Today’s meet marks the opening of the 2026 season for both the visiting team, Pittsburgh, and host Texas Woman’s. These teams, which haven’t met since 2022, finished close in the rankings last year, so whichever group is better prepared could come out on top today.
Despite its status as a Division II team, TWU pits itself against the top conferences and shows up well. In 2025, the Pioneers remained in the hunt for a regionals spot until the last weekend of the season, due to their high scoring potential capped by a 196.600 earned in a meet against NC State. While the team ultimately fell short of an NCAA postseason berth, it topped the standings at WCGNIC, cementing its reputation as the best of Division II and III schools. In the offseason, TWU lost the routines of standout Kaitlyn Hoiland to graduation, but returns Carolyn Bowns from injury to compete bars and beam, and adds former three-star recruit Julianna Baker, who showed a competition-ready bar routine at the team’s December preview.
Pittsburgh also lost significant talent with the graduation of Jah’Liyah Bedminster, Elizabeth Cesarone, and Jordyn Ewing in 2025. Look for seniors Hallie Copperwheat and Jamie Pratt, both of whom made the ACC Preseason Watch List, to pick up the slack as multi-event contributors, along with Layla Bobek, a former three-star recruit who’s on the ACC Newcomer Watch List. The Panthers have a large group of freshmen and sophomores looking to make lineups and gain experience. A return to the postseason could be a few years away for this squad, but the first step begins now.
The competition will be streamed on FloCollege. Live scores can be found on Virtius.
Rotation 1: Texas Woman’s VT, Pittsburgh UB
Of note, the bars in this arena are placed at an oblique angle instead of being square to the floor or the stands. I can’t help but wonder if this is a distraction to newcomers and visitors.
Teams are marching in and competition is scheduled to begin at 3:15 ET.
Loock (TWU) Did not compete in her freshman season in 2025, so this is the college debut for this Canadian athlete. RO full on, pike back off. Stream went black during this vault, so I can’t comment on the quality of her effort, but in warmup it looked cleaner than in the past in terms of completing the full twist. 9.600
Duke (Pitt) Senior, also from Canada. First HS on low a bit short, but gets the toe handstand. Maloney to Pak, slight leg separation, HS on high short. Double tuck with a hop forward. Good start. 9.775
Hernandez (TWU) Yurchenko full. Good form in the air with a hop back. 9.700, also a good start for this team.
Lee (Pitt) Nice blind full to piked Jaeger with sloppy leg form. She misses her hand on kip after overshoot and has to stop in front support on low bar. Double tuck dismount has her stumbling back. 9.125
Ghanbari (TWU) Yurchenko full, stream went out again. 9.600
Pratt (Pitt) Arches first handstand on high, Ray is good, bail slightly short of HS, HS on high very short of vertical, sticks her double layout dismount. 9.850
Murphy (TWU) Front pike half with a lunge back. Open pike position. 9.625
Chiu (Pitt) Short first HS, Straddle Jaeger is good without noticeable deductions, blind full ends past vertical as this skill usually does. Sticks her double salto dismount. 9.850
Reid (TWU) Yurchenko full with only a small hop back, but visible leg separation in the air. 9.750
Todd (Pitt) Piked Jaeger keeps her legs together, as she does on the bail, giants are slightly piked. Full-in dismount with 1 step back. 9.850
Isbell (TWU) Yurchenko 1.5 with good distance and only a small hop forward. Definitely the highlight of this rotation. 9.825
Copperwheat (Pitt) Short HS on high, lots of height and distance on her straddle Jaeger, slightly off on bail. Flings her full twisting double tuck dismount far from the bar. Takes one step back. 9.825
AFTER ONE: TWU 48.500, Pitt 49.150
Both teams performed admirably in the first rotation, and should be happy to get a good start under their belts. TWU has only two 10.0 start value vaults, so they’ll need to clean up the landings to maximize scoring as the season goes on. Pitt gets to drop the miss from Lee and has a substantial lead, thanks to some generous scoring on bars.
Rotation 2: Pittsburgh VT, Texas Woman’s UB
All six of Pittsburgh’s freshman get a start on vault or floor today, so get ready to see lots of new talent break into the college ranks.
Bobek (Pitt) Yurchenko full, good distance, a small hop in place on the landing. Another good start for the freshman.
Bourgeois (TWU) Blind full with weight on one hand, but she’s able to continue to her straddle Jaeger. One step on the double salto dismount. A solid effort. 9.775
Pileggi (Pitt) Big Yurchenko full, nice laid out body position, small hop. 9.700
Zarlengo (TWU) Legs apart on blind change, piked Jaeger is caught close, arches on bail, double layout leans forward and has to take a step. 9.700
Guinta (Pitt) Yurchenko full with some closed shoulder angle and pike in the air. One of the messier vaults we’ve seen, but can still be considered a hit. 9.725
Baker (TWU) Another freshman debut for TWU’s top-rated recruit. Blind half to piked Jeager, arches over on HS on high but ultimately pulls it back and can keep going. Sticks her double layout dismount. 9.825
Green (Pitt) Yurchenko full, high, chest forward on landing. 9.750
Reid (TWU) Blind 1/2 to straddle Jaeger, Pak, toe 1/2. She’s getting through this routine without major error but it looks effortful. Blind full into stuck double layout dismount.
Duke (Pitt) Yurchenko full, not the most distance, hop in place on landing. 9.675
Ferrari (TWU) Straddle Jaeger, straddle back to HS – nice to see a different transition. Stuck double layout, making 2 in a row for TWU. 9.900
Grant (Pitt) Yurckenko full with good distance and a small hop back. Not much to differentiate one vault from another. 9.700
Bowns (TWU) Nice vertical HS on toe-on and bail. Excellent toe point. One step on double tuck dismount. 9.800
AFTER TWO: TWU 97.575 (49.075 bars), Pitt 97.750 (48.600)
TWU made up ground in that rotation, as they had full start value routines on bars, and Pitt had a slate of 9.95 SVs on vault, all scoring in the 9.7-range. The high score of the meet came on Brooke Ferrari’s bar routine, but Caroline Bowns’ form was the highlight from an aesthetic point of view.
TWU moves on to the always nerve-wracking beam where anything can happen. A steady rotation will keep things close, but a nervous one will put TWU further behind. Pitt’s freshman did well on vault, and three more will on floor. Floor was Pitt’s lowest-ranked event last year, so they’ll need good performances to gain in the rankings.
Rotation 3: Texas Woman’s BB, Pittsburg FX
Hernandez (TWU) Forward roll mount, pauses before full turn but it goes well. BHS LOSO is solid. Switch leap to switch half to beat jump. BHS 1.5 with a hop. 9.725
Morgan (Pitt) Front full to front layout, second salto is a bit flat, doesn’t rise as it should. RO LOSO to get back tumbling credit. Front full to Rudi is well done. Wolf double is fully around and then some. Steps back after landing her switch full. More than satisfactory college debut. 9.775
Reid (TWU) BHS LOSO with small hip adjustment. Switch leap to split jump with full extension. RO 1.5 dismount with a small foot adjustment but another good routine for TWU. 9.800
Bell (Pitt) Rudi to layout step out is done without noticeable deductions. Both wolf full jumps end precisely after 360 degree rotation. Double tuck is underrotated and her foot bounces up on landing. Another good effort for this freshman competitior. 9.750
Steffan (TWU) Punch front mount is off and she falls. BHS LOSO – no problem. Switch leap to switch leap with a wobble and lack of split on second element. BHS 1.5 dismount with a crossover step behind her. The first miss of the meet for TWU. 8.750
Pratt (Pitt) Front layout to front double full. Good height on the second salto. Back 1.5 to front layout is short, and she lands in a deep squat but stands it up. 9.675
Bowns (TWU) Side aerial is well-aligned and without a wobble. BHS LOSO is also right on. Full extension on switch leap, but switch half doesn’t quite get to 180 degree split. Side scale shows off her flexibility. Gainer back full off the side with a step on landing. It was great up to that point. 9.725
Clark (Pitt) Double pike lands short and her leg kicks up also. She’s bringing a lot of energy to her dance as her teammates yell, “Let’s go Pitt.” Comes back well on her front full to front layout to complete her college debut. 9.850
Goad (TWU) Beautiful full turn. BHS to side aerial with a wobble on landing. Beat jump in isolation. Split jump to split 3/4. Lands well but didn’t get full split on her second jump. Aerial to back 1.5 dismount with a large step. 9.775
Lee (Pitt) FHS front double full with a step but lots of power. Switch side to straddle full. Whip half to rudi. Nice straight legs and toe point on her dance giving this routine a clean look. The judges agree and give this routine 9.900
Isbell (TWU) Full turn – no problem. BHS LOSO LOSO. I think that’s the first triple series we’ve seen, and it’s right on. Switch leap to split jump. RO 1.5 dismount with a hop, just like all her teammates. 9.850
Copperwheat (Pitt) Back 1.5 to front layout with bent knees but no problem completing the twists and showing control on landing. Really speedy double tuck. Double pike is overrotated, so her feet slide. 9.800
AFTER THREE: TWU 146.450 (48.875 beam), Pitt 146.800 (49.050)
TWU survives beam and is able to drop the fall from Sofia Steffan whose risky mount didn’t pay off. Pitt had some less than stellar landings on its tumbling runs but no major mistakes, so it remains in the lead.
Rotation 4: Pittsburgh BB, Texas Woman’s FX
Lee (Pitt) Through the full turn and BHS LOSO without taking time to pause before major elements. Front toss lands low and a little crooked. The hops on back 1.5 dismounts continue. 9.750
Zarlengo (TWU) High double tuck to open. Her dance is slow and not very fluid. Switch half to wolf full looks like it lands a little short of full rotation. Back 1.5 to front full is great – very floaty. TWU starts off the rotation with a hit yet again. 9.750
Todd (Pitt) In place of Madso. Candle mount. Full turn goes a little past 360 degrees. Switch leap to switch half, second element lacks full split. Falls on her BHS LOSO. Gainer back full off the side with a crossover step. Pitt will hope to be able to drop this score, so let’s see how the next competitor rebounds. 9.125
Bourgeois (TWU) High double pike, but her lunge step goes off to the side. Back 1.5 to front layout with nice amplitude. Double tuck with a hop that also goes off line. 9.825
Bobek (Pitt) The freshman makes 2 lineups today. Standing LOSO to LOSO. Bent legs on the first salto. Wolf turn single; she’s able to control her body position. BHS to gainer back full off the side of the beam with a step to the side on landing. Good comeback after a fall to get the team on track. 9.750
Ghanbari (TWU) She competes with glasses on like Morgan Hurd. Super high double pike. Really tight pike position on her wolf full. Front full to front layout with some lack of control on landing. High double tuck. Does a drop split after she salutes to celebrate her impressive routine. 9.900
Chiu (Pitt) BHS LOSO with nice straight legs and pointed toes. Back foot on ring jump should be closer to her head. The de rigeur back 1.5 dismount with a step, but she has a nice look overall. 9.850
Isbell (TWU) High double tuck. This team has the tumbling. High back 1.5 to barani to double stag jump. Floor is going well for TWU. 9.825
Morgan (Pitt) Back handspring mount, aerial BHS, all is going well so far. Wolf double with leg below horizontal. Swich leap to split jump with full split. RO 1.5 dismount and she sits it down. Now Pitt will count a fall toward its total. 9.375
Hernandez (TWU) Front tuck to double tuck lands short and pops forward. Cartwheel back handspring just to get to the other corner of the floor. She appears to enjoy the dance element of floor exercise. Back 1.5 to front layout. That short landing was the biggest mistake TWU committed on floor today, which is fortunate, as TWU only fields five competitors on floor. 9.825
Copperwheat (Pitt) Candle mount. Swich leap to split jump. Good split on the first, slightly short on the second. Side somi with a lean forward. BHS LOSO well executed. She is moving with confidence through her choreography. RO double twist with a small slide back. 9.800
TWU 49.125 (floor), Pitt 48.525 (beam)
This was a good, close meet, as expected, and both teams performed well. Floor was especially strong for TWU, where the team scored over 49.0. Pitt will be understandably disappointed with the beam fall that cost them the top spot in this meet, but they should be pleased with how well their newcomers showed out. McKenzie Clark’s 9.825 topped the freshman scores for Pitt, and Meika Lee’s 9.900 on floor tied for the highest score of the day.
TWU scored its highest opening meet score in history, so congratulations to the Pioneers on a new record. Top performers were Sophia Isbell of TWU, who won vault and balance beam, and Meika Lee, who tied for first on floor and won the all-around.
FINAL: TWU 195.575, Pitt 195.325
VT: Isbell (TWU) 9.825
UB: Ferrari (TWU) 9.900
BB: Isbell (TWU) and Chiu (Pitt) 9.850
FX: Ghanbari (TWU) and Lee (Pitt) 9.900
AA: Lee (Pitt) 38.500
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Live blog by Jessica Needle
