At home in Philadelphia, the Quakers are the favorites for this sort of mini-conference championship. That said, they’ve also been the favorites for the last two seasons and were upset in both cases. The Quakers last won Ivies in 2020. It’s hard to tell who might attempt an upset: Yale was in a really good place but struggled last week in the absence of Gigi Sabatini, while Brown is talented but still putting the pieces together and Cornell has already upset Penn once this season but can be challenged by consistency.
On the individual front, there are some great prospects here. Penn’s Skyelar Kerico is the favorite for the all-around title, but teammate Sara Kenefick, Cornell’s Sydney Beers, and Yale’s Sarah Wilson are all contenders too. The real can’t-miss routine from this meet is Julia Bedell of Brown on floor: She’s ranked No. 32 nationally and her routine is genuinely jaw-dropping.
Rotation 1: Cornell VT, Penn UB, Brown BB, Yale FX
This started RIGHT on time and my stream did not so we might have missed a routine or two off the top here.
Song (Penn): Slight arch on the first handstand, toe to Maloney to Pak with leg sep. Blind full double tuck stuck with low chest. 9.7
Byun (Cornell): Front tuck half, low chest and a step forward.Â
McKeown (Brown): BHS LOSO, steady with a touch of form. Beat straddle straddle quarter. Side aerial, fall. Gainer full off the side with a hop back.
Oniki (Penn): Tkachev, nice overshoot. Double layout, strong landing. 9.625
Impossible to see handstands from this angle, I imagine there were some issues there.
Brueck (Yale): Nice double tuck, fall on the second pass.
Brady (Cornell): Yurchenko Arabian, sat.
S. Kenefick (Penn): Pak with leg sep, double full with a step to the side.
Kramer (Brown): Side aerial BHS tentative, medium check. Another check on the split 3/4. Punch front full, a bit deep but stuck,
Wang (Yale): One and a half front lay nice. She had to wait a WHILE before this routine. Double tuck, good control.Â
Whitaker (Cornell): Great tuck full, held the stick for a second before taking a step back. Good and needed.
DeFrancisco (Cornell): Yurchenko Arabian, a bit soft on the form but just a tiny hop on the landing.
Gazdak (Penn): Tkachev, too far and falls.Â
Beers (Cornell): FTY, high and long, hop back.
Xing (Brown): Good landing on the series, beat to LOSO with a small check. Split straddle quarter, split is a touch short. Double full dismount, hop.Â
Paris (Penn): Chow to bail, little leg sep, stalder double back stuck
Lin (Brown): Amazing save to the point that I blacked out on identifying skills for a hot minute. What you need to know is she stayed on and the rest was good.
Sabatini (Yale): Nice double pike, tour jete half Popa is solid. Great control on the one and a half front lay. Rudi to straddle, great.Â
Yang (Brown): Overturns the wolf and grabs the beam. Onodi, fall.Â
Kerico (Penn): Great Ray, solid on the bail. FTDB a bit deep with a big step.Â
Tashjian (Yale): Double pike, great, front full front lay slightly bouncy on the landing. Tour jete half, flexed foot, to Popa. Double tuck, large rebound back.
After 1: Yale 48.800, Penn 48.625, Cornell 48.375, Brown 48.200
I didn’t write as much down as I wanted to for Yale floor but it was a super solid rotation, great to see a strong start. Everyone had a fall in that rotation! We’re having to be tough early.Â
Tests coming now. Yale vault can be a tough one, as can Cornell bars. Brown needs to be great on floor to get back into this.
Rotation 2: Yale VT, Cornell UB, Penn BB, Brown FX
We had a commercial break during routines??? Rude.
Belkoff (Penn): BHS BHS LOSO, soft knees but great landing. Split to sheep, one and a half dismount pretty good.Â
Wang (Yale): Pikey FTY, step back.
Kramer (Brown): Front lay to Rudi, clean. Switch ring switch half is nice, great double tuck,
Tehrani (Cornell): Wild leg sep on the Jaeger, solid overshoot. Three giants into her DLO, straddled but stuck.
Tashjian (Yale): Leg sep on the table on her FTY, solid landing.
Sabatini (Yale): Flings out her FTY a bit, long hop back.
A. Kenefick (Penn): BHS BHS LOSO great. One and a half dismount, baby step.
Xing (Brown): Whip to double tuck, great control. Awesome double pike. Brown floor is a go.
AuCoin (Yale): FTY, misses her block and takes it straight to her knees.Â
Brueck (Yale): This rotation was so good until the fall, even a just-OK vault here will make it a successful outing. Front handspring front pike, hop forward. Done. Soft knees I think, it’s hard to tell from here.
Rothstein (Cornell): Missed that this one started but saw a stuck dismount.
Davis (Brown): Great double pike. Switch ring switch half lovely, whip half front full super controlled. Another great leap series.Â
S. Kenefick (Penn): BHS BHS LOSO solid. Looks a lot like Ana’s, honestly. Beat straddle 3/4, one and a half dismount with a hop forward.Â
Shambo (Cornell): Nic Jaeger, comes in a bit low for her bail but fights for it. Shy on a handstand, double lay with a step back.
Marr (Penn): BHS LOSO great. Baby check on the cat leap side aerial, gainer full stuck with an arm swing.
Marcus (Brown): Double back, a little overcooked with a longgg lunge. Switch side half. There’s a lot of great choreo at Brown. Thanks Sophia Hyderally. One and a half front lay, a bit soft on the position.Â
Moylan (Cornell): Maloney, a bit short on the bail, FTDB with two quick steps.Â
Dewar (Brown): One and a half front full, slightly soft knees. Tour jete half split full slightly chaotic. Double tuck with chest slightly low, lunge is fine,Â
Kerico (Penn): Wolf turn, split straddle half well controlled. BHS LOSO, looked a touch off but pulls it onto the beam with her arms and no check there. Slight knee swivel on her front tuck. One and a half, works for the stick.Â
Bedell (Brown): Full in, NAILED it. Tour jete half split full is lovely. Great double tuck. One of her best.Â
Wu (Penn): Full turn, nice on the BHS LOSO. Split sheep. Drilled the gainer pike.
After 2: Penn 97.900, Yale 97.600, Brown 97.300, Cornell 96.800
Yale did itself proud on vault there, but Penn’s phenomenal beam rotation couldn’t be defended against. Brown floor was gorgeous as expected, while Cornell did better than just surviving its worst event. Great rotation!
This rotation, Penn floor should be awesome, while Brown’s vault rotation has been putting up just 5 gymnasts but 6 are rostered today.
Rotation 3: Brown VT, Yale UB, Cornell BB, Penn FX
Lin (Brown): Pikey Yurchenko lay, big step back.Â
Holt (Yale): Nice Jaeger, solid bail, debatable handstand. Blind full awkward to Rudi with a side step.Â
Walton (Cornell): BHS LOSO, bit of form and baby check. Split half is good. Beat to aerial, big check. Beat straddle 3/4 with an adjustment.Â
Gazdak (Penn): Front through double back nice. Double pike, rebound OOB.Â
Ford (Brown): Tucked FTY, chest a bit low and a hop back.Â
Sabatini (Yale): Toe to Tkachev, foot form, blind full double back stuck with leg sep.
Byun (Cornell): Full turn, kickover front good. BHS LOSO tentative but okay, hitch kick switch half.Â
Kramer (Brown): FTY, a bit pikey, hop back.
AuCoin (Yale): Blind to Jaeger, good, blind full double back stuck. Landings hot for the Bulldogs!Â
Quiana (Cornell): Switch switch half short on both, to beat. Front aerial, check. BHS LOSO, form. Gainer tuck full stuck
A. Kenefick (Penn): Nice double pike, one and a half front full a little bouncy.
Xing (Brown): Solid FTY, little hop.Â
Dewar (Brown): FTY, bit of leg sep, medium hop.Â
Wilson (Yale): Tkachev to overshoot. Blind full double back, great.
Tehrani (Cornell): BHS LOSO super airy and clean, switch split half. Switch half, check,Â
Bedell (Brown): FTY, great block, very straight with a small hop.Â
Kerico (Penn): One and a half front lay is great, only takes half the floor. Double back overcooked with a long lunge.Â
Wang (Yale): Blind to Jaeger, nice and steady, bail a bit short. FTDB awesome.Â
Beers (Cornell): Kicover front to beat with foot form, BHS LOSO good. Gainer full off the side with a step.Â
S. Kenefick (Penn): Two and a half punch front, punch comes in a little low but not major drama. Switch side to Popa Popa. Nice front double full.Â
Burton (Cornell): Got the front aerial side aerial, baby hop on her one and a half dismount.
DeJoy (Yale): Blind to pike Jaeger to overshoot, DLO is pretty.Â
Lassiter (Penn): Front full front tuck full, stepped around a touch, undercooked on the double pike with a very low chest and a step forward. Switch side Popa.Â
Davies (Penn): Double pike, slide back. Front lay front full, foot shuffle. Nice double back to finish.Â
After 3: Penn 146.850, Yale 146.525, Brown 145.975, Cornell 145.900
Rotation 4: Penn VT, Brown UB, Yale BB, Cornell FX
Byun (Cornell): Great double back, on and a half front lay is good.Â
Strause (Yale): BHS LOSO, lean. Front aerial to split nice, switch split pretty. BHS BHS double full with a step back.
Perkins (Penn): FTY, chest low and a step forward.Â
Sabatini (Yale): BHS LOSO some form but great landing, big check on something.
Lassiter (Penn): FTY, leg sep and a big hop back.Â
Weiner (Brown): Missed the release, good overshoot, blind full with crazy legs to double back with a step.Â
S. Kenefick (Penn): FTY, piked throughout but stuck!Â
Marcus (Brown): Toe to Maloney, soft knees in the backswing, to bail. Off in her pirouette, just got stuck.Â
Mangiacapre (Yale): BHS LOSO, check, switch split short of splits. Gainer pike, hop.
Moylan (Cornell): Rudi LOSO solid. Double pike, two steps OOB.Â
Kerico (Penn): FTY more open than the last few, hop.
Barrow (Penn): FTY, high with just a touch of feet, good dynamics and a little hop.
Tashjian (Yale): BHS LOSO clean. Switch straddle quarter. Hitch kich side aerial short aod falls.Â
McKeown (Brown): Blind to Tkachev, great, she works SO fast. Good bail. STUCK DLO.Â
Quiana (Cornell): Double pike, close to the line. One and a half front lay, solid landing.Â
Belkoff (Penn): Yurchenko Arabian, pretty, big step forward.Â
Davis (Brown): Maloney to Pak, great extension, slightly wild half pirouette. Blind full double back with a hop forward.Â
Wilson (Yale): Full turn, front tuck with a medium check. Switch split, short of splits. Step on dismount.Â
Beers (Cornell): Front through double pike, big scoot and foot movement back. Switch half Popa Popa slightly wild.Â
Sokolowsky (Brown): Nice Jaeger, misses a handstand, bail. I didn’t see the dismount.Â
Donovan (Yale): Full turn, BHS LOSO great. Pretty hands. Switch…. check. Beat to straddle 3/4. Side aerial, lean. One and a half twist, cross step back.Â
Walsh (Cornell): Front through double back, great. Double pike with a rebound and OOB.Â
FINAL: Penn 195.800, Yale 195.400, Cornell 194.625, Brown 193.900
Every Penn gymnast just became an Ivy champion for the first time! No. 3 score in program history for the Quakers.
Good day all around with a partial exception for Brown which will probably regret that counted fall on beam. An expected Ivy floor title for Julia Bedell sweetens the pot. Yale got its momentum back with a program record (!!) and Cornell continues to conquer its bars demons.
VT: DeFrancisco (Cornell), Tashjian (Yale), S. Kenefick (Penn), Barrow (Penn) 9.825
UB: Wilson (Yale) 9.850
BB: Wu (Penn) 9.900
FX: Bedell (Brown) 9.925
AA: Kerico (Penn) 39.325
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Live blog by Rebecca Scally
