The MPSF has always been a party conference, but this year is even more difficult to predict than usual. UC Davis is currently in the lead by the tiniest fraction over San Jose State, but anything could happen on championship day. Sacramento State might be less consistent than its rivals at the top of the conference, but its best days aren’t totally dissimilar.
What the Hornets lack more than anything is good road scores, and unfortunately they can’t fix that today. But they can show their ability to hit four events on the same day, which they’ve only really done once this year, finishing with a 194.225 last week. UC Davis got one of its best scores in program history two weeks ago, and then finished two points lower in the next meet. So let’s hope for the best, but there’s really no way to predict what will happen here.
Destiny Watley was injured last week for Sac State and I don’t see her warming up today.
Rotation 1: Sacramento State VT, UC Davis UB
Weber (CSUS): Vault debut, replacing Watley I guess. FHS front tuck and opens too early, sits it. 9.0
Ito (UCD): Maloney, toe on to bail a little low. Double lay with closed hips and rebounds backwards onto her back. 8.975
Leroy (CSUS): FHS front, anticipating the landing early, takes a big step back. 9.5
Liddle (UCD): Gienger, huge with a little leg separation on the catch, clear hip to bail, blind full double back and pops onto her toes to hold the stick. Weirdly for such a clean gymnast, she has some foot form issues on her casts. 9.675
Lahmidi (CSUS): Yurchenko tuck full, low chest and a medium step back. 9.7
Johnson (UCD): Long judging delay for Liddle. Full turn to Gienger, huge with great leg form. Bail with hips a little closed, blind full double back with a little hop. 9.8
Belkoff (CSUS): Her usual Yurchenko half, piked throughout, but stuck today. 9.8
Clagg (UCD): Clear hip to Tkachev, great bail, much better handstand than the others. Double lay stuck. WOW. 9.775 is trash for that routine, I was thinking 9.9.
Brent (CSUS): Yurchenko full a little on her toes, rebound and a step. 9.75
Cunningham (UCD): Maloney with foot form to bail, a little short of handstand, blind full double back with a hop forward. Lots of mats for her, might be fighting a lower leg issue. 9.625
Catour (CSUS): Yurchenko full, comes in very short with a pike down and hops forward. 9.7
Landess (UCD): Gienger to overshoot, little leg split, hitting handstands. Double Arabian with a little step. Great finish! 9.8
After 1: UC Davis 48.675, Sac State 48.450
Great recovery for both teams after missing their first routines. UC Davis bars is sparkling for a team of this level, I love those routines.
Rotation 2: UC Davis vault, Sac State bars
Ito (UCD): FTY, great, little hop in place. Never going to be a gymnast with a ton of amplitude but she can be very precise. 9.825
Koeth (CSUS): Toe on to Maloney, shy on a handstand, loses form just a touch on her handstand. Her basics really shine through on this event. Misses a handstand, hits the low bar with the feet on her blind full and has to do an extra giant, double back. That’ll be a SV issue. 9.4
Landess (UCD): Tsuk tuck full, stuck. Love that vault. She’s had some inconsistency in past years but has been really gritty this year. 9.775
Lahmidi (CSUS): Blind to Jaeger to overshoot, little bit of bent elbows, missed a handstand, FTDB flung out with her chest forward and a step. 9.725
Clagg (UCD): Yurchenko full, very pretty, hop back. She’s a very technical gymnast. 9.775
Weber (CSUS): Tkachev, a little close, half turn to straddle back short of handstand. Has a scary moment where her weight went back on her squat on, some momentum issues in her blind to half to double back but got through it and stuck. 9.775
Cunningham (UCD): FTY, very solid, step forward. 9.775
Marquez (CSUS): Blind to pike Jaeger, leg split and too far, falls. Way short on her bail, blind to double front with two steps back, good work to keep that on her feet.
Johnson (UCD): FTY, very powerful, scooty step backwards. 9.775
Mathias (CSUS): Clear hip to bail, clear hip to Gienger with a missed handstand, half turn double back with two steps back. 9.575
Davis scratching its sixth vault. Didn’t catch who it was. Likely Hebert, commentators were talking about her doing three events today but she doesn’t need to risk vault with five great ones already in the books.
Brent (CSUS): Flexed feet throughout, Maloney with messy form to a bail. FTDB with her chest down and a little step in place. 9.775
After 2: UC Davis 97.650, Sac State 96.700
A point in this meet at the midpoint with beam to come for both. Sac State did the cleanest bars rotation I’ve seen from it this year in terms of form and handstands, but having to count the Koeth slip after Marquez’ fall wasn’t ideal. UC Davis has exactly five great vaults this year and they all nailed it, so no need for a sixth.
Rotation 3: Sac State beam, UC Davis floor
Weber (CSUS): Front aerial, little check, BHS LOSO, split split 3/4 really pretty. Side aerial back full with a hop back.
Sklow (UCD): Triple turn, double pike with a little rebound. Switch leap to something, didn’t catch it. Her dance is iconic. One and a half front lay, comes in a little low, one and a half Barani with a little scoot back. 9.625
Catour (CSUS): Full turn, overturned a little, BHS LOSO great. Beat jump switch side, weight way back and falls. Cat leap kickover front, leg up check, BHS gainer full with a big step.
Cunningham (UCD): Rudi with chest a little down, she’s matured a lot as a performer since the beginning of last season. This routine is a really good fit for her. Two and a half twist, big step forward, switch side Popa Popa actually fully rotated. Front lay front full, close to the line in the back corner. 9.8
Brent (CSUS): BHS LOSO very steady. Switch back tuck, major issue with the split position and a check. Side aerial to split, misses the position again, full turn. Gainer pike stuck. 9.425
Johnson (UCD): Switch tour jete full, slightly messy landing. Front lay front full. Double back, overpowered and several steps OOB. 9.65
Gillen (CSUS): BHS LOSO great, full turn, split LOSO with a little bit of form. Clean leap combo, front tuck full stuck. Good one. 9.725
Clagg (UCD): Double pike, so clean, nailed the landing and throws her head back and milks it. By the way, she’s got her hair in Ivana Hong dinosaur buns. Tour jete half Popa I think, front layout Rudi almost stuck. GREAT. Front full front lay, almost stumbles into her arabesque but think it was fine. Wow. She’s a machine today. 9.8
Braida (CSUS): Backward roll, front aerial tentative. BHS LOSO pretty good. Full turn, beat jump switch half very good. She’s got beautiful upper body presentation and knows how to show off a landing. Switch split, gainer full stuck.
Landess (UCD): One and a half front full, great! Wolf 3/2 fully rotated, I love this floor routine for her, it’s energetic and cute at the same time and it works. Round off double tuck direct, good landing. 9.9 queen
Koeth (CSUS): My freaking favorite, I look forward to this every week. BHS LOSO BHS with a tiny arm adjustment. Little check on her leap combo, front aerial. Full turn, check, we got a back angle on her beautiful scale so unfortunately it was not flattering but I can imagine it, gainer full stuck. Not her perfect routine but technically so special. 9.75
Hebert (UCD): The stick machine! Double pike great, one and a half front lay and looks like she expected to stick it. Switch ring switch side tuck Shush great. Double back underrotated and steps forward.
After 3: UC Davis 146.675, Sac State 145.125
Gabby Landess just gave a few fairies their wings with that routine. Seriously iconic. Fairly steady beam rotation for the Hornets, but Brent got hammered for technique and it had to be counted after Catour’s mistake.
Rotation 4: UC Davis beam, Sac State floor
Schuelke (UCD): Walked out of her acro series a bit, side aerial good. Cat leap switch side, cartwheel gainer full stuck. 9.775
Lahmidi (CSUS): Whip half front full, a bit low, her bun and the ground weren’t separated by a ton. Tour jete full wolf full, ambiguous rotation, Rudi is great. 9.725
Clagg (UCD): BHS LOSO great. Straddle straddle 3/4, weight behind her a bit and saves it with an arm swing. Cat leap side somi, full turn, gainer full stuck-ish. 9.825
Leroy (CSUS): Front double full, great dramatic arabesque. Whip half front full I think, switch side Popa a little underrotated. Rudi double stag is very good. 9.85
Johnson (UCD): Front aerial BHS LOSO, very good. Full turn, switch split beat. Gainer pike with perhaps a little adjustment to salute. 9.925!!
Weber (CSUS): Wolf 3/2 jump, front full front lay very good. Switch ring tour jete full, short of splits on both. Double pike, sets totally wrong and falls backwards. Momentum was never right on that. 9.125
Landess (UCD): BHS BHS, a little shaky, never gets her feet fully on the beam on the LOSO and flies off to one side. One and a half dismount with a step. 8.925
Brent (CSUS): Nailed the double pike, great combo pass, double back. Very clean and a good recovery. 9.875
Ito (UCD): BHS BHS LOSO and falls. Counting a fall now. Switch straddle quarter with a lean, tic toc, gainer pike stuck-ish. Bummer.
Belkoff (CSUS): Double pike, good start. Switch side wolf full with position and rotation issues, one and a half front lay. Stuck her double back with chest down. Great final routine at home. 9.775
Hebert (UCD): Pressure now, she can improve the team score by close to a point with a good hit. Smaller bend check on her triple series, full turn, switch switch side. One and a half twist with a step forward. 9.725
Catour (CSUS): Double pike, good one, switch side Popa and misses positions. Rudi to straddle jump and flies back but stays in bounds. Front full front half a little low but good landing. 9.875 okay it’s senior night.
FINAL: UC Davis 194.875 – Sac State 194.225
Bummer for UC Davis to have to count a fall so late. Three gymnasts are doing triple series to add bonus without lengthening the routine too much, but it’s a struggle to keep them on the beam. Sac State had a great senior night with some touches of help from the judges here and there, but a good way to go out for the senior class and a very promising team total.
VT – Alyssa Ito (UCD) 9.825
UB – Cammi Johnson, Gabby Landess (UCD) 9.800
BB – Cammi Johnson (UCD) 9.925 (program record!)
FX – Gabby Landess (UCD) 9.900
AA – Logan Clagg (UCD) 39.175
Live blog by Rebecca Scally.
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