CEDAR CITY, Utah – Following a rough start on bars to begin its top-25 showdown against No. 25 Southern Utah, the 21st-ranked Utah State gymnastics team was faced with two options.
 
"We didn't start off the way we wanted to," said fifth-year USU head coach Amy Smith. "We told them they had two decisions: 'You can play down to what we just did, or you can play up to the great gymnastics you have been doing.' I'm really happy they went with the second option of letting it go and building throughout the meet, which is exactly what they did."
 
Yes, the Aggies did.
 
Utah State went 49.250 or better after opening with a 48.850 on bars, which led to tying the second-highest score in school history with a season-high 196.800. The Thunderbirds won the Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference dual meet with a 196.975.
 
"After bars, when we brought it in, we were like, 'It's okay. We need to let this go and move on,'" said senior beam specialist Carley Bayles. "We've been working on the goldfish mentality, because goldfish can only think about things for 10 seconds, and then they move on. We just left bars at that, because we can't change what just happened. All we could do is get better from there, and we stepped up and got it done."
 
The 196.800 turned in by the Aggies (7-4, 3-2 MRGC) is also tied for the second-best road score in school history. Furthermore, it marked the first time in 39 road meets against SUU (4-5, 2-4 MRGC) that Utah State had ever eclipsed the 196-plateau.
 
Rebecca Wells won the all-around for the third time this season with a career-high 39.300. The junior also tied for first on vault with a personal-best 9.900, which is tied for eighth all-time in school history.
 
Bayles won her second beam title of the season with a 9.900, while Brie Clark tied for first on floor with a 9.925. The freshman from Daphne, Alabama, now has five floor titles on the year, which is tied for 10th in single-season school history on the event.
 
"It was a very special meet, because a lot of us were competing for family members or teammates that are dealing with certain types of problems," Bayles said. "My cause was driving under the influence, because my brother (Michael) was killed in a car accident by a drunk driver, so I wore a ribbon for that. It was just nice to go out there and do my gymnastics for him."
 
The 48.850 on bars tied a season low for the Aggies (7-4, 3-2 MRGC). Sophomore Brianna Brooks and junior Maia Fishwick led Utah State on the event as the duo tied for second with matching 9.850s.
 
Putting the slow start behind them, the Aggies turned things around on vault, where they recorded a season-high 49.250, which ranks third all-time in school history. Besides Wells' career-high 9.900, freshman Trinity Brown tied for fourth with a career-high-tying 9.875, Clark placed seventh with a career-best 9.825 and freshman Molly Arnold tied for eighth with a personal-best 9.800.
 
"That vault rotation was incredible," Smith said.
 
At the midway point of the meet, the Aggies trailed the Thunderbirds 98.600-98.100, but they nearly climbed all the way back from that deficit.
 
In the third rotation, Utah State recorded a season-high 49.375 on floor, which is tied for seventh all-time in program history. Clark led the way with her 9.925, but Arnold got the party started with a personal-best 9.900 to place third. Junior Jessica Gutierrez tied for fourth with a career-high 9.875 in the sixth spot.
 
Heading into the fourth and final rotation, SUU held a 147.725-147.475 lead over USU.
 
The Aggies closed the meet on beam, their best event. Led by Bayles, all six gymnasts went 9.800 or better as Utah State recorded a 49.325 on the event. Brooks and junior Sofi Sullivan tied for second with matching 9.875s, while freshman Kielyn McCright tied for fifth with a 9.850.
 
"They just did a great job tonight," Smith said. "We always tell them that they need to battle through and not give up, which is what they did tonight. A lot of them didn't even realize when we told them at the end of the meet that we were just two-tenths off of hitting that 197.000, so I really do believe, once again, that we are a 197.000 team at our best.
 
"We have not peaked yet and I am really excited to get back to work on Monday. I am really proud of what the girls did, and how they kept fighting."
 
For more information on the Utah State gymnastics program, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUGymnastics, on Facebook at UtahStateGymnastics and on Instagram at USUGymnastics.
 
No. 21 Utah State at No. 25 Southern Utah – Cedar City, Utah – America First Event Center – February 11, 2022
 
Team Results: 1. Southern Utah – 196.975 (vault: 49.275, bars: 49.325, beam: 49.125, floor: 49.250); 2. Utah State –196.800 (vault: 49.250, bars: 48.850, beam: 49.325, floor: 49.375).
 
Vault: T1. Rebecca Wells – USU, 9.900; T1. Caitlin Kho – USU, 9.900; T1. Morgan Alfaro – SUU, 9.900; T4. Trinity Brown – USU, 9.875; 6. Brianna Brooks – USU, 9.850; 7. Brie Clark – USU, 9.825; T8. Molly Arnold – USU, 9.800; 12. Eve Jackson – 9.575.
 
Bars: 1. Shylen Murakami – SUU, 9.975; T2. Maia Fishwick – USU, 9.850; T2. Brianna Brooks – USU, 9.850; T2. Aubri Schwartze – SUU, 9.850; T2. Hannah Nipp – SUU, 9.850; T9. Jessica Gutierrez – USU, 9.775; T9. Rebecca Wells– USU, 9.775; 11. Sofi Sullivan – USU, 9.600; 12. Eve Jackson – USU, 9.150.
 
Beam: 1. Carley Bayles – USU, 9.900; T2. Sofi Sullivan – USU, 9.875; T2. Brianna Brooks – USU, 9.875; T5. Kielyn McCright – USU, 9.850; T7. Brie Clark – USU, 9.825; T9. Rebecca Wells – USU, 9.800.
 
Floor: T1. Brie Clark – USU, 9.925; T1. Karley McClain – SUU, 9.925; 3. Molly Arnold – USU, 9.900; T4. Jessica Gutierrez – USU, 9.875; 8. Eve Jackson, 9.850; T9. Trinity Brown – USU, 9.825; T9. Rebecca Wells – USU, 9.825.
 
All-Around: 1. Rebecca Wells – USU, 39.300.
 
-USU-