N.C. State and Ball State are here to face off for a berth into round two of the Norman regional tomorrow. The Cardinals have had a stellar turnaround this year, qualifying to the NCAA postseason for only the second time in program history. The Wolfpack is more familiar with this stage. In 2021 they advanced out of round one and performed well enough in round two to advance to the final, capturing a No. 15 final national ranking.
In past seasons, these duals have been run very quickly, not alternating routines as is traditional, in order to allow the winning team as much rest as possible before tomorrow’s round two meet despite in reality only saving about 12 minutes. We’ll see if that holds true today.
I’m hereeeeee! This is my first time in the LNC, and the vibes are excellent. Both teams appear to have a small smattering of dedicated fans here. We see you and all you do, parents!
The judges are in the house. Remember this is regionals, so we have four-judge panels. It’s the big time.
Solid leo game today, Ball State is in its pretty feathery patterned ombre, and N.C. State is wearing its ombre with white mesh sleeves. Can confirm Elizabeth, who is on the floor photographing, is very pleased. Excellent photos coming your way.
Intros intros intros! We’re so close, folks.
Ball State is stick city over on bars one-touch. Ooooh, this going to be a good one.
Rotation 1: N.C. State vault, Ball State bars
Diaz (NCSU): Yfull, pike down and a hop back, good height. 9.7
Sumner (BSU): Maloney, leg sep on release, caught her Pak close but kept her swing moving. A good save. Toe full some leg sep double tuck. 9.75
Zultevicz (NCSU): Yfull, good on the table, some pike and a small hop back. 9.65
Middleton (BSU): Toe hand to Maloney, really nice. Bail hand some leg sep in the air. Pretty toes! Just a hop in place on her double tuck. 9.8
Ortega (NCSU): Yfull, pretty twisting form! Low chest and a hop in place. NCSU is really working for sticks, just too much juice. 9.65
Evans (BSU): Hect mount, Blind to Jaeger immediate bail, just didn’t quite get her grasp and slid off. Blind full double tuck, big hop forward. 9.15
Rutherford (NCSU): Yfull, Near stick, just a foot adjustment in place, best height yet but lacked a bit of distance. 9.775
Henry (BSU): Some pressure now to hit after the fall. This is a place where you want to have a seasoned all-arounder. Maloney, nice to Pak, a little bit of shoulder angle. Good last handstand. Blind half to double front, small hop forward. Great recovery from the fall!
Shepard (NCSU): Yfull, true stick, great distance, just a bit flat. That’s a good one! 9.85
Ruthberg (BSU): Short handstand. Ray, just couldn’t grasp and a hard fall. She’s up and seems okay, but really pinged off. Cheers as she gets ready to remount. Repeats the Ray, caught close. Bail. Short hanstand to HIHO, leg up on the landing and covers with a turn to salute. 9.00
Negrete (NCSU): Yfull, flared it out, bounced in place. Chest was forward on the landing. 9.675, guessing she was hit on distance. It was just a very compact vault because she was going so hard for the landing.
Teter (BSU): Counting a fall, this becomes about damage control. Blind full to HUGE Tkatchev immediate bail, great body position in the bail catch. Blind to double front half out with a hop forward. Some foot form on the dismount. 9.85
After 1: N.C. State 48.650, Ball State 48.375
Counting a fall is a tough way to start, but Ball State does have a start-value advantage with some 10.0 vaults, so this isn’t an insurmountable gap. Vault judging is reasonably tight; some distance and height deductions seem to be weighing heavy, which is what kept the Wolfpack scores down, in addition to those hops. I could feel gymnasts scrunching their toes into the mat to try to hold landings from my seat, but the adrenaline got them.
Rotation 2: N.C. State bars, Ball State vault
White (BSU): Yfull, high, not a lot of distance, hop back. 9.625
Adomaites (NCSU): Toe hand to Maloney, some soft knees. Foot form in her Pak. Short hanstand. Stalder double tuck, foot form and a hop back. 9.8
Teter (BSU): FHS pike, wow, stuck cold! They could take distance, but a great landing. 9.8
Childs (NCSU): Hop change to Jaeger, nice catching position. Bail hand bit short. Blind full, late, to double tuck, hop forward. 9.75
Middleton (BSU): Yfull, twisted on the table and a small hop back. Great distance on that one. 9.75
Robinson (NCSU): Blind to Jaeger, really nice. Short handstand to Pak, slightly closed shoulders. Excellent half pirouette. Hop in place on her dismount. 9.825
Pfister (BSU): FHS pike half, great height, small hop back. That vault is so dynamic. 9.875
Ortega (NCSU): Hindorff, little lack of amplitude. Great bail hand to hect, bent arms on the catch. DLO, small shuffle backward. 9.85
Ruthberg (BSU): Yfull, good distance, slightly low chest but true stick. 9.75
Shepard (NCSU): Blind to Jaeger, soft knees on the catch. Pak, really pretty and floaty. FTDB, some foot form and leg sep and a hop forward. 9.9
Henry (BSU): Y1.5, wow! High, stuck. She came up on her toes but put her heels right back down. Really stellar vault. 9.9
Rutherford (NCSU): Ray, little low but good position on the catch. Bail hand. DLO, shuffled two feet back, saluted quickly to cover. 9.85
After 2: N.C. State 97.875, Ball State 97.450
Ball State vault squad looked sharp, but so did N.C. State on bars, so the Wolfpack extends its lead slightly moving into the second half. This is an uphill battle for Ball State, but everyone still has to survive beam.
Rotation 3: N.C. State beam, Ball State floor
Diaz (NCSU): Check on her full turn. Nice front aerial bhs, really good extension through her legs and toes. Switch to split jump, bit of a forward chest position but good 180s. Cat to switch half, bit short on that one. Bhs tuck 3/2, stuck. 9.825
Ruthberg (BSU): Front through double tuck, hops back and OOB. Double pike, chest forward and hops a little forward while going into the lunge. Switch to switch half was nice. FHS rudi to straddle, really well-controlled on that one. 9.625
Jennings (NCSU): Soft knees in her bhs bhs loso, small check in her upper body. Switch to tuck 3/4, imprecise shape in the tuck. Cat leap. RO 3/2, step forward. 9.8
Waldo (BSU): Bit of a wait for her. Punch front 2/1, little uncontrolled into her step out, forward and to the side. Clean in her leaps. Front full front pike front tuck, great amplitude in that last salto. Punch rudi to end, slid her front foot back in the lunge. 9.8
Zultevicz (NCSU): Bhs loso, solid, but some foot form and soft knees. I glanced down and missed her leaps! Cat to side aerial sissone, really imprecise in the cat shape, was it a soft hitch kick? RO 3/2, stuck, bit deep in the squat. 9.85
Middleton (BSU): Front lay to rudi to split, off balance in the split, swam her arms and moved to the side. Pretty through her leaps. Side aerial, kind of adjusted her feet on the landing. Double pike, came in low but hopped into the lunge. 9.8
Ortega (NCSU): Full L turn, balance check. Bhs Onodi, steps fowrard out of it and a bend at the hips. Switch to split to beat was nice. Steps forward out of a front aerial. Switch to gainer pike off the end, just not enough oompf and she steps forward and to the side, came in quite low. 9.625
Henry (BSU): Front through double tuck, steps back and OOB. Front lay to front full, nice positions in the air. Switch side Popa, bit labored getting to those splits. Double pike, scooted her front foot around. Pointed right at a judge in the end of her choreo we love it. 9.7
Shepard (NCSU): Full L turn, balance check. Switch soft back knee to straddle 1/4. Bhs loso, clean. Nice side aerial, really emphasized the landing. Side aerial 3/2, hop forward. 9.825
Pfister (BSU): Really high double tuck, no deductions on the landing. Switch side Popa wolf full, little short of rotation on the wolf. FHS front full front pike, hopped a little in the lunge out. Double pike, went for the stick! Chest was a little forward. 9.85
Negrete (NCSU): Front aerial soft knees to bhs. Cat to switch half beat, low back leg in the switch half. Split, there’s a good 180. RO 2/1, small hop. 9.875
Teter (BSU): Front lay rudi, great landing. Double tuck, bounces pretty far back out of it, but stays in bounds. Wolf through tour jete full, short on rotation. Front full front lay, great body position in both, really floated the lay. 9.825
After 3: N.C. State 147.050, Ball State 146.425
The Wolfpack looked sharp on beam. Some nervousness here and there crept in but as a complete lineup it was solid. Landings were tough for Ball State, losing two tenths to OOB plus the big bounce by Teter is tough to overcome, but that’s a fun floor lineup.
Rotation 4: N.C. State floor, Ball State beam
Henry (BSU): Switch to straddle 3/4, low front leg in the switch. Bhs loso, check and soft knees. Overrotated her full turn and bent at the hips. Gainer front toss, solid. That one get the crowd into it. Bhs 3/2, true stick. 9.75
Diaz (NCSU): Double pike, good landing. Switch half to Popa, clean there. Front lay front full, held the stick, little low on both saltos. Clean double tuck landing. That’s a great leadoff! 9.85
Evans (BSU): Solid bhs loso. Overrotated her full turn. Side aerial to beat, little adjustments in both. Hitch kick, check, repeats to switch side. True stick on her dismount. 9.75
Ortega (NCSU): L turn double, lowered her heel early while still rotating. FHS rudi, some leg sep and a low chest on the landing. Tour jete half split full, short of rotation on the latter. RO 3/2 front lay, low on the lay but a good landing. Front lay front full, better amplitude that time. 9.8
Ruthberg (BSU): Straddle back mount. Bhs loso bhs, soft back knee on all three. Switch switch to pike jump, little low on the pike. Cartwheel gainer full off the side, I must’ve missed something into the cartwheel for that to be UTL. 9.775
Zultevicz (NCSU): 5/2 punch front, nice. She sat that in one-touch. Little off balance on jumps landing, held her feet but swung her arms. Double tuck, cowboyed and a low chest on the landing but she got it around and lunged out. 9.825
Sumner (BSU): Side aerial bhs, bent arms in the bhs and a big check. Front aerial beat, nice. Low front leg in her leaps. RO 3/2, deep knees and has to step back. 9.625
Rutherford (NCSU): 5/2 punch front, sits it. Maybe I mixed up who had a tough one-touch! Switch side wolf full, good on the rotation. Straddle jump. Really high double tuck, has to step forward out of it. 9.075
Volpe (BSU): Nice full turn. Side aerial beat was strong. She has that classic beamer flow. Bhs bhs loso, soft knees but really steady, emphasized the landing. Beat to split 3/4, maybe a bit shy of 180. gainer full off the side, stuck. 9.825
Shepard (NCSU): Good double pike, no movement on the landing. Switch full split full, clean but lacking a little amplitude. Front lay front full, arched the lay down and had soft knees coming into the ground on it. Double tuck, hopped into the lunge. 9.9, big cheers when that came in
Waldo (BSU): Little check on her full turn. Front aerial FHS, so fun, soft knee on the first. Switch to straddle 1/4. I missed a skill into a beat jump. Tuck rudi off the end, stuck. 9.85
Negrete (NCSU): Double pike, bounced back and OOB. Tour jete half, really nice there. FHS front lay front full, clean landing. Switch half split full, great on the rotation. Double tuck, no problems on that landing.
FINAL: N.C. State 196.075, Ball State 195.375
The Wolfpack advances! Will we see N.C. State advance from round one all the way to the regional final again? See you tomorrow to find out!
VT: Henry 9.900
UB: Shepard 9.900
BB: Negrete 9.875
FX: Shepard 9.900
AA: Shepard 39.475
READ THIS NEXT: Suki Pfister Capitalizes on Forward Vaulting for Ball State
Live blog by Emily Minehart
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