked but nice. Tour jete half to split full to tuck full. Next pass is a front double twist, her lunge was a little big but it was controlled. 9.85
Aird (RU): Starts with a double pike, super high but jumps out of bounds. Switch half to split full, nice positions. Next pass is a front layout front full, much more controlled landing. Finishes with a double back, small hop in place. 9.6
Joyner (RU): First pass is a double pike, takes a big but controlled lunge backwards. Switch full, she gets a lot of height. Front full front layout, nice landing. Switch side to Popa, really nice straddle positions. Finishes with a back 1.5 front layout. Great routine! 9.825
Leese (RU): Starts with a full in, her chest is a little low. Switch half to I think a split full into a Shushunova. Next pass is a front tuck through to double back, great landing with her chest up and a controlled landing. 9.875
Zannella (RU): First pass is a super floaty double back but takes a decent sized lunge. Next is a whip to double full and takes a hop on the landing. Switch ring to switch ring half. Finishes with a front layout to front full and leans back on the landing. 9.625
Jones (RU ex): Starts with a nice double pike with a great landing. Front layout to Rudi, her chest was a little low. Switch side to Popa. Next pass is a back 1.5 front layout, nice control on the landing.
FINAL: Towson 195.85, Rutgers 195.55, Ball State 195.45, Oshkosh 192.375
Well I didn’t see many routines other than Rutgers, but what I saw looked pretty nice. Rutgers had a lot of great routines but just needs to work on cleaning up landings, but I can see the Scarlet Knights working their way up the rankings this year.
Event Winners:
Vault: Suki Pfister, Ball State, 9.9
Bars: Grace Vaillancourt, Towson, 9.925
Beam: Elia Aird, Rutgers, 9.85
Floor: Emily Leese, Rutgers, 9.875
All Around: Hannah Joyner, Rutgers, 39.175
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Live blog by Emily Lockard
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