The gymnastics team competed in its final two meets of the regular season last week, setting several impressive individual and team marks. Last Tuesday, Bruno finished third in their last home meet of the season at the Pizzitola Center. The squad then hit the road for its last regular season meet Sunday, finishing fourth at the Charles E. Smith Center at George Washington University.
During Senior Night, the Bears combined for a score of 191.625 points, beating out the University of Rhode Island’s 162.575 but finishing behind first-place University of Bridgeport’s 196.2 and second-place Yale’s 193.475.
Though the team’s seniors were performing in front of a home crowd for the last time, Head Coach Sara Carver-Milne said that this did not slow down the gymnasts.
“There was a nice tribute for our seniors,” Carver-Milne said. “They got a little teary being honored, but it didn’t make them feel like things were over.”
The Bears started off the meet by scoring a combined 48.75 on the vault, breaking a school record of 48.625 that had been set earlier this year during a meet at Rutgers.
“We are continually upgrading (our vault),” said co-captain Kasey Haas ’13. “We increase our higher potential scoring, and we just keep on hitting.”
On the vault, Brown was led by a score of 9.8 by Michelle Shnayder ’14, whose routine put her in seventh place among competitors at the meet. Diana Walters ’16 scored a 9.775, finishing in 10th, while Emily Lutfey ’13, Rebecca Freedman ’14 and Corey Holman ’16 took the 11th through 13th spots, respectively, with scores of 9.75, 9.725 and 9.7.
Bruno combined for a score of 48.3 on the uneven bars, anchored by Alexandra Chretien ’16 and Haas, who tied for fifth with scores of 9.75. Stephanie Choo ’16, who has missed much of the season, broke a personal-best by scoring 9.675, good for ninth overall.
Meanwhile, Julia Meyer ’13 led Brown on the balance beam, tying for first place with a score of 9.8. The team followed up its score of 47.55 in that event with a 47.025 on the floor, where their highest scorer, Holman, earned sixth place with her score of 9.675.
The Bears finished their regular season at George Washington, where their score of 191.55 put them in fourth place. The University of Maryland won the meet with a score of 191.15, while the home squad and Towson finished in second and third with scores of 195.325 and 194.025.
Once again, Bruno’s strongest performance was on the vault, where Freedman turned out her best performance of the season, a 9.775. Her sixth-place finish helped Brown score 48.45 in the event.
Nicole Abdo ’13 broke an individual season record on the floor, scoring 9.8 and finishing in eighth. Another personal season-high was set by Lutfey on the beam, whose 9.775 was fifth overall. Finally, on the bars, Chretien led the charge for Bruno with a score of 9.7, which put her tenth among gymnasts.
The team will compete in the ECAC Championships at Cornell next Saturday, but they hope their season extends beyond that.
“Obviously we’re focused for the ECAC meet next week,” Carver-Milne said. “Still, we have our eye on the big picture and want to qualify for USAG Nationals, which the team has never done before.”
If Bruno qualifies, they will head to the USA Gymnastics Collegiate Nationals — which is being held April 12 in Shreveport, La.
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