As the NCAA season hits its stride, early jitters are fading and teams are beginning to show true midseason form. That progression is reflected in the scores, with two of today’s three teams posting season highs last weekend.
Bars had been a stumbling block for Illinois State, but the Redbirds turned a corner at the SEMO Quad-Meet, posting a season-best 48.775 en route to their highest team total of the year (194.025). Freshman Savannah Ray led the way, tying her career high of 9.850 for a second-place finish. Stuck landings remain the next step forward, along with minimizing major balance checks on beam.
Kent State rebounded from a fourth-place finish at Air Force in Week 4 with a strong 195.100 at West Virginia, just two tenths shy of its season high. Beam was the highlight, with a season-best 48.775 led by Heidi Schultz’s 9.875 in the anchor spot. Senior Charlie Behner added a standout moment by winning bars with a career-high 9.900.
Host Ball State continues to rack up results, including a first-place finish at the SEMO Quad-Meet with a season-high 195.675. The Cardinals claimed event titles on vault, beam, and floor, while senior Zoe Middleton won the all-around with a 39.275—the second-highest score in the MAC this season. Ranked No. 21 nationally on beam and No. 33 on vault, Ball State should be especially strong on those events.
The meet will be streamed on ESPN+, and scores can be found here.
As this is a tri meet, we won’t be able to see all the routines, but I’ve listed the gymnasts expected to be in each lineup, and will add their scores as they become available.
Rotation 1: Ball State VT, Kent State UB, Illinois State FX
BSU vault lineup: Phillis, Mercer, Suchecki, Thurston, Middleton, Stalder
KSU bars lineup: Mast, Balko, Archambeau, Schultz, Rudnitskaya, Behner
ISU floor lineup: Woods, LeBlanc, Harris, Oh, Davis, Jones
Mast (KSU) Short first HS on high, legs apart on Maloney, good position on bail HS. Double layout with legs apart and a hop back. 9.675
Woods (ISU) Good control on Rudi. Short on rotation on Popa. FHS front layout to front full is well-performed. Double tuck with a nice high chest position on landing. Good start. 9.750 ties her season-high score.
Balko (KSU) Also begins with a short HS on low. Maloney to Pak has minimal deductions. Front pike half dismount with low chest and a step forward. 9.750
Vaults will be shown on replay. Phillis 9.650, Mercer 9.775, Bellan 9.425
LeBlanc (ISU) Double tuck with a slide back. Front full to front layout, looks like she walks out of it. She gets a solid landing on her Popa. Double pike with a jump forward. 9.650
Schultz (KSU) Good free hip on low, Sahaposhnikova is well done. A little bit of pike in the hips on HS on high. Double layout dismount with a hop forward. 9.800
Harris (ISU) Ends with back 1.5 to front layout, which is short and she scoots back. 9.675
Rudnitskaya (KSU) Short HS on high to good blind change, straddle Jaeger is caught in well so she swings nicely into the Pak. Good HS on high. Double layout and she almost sticks but has to take a step back. 9.675
Oh (ISU) Double pike, slightly short and she lunges forward instead of backward. Nice rise on her front layout to front full. High double tuck but she ends short in a low squat position, so it will probably score lower than previous routines. 9.550
Behner (KSU) Maloney with legs apart on back swing. Good bail HS position, and she sticks the dismount, the only one that we’ve seen do that. 9.875
Additional vault scores: Thurston 9.675, Middleton 8.975, Stalder 9.775
Davis (ISU) Double tuck with good vertical landing. Very low leg on switch full which she takes into a wolf full; wolf is better. Back 1.5 to front layout to a pose rather than an attempt at a stick. The first ISU routine with only two tumbling passes, which leaves less room for deductions on uncontrolled landings. 9.800
Jones (ISU) Double pike looks good in the air, although she jumps forward into her lunge. Punch Rudi to straddle jump, legs not fully in split position. Split full to Popa is good in terms of height and extension. Back 1.5 to front layout. She sticks the landing even though her torso is behind her hips. 9.675
Phillis (BSU) Yurchenko full with bent legs and a hop back. She needs to clean up her form. 9.650
Mercer (BSU) RO full-on back pike off. A little crooked in the salto but hops to square herself toward the vaulting table. 9.775
Bellan (BSU) Takes the place of Suchecki, who was injured during warmups. Tsuk tuck full with good height but she can’t control her power and takes a big hop. 9.425
Thurston (BSU) Yurchenko full with a nice laid out body position and good upright landing. Takes one step. 9.675
Middleton (BSU) Yurchenko full with hands down, but thankfully not a landing that caused injury. 8.975
Stalder (BSU) Yurchenko full, clean and similar to Thurston’s with one step on landing. 9.775
AFTER ONE: Ball State 48.300, Kent State 48.775, Illinois State 48.550
We’ve got a close one going here, as the near parity in the standings would lead us to expect. Kent State counted all hits on bars, and Illinois State did well on floor with just a few short landings bringing down its total. I enjoyed Ball State’s variety of vaults. This team can make up some ground in subsequent events with 10.0 start value routines.
Rotation 2: Ball State UB, Kent State BB, Illinois State VT
BSU bars lineup: Molina, McMahon, Mercer, Middleton, Bellan, Szymanski
KSU beam lineup: Rankin, Most, Migliore, Fuertez, Riley, Schultz
ISU vault lineup: LeBlanc, Oh, Wolff, Baucom, Ray, Davis
Molina (BSU) Good vertical HS on low, Maloney is good, but Pak is a little low and has leg separation. Another Good HS on high, legs apart on double layout and she hops on landing. 9.775
Rankin (KSU) Cat leap to aerial with a small balance check. Split half in cross position is solidly performed. Cat leap to gainer pike with a step backward. 9.550
McMahon (BSU) Blind change to Khorkina, keeps legs together on Pak, short HS on high. Stuck double tuck dismount and she’s jumping for joy. 9.800
Mast (KSU) Front aerial, torso wobbles before BHS. Cat leap to Liukin. Full split on switch leap. Good toe point and leg extension throughout the routine. Gainer pike, which she sticks in her debut beam routine. 9.525
Mercer (BSU) Deltechev is somewhat asymmetrical, indicating late or incomplete rotation. Blind full to stuck double tuck. 9.875
Migliore (KSU) BHS LOSO with a shoulder drop on landing. Beat jump to front toss. Split jump to split 1/4 short of 180 degree extension. Front full dismount is stuck. As they say, sticking is contagious.
Bellan (BSU) Chow (stalder Shaposhnikova), vertical HS on high, double layout with a hop back. 9.850
Fuertez (KSU) BHS BHS LOSO, layout is higher than most. Wobbles on full turn. Cartwheel. I thought she was going to take that into a gainer full off the side, but it is a single element in isolation. Front layout full with a hop forward on her dismount. 9.700
Szymanski (BSU) Perfect HS on high, piked Geinger with legs perfectly together. Double tuck stuck. 9.950. She’ll likely win the event, giving her 16 first place finishes in 32 competitions for a 50% win rate.
Riley (KSU) BHS LOSO, turns hips to side on landing. Switch leap full with a solid landing. Full turn without wobbling. Aerial with a break at the waist. Gainer back full with weight shift but no foot movement. 9.550
Schultz (KSU) Beat jump to straddle 3/4, lands it well. Cat leap to front toss and stands it right up. BHS LOSO, another gymnast with a shoulder drop. Full turn is no problem. BHS back 1.5 with a hop forward. Another hit routine for Kent State to cap off their rotation. 9.725
LeBlanc (ISU) Yurchenko full with pike down and a step back. 9.575
Oh (ISU) Yurchenko full with soft knees in the air, chest forward on landing, and a step forward indicating underrotation. 9.675
Wolff (ISU) Yurchenko full-on pike back off. A little sloppier than Mercer’s in rotation 1. 9.825
Baucom (ISU) Yurchenko full that gets more height than distance. She takes a step on the landing, but she does a happy dance celebration. 9.6500
Ray (ISU) Yurchenko half. Lands with chest forward but sticks the landing. 9.850
Davis (ISU) Yurchenko full and she doesn’t get a good block. She falls on her knees and looks like she’s hurt. 8.875
AFTER TWO: Ball State 97.550 (49.250 bars), Kent State 97.00 (48.225 beam), Illinois State 97.125 (48.575 vault)
All three teams had hit rotations to keep the scores close, with Ball State maintaining its lead and Illinois State leapfrogging Kent State for second.
Rotation 3: Ball State BB, Kent State FX, Illinois State UB
BSU beam lineup: Molina, Stalder, Fuller, Middleton, McMahon, Szymanski
KSU floor lineup: Rankin, Rudnitskaya, Bingman, Fuertez, Schultz, Behner
ISU bars lineup: Ray, LeBlanc, Heiner, Koliego, Beswick, Baucom
Rankin (KSU) Front tuck to double tuck lands short and she steps forward. The crowd is enjoying her dance, which takes up the majority of her routine. Finishes with a well-controlled back pike. 9.725
Molina (BSU) BSH LOSO is well aligned. RO double full dismount with a hop back. 9.750
Ray (ISU) 9.750 on bars
Stalder (BSU) Starts off with a solid full turn. BHS LOSO is also done well. Split half to beat jump. Small wobble on front toss, but otherwise a very composed routine. RO back 1.5 is very high, but she has to take a step forward. 9.675
Rudnitskaya (KSU) Ends her floor routine with a double tuck that slides backward. 9.725
Fuller (BSU) Switch leap to split jump with good leg positions on both. Cat leap to aerial is a little off, but she throws her arms down and maintains her balance. BHS BHS LOSO, hips turn to the side on landing. Gainer back full off the side of the beam with a small hop. 9.625
Bingham (KSU) Front double full goes out of bounds. Back 1.5 to front layout with excellent straight body position. FHS Rudi and she stumbles out of it. Not her day landing-wise. 9.650
Middleton (BSU) Switch leap switch leap, really good position on first, not quite at full split on the second. BHS LOSO with slight upper body correction. Cat leap pauses before side aerial. Full turn ends on releve. Punch front full dismount with a stick, but you can tell from her face that she’s worried about getting connection value on that dance/acro combination. 9.725
Fuertez (KSU) Punch front to double tuck with a controlled landing. Switch side to Popa is good; picky judges could take a deduction the straddle position. Front layout to front full with the second salto rising, as it should. 9.775
Szymanski (BSU) Kicks her free leg out of her full turn for a little flair. BHS LOSO is excellent and she adds a facial expression to show it. Wiggles her hips after a half turn for a little more flair. Split half has low back leg. RO back 1.5 dismount with a step forward, which is the only visible deduction. 9.800
Schultz (KSU) Ends routine with a double pike. Lands with chest low but no foot movement on lunge. 9.875
Behner (KSU) Front double full with momentum going forward, but she is able to stop it without taking an extra step. Good Popa to wolf full with a clean landing. Front tuck to double tuck, lands upright. Good finish to the rotation for Kent State. 9.875
Ray (ISU) Moving slowly on Jaeger, so lacking some rotation. Good handstands. Double layout with chest forward and a fight to keep her feet from moving. Not sure if the judges will count that as a stick. 9.750
LeBlanc (ISU) Maloney with leg separation, same on bail, arched full pirouette on high, double pike dismount with a step back. 9.725
Heiner (ISU) Toe HS on high is vertical, Ray looks good, but she can’t continue into her Pak and takes an empty swing. Double layout with a step back and a look of disappointment on her face. 8.950
Beswick (ISU) Slight arch as she tries to control HS on high. Geinger and bail HS are done well. High double tuck dismount, which she almost sticks, but ends up taking a step back. 9.825
Baucom (ISU) Good verticality on blind change to straddle Jaeger, short HS on high. Double layout dismount is piked and she steps forward. 9.825
We didn’t see Jercy Koliego’s routine, but she scored 9.800, which ties her career high.
AFTER THREE: Ball State 146.250 (48.700 beam), Kent State 145.975 (48.975 floor) Illinois State 146.050 (48.925 bars)
The meet remains close with no change in the standings after three rotations, despite Ball State being down from what the team usually scores on beam. Kudos to Illinois State for a hit bars rotation two weeks in a row.
Rotation 4: Ball State FX, Kent State VT, Illinois State BB
BSU floor lineup: Simms, Stalder, Girard, Molina, Middleton, Suchecki
KSU vault lineup: Migliore, Balko, Compson, Archambeau, Bingman, Behner
ISU beam lineup: Woods, Jones, Hiatt, Ray, Lau, Davis
Kantor (BSU) Front full to front layout, almost goes out of bounds but stays in. Punch Rudi. Does a back tuck on the side, so maybe she’s doing all front tumbling in her main passes. Front layout to front full. Interesting that she switched the order of the elements in her first pass. She has a good layout position, so why not? 9.750
Woods (ISU) Cat leap to front toss, wobbles but doesn’t let the skill get away from her. Front layout full off the end of the beam with a hop. 9.125. Didn’t see the beginning of the routine, so I’m not sure what accounts for the low score.
Simms (BSU) High double tuck with a good landing. Front layout to front full. The second salto rises, but she goes a bit off line to her right. Punch Rudi to straddle jump. The jump is controlled but not fully split. Ball State is off to a good start on floor. 9.800
Meanwhile, Migliore on vault 9.650, Balko 9.725, Compson 9.700
Jones (ISU) Aerial layout with a break at the waist. Short of split on switch leap and straddle 3/4. RO back 1.5 with a stuck landing, so a good finish, but Jaly looks frustrated. Gymnasts are perfectionists. 9.725
Hiatt (ISU) BHS LOSO with an arm wave to stay on line. Hips overturn on full spin. Straddle jump into standing layout to beat jump. Very unusual and impressive series. RO back 1.5 with a step forward. 9.400
Vault scores: Archambeau 9.700, Bingman 9.700, Behner 9.850
Molina (BSU) Back 2.5, able to control her momentum into the landing. Back 1.5 to front layout; layout is a little under rotated. She does a RO to BHS half as part of her choreography. She brought the difficulty with the first pass. 9.875
Middleton (BSU) Front layout with soft knees to front full to front tuck, unexpected addition of the third salto. Rudi to split jump–the jump is drifting. 9.700, OOB contributing to the lower score
Davis (ISU) So she might have just stung an ankle on her vault because she’s able to perform beam as scheduled. BHS LOSO is right on, as is full turn. Cat leap pauses, goes back and repeats to switch half to beat jump. Low back leg on the switch half. Front toss with shoulders off, but she pulls them back and stands it up. Cartwheel to back layout 1.5 with a step forward. Very pretty routine. 9.625
Other floor scores: Stalder 9.850, Girard 9.775
Migliore (KSU) Yurchenko full with legs split on the preflight. Lands close to the table, but sticks it. 9.650
Balko (KSU) Yurchenko full, vertical block position, just a step back. 9.725
Compson (KSU) Yurchenko full with a small leg separation on preflight and large lunge back. 9.700
Archambeau (KSU) Yurchenko full with bent arms on the block and step back. 9.700
Bingman (KSU) Yurchenko full lands short and hops forward. 9.700
Behner (KSU) Yurchenko full, also with some leg form but has better dynamics than her teammates, and she gets the stick for a 9.850.
Other beam scores: Ray 9.450, Lau 9.675
FINAL: Ball State 195.300, Kent State 194.650, Illinois State 193.925
VT: Ray (ISU) and Behner (KSU) 9.850
UB: Szymanski (BSU) 9.950
BB: Szymanski (BSU) 9.800
FX: Schultz (KSU), Behner (KSU), Molina (BSU) 9.875
AA: Middleton (BSU) 38.175
This exciting meet was close until the last rotation when Kent State lost ground on vault with a slate of 9.950 start value Yurchenko fulls and only one stuck landing. For the second week in a row, Illinois State was in contention for a win but failed to have a clean beam rotation to close things out. The teams finish in the order of ranking coming into the meet, with none of them reaching new season highs, but all of them earning usable scores for NQS.
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Live blog by Jessica Needle
