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LOGAN, Utah – Utah State's gymnastics team returns to the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum for its final home meet of the season, hosting Southern Utah in a Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference dual meet on Friday, March 8, at 7 p.m.
 
Friday's meet against SUU will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network as a USU Athletics Production. Additionally, live stats will be available online at utahstateaggies.com and meet updates will be provided through the team's social media outlets.
 
At the conclusion of the meet, Utah State will honor its two seniors, Emily Briones and Madison Ward-Sessions.
 
"It is insane to think that my time as an Aggie gymnast is coming to an end, but there is not a group of girls who I am more thankful to share my last time in the Spectrum with," Briones said. "I am so excited and thankful for all the experiences I've had in the Spectrum. I am just ready to go out there and have a great meet with my best friends."
 
For the Aggies (5-8, 0-5 Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference) and Thunderbirds (4-4, 2-2 MRGC), this is the second of three contests between the league foes. The two teams first met on Feb. 1, in Cedar City, with SUU posting the 195.500-194.975 win over the Aggies. Utah State and Southern Utah will also face each other at the MRGC Championships on Friday, March 22, at the Marriott Center in Provo.
 
The Aggies are 49-47 all-time against the Thunderbirds, including 26-13 at home, 17-19 on the road and 6-15 at a neutral site.
 
Utah State enters Friday's dual meet tied for 39th nationally with a Regional Qualifying Score of 194.950, including a high of 196.075 set on Feb. 22, at the West Virginia quad meet. As a team, the Aggies are 43rd in the nation on vault (48.715), 36th on bars (48.800), 47th on beam (48.545) and 37th on floor (48.935).
 
Individually, senior Madison Ward-Sessions is tied for 19th nationally on floor (9.905 RQS). She is also tied for 87th on vault (9.810) and tied for 29th in the all-around (39.230). Sophomore Autumn DeHarde is tied for 52nd nationally on beam (9.840) and tied for 71st on floor (9.855), while fellow sophomore Leighton Varnadore ranks 46th in the nation in the all-around (39.050). Junior MaKayla Bullitt is tied for 98th nationally on bars (9.820).
 
"It is bittersweet competing in the Spectrum one last time," Ward-Sessions said. "It has been quite the journey the past four years. Every year the team has come closer and closer in friendship, so I am eager to get out there Friday with these girls one more time at home."
 
Southern Utah is ranked 29th in the nation and sixth in the North Central Region with an RQS of 195.465, including a high of 196.575. The Thunderbirds are 28th nationally on vault (48.905), 27th on bars (48.970), 38th on beam (48.695) and 41st on floor (48.890).
 
The Thunderbirds' Hannah Nipp is tied for 46th nationally on beam (9.845 RQS), Karley McClain is tied for 81st on floor (9.850) and Stephanie Tervort is tied for 92nd on vault (9.805). SUU's Becky Rozsa and Shylen Murakami are tied for 82nd on bars (9.835), while McClain is 47th in the nation in the all-around (39.040).
 
Ward-Sessions captured one title last Friday at the Boise State tri meet, bringing her career total to 35, which ranks sixth all-time in school history. She is three titles shy of tying Julie Ryan (1986-88, 1991) for No. 5 on the list. Ward-Sessions captured the floor crown for the Aggies last weekend with a career-high-tying 9.925.
 
Of Ward-Sessions' 35 career titles, 19 have come on floor, which is tied for first all-time in school history, along with Michelle Pohl (1983-86). Her eight career floor titles as a sophomore in 2017 rank second all-time in single-season school history, and the five crowns she notched a year ago as a junior is tied for ninth. Furthermore, Ward-Sessions has the most 9.925s in school history on floor with five.
 
Following Friday's meet, Utah State heads to Los Angeles, Calif., to wrap up the regular season with a dual meet against UCLA, which is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation. The Bruins and Aggies will square off at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday, March 16, at 5 p.m. (MT).
 
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