EAGL Championship Session Two

Recap

The Big Storyline: Host team George Washington had one of its best meets of the season to pull off the upset for the EAGL championship. Towson put up a good fight to finish in second but ultimately had too many 9.700s to come out with the victory

Postseason Implications: While it had already been decided before the meet began, Towson and North Carolina officially punched their tickets to regionals—Towson for the second year in a row and North Carolina for the first time since 2017. George Washington was already mathematically out heading into the meet, but Deja Chambliss qualified to regionals in the all-around and Kendall Whitman qualified on floor. 

Records: Meredith Robinson recorded a career high 9.900 on bars.

Conference Awards

• Gymnast of the Year: Deja Chambliss (George Washington)
• Event Specialist of the Year: Mara Titarsolej (LIU)
• Newcomer of the Year: Hallie Copperwheat (Pittsburgh)
• Coach of the Year: Jay Ramirez (Towson)

Preview

• No. 28 NC State | 196.330 NQS | 196.925 season high
• No. 30 Towson | 196.245 NQS | 196.700 season high
• No. 33 North Carolina | 196.225 NQS | 196.625 season high
• No. 39 George Washington  195.925 NQS | 196.375 season high

If you can only watch one meet, here’s why it should be this one…

The favorites for the EAGL title are in this session. N.C. State is the highest ranked team coming in with the highest season high, but the path to the title will not be easy. Towson has had another record-breaking year and will be hungry to earn its first EAGL title. North Carolina is coming in fresh off winning the EAGL regular season championship. While the Tar Heels don’t have as high of a season high as the others, don’t count them out of the picture. 

If this is one of many meets you’ll be watching, don’t miss this…

Emily Shepard now has more 9.9-plus scores than any other N.C. State gymnast in school history. She recently added back vault after just competing bars, beam and floor to start the season, so she could be a spoiler for the all-around title. North Carolina’s Elizabeth Culton is currently ranked No. 2 on bars and beam in the EAGL and is the defending champion on bars, beam and in the all-around. While she probably won’t contend for the all-around title in 2022 after not having competed vault to this point, bars and beam will be ones to watch. Deja Chambliss from George Washington has been one of the EAGL’s top all-arounders and is another favorite to take home the title. 

What’s the bigger picture to keep an eye on?

George Washington is mathematically eliminated from regionals, but the other three teams are still alive. N.C. State is the only team that has mathematically clinched, but both Towson and North Carolina can clinch with scores of 196.275 and 196.100, respectively. However, with both teams competing later than most of the others on the bubble, there’s a chance those numbers will be even lower when the time comes to actually compete.

By the Numbers

Past Champions

• N.C. State: 6 titles, last won in 2018
• North Carolina: 5 titles, last won in 2011
• New Hampshire: 3 titles, last won in 2019
• George Washington: 2 titles, last won in 2017
• Pittsburgh: 1 title, last won in 2016
• Temple: 1 title, last won in 2021
• Towson: 0 titles
• LIU: 0 titles

Records Watch

• Team: 196.750 (New Hampshire, 2003)
• Vault: 49.525 (West Virginia, 2004) 
• Bars: 49.325 (N.C. State, 2003)
• Beam: 49.325 (New Hampshire, 2003; N.C. State, 1998; Maryland, 1999)
• Floor: 49.575 (West Virginia, 2002)

Last Time Out

Temple pulled out the upset to take home the title in its first year of competition in the EAGL.