CEDAR CITY, Utah — Utah State's gymnastics team posted a season-high 195.375 to place second at a tri meet against No. 24 Arizona State and hosted by No. 36 Southern Utah here Friday. USU began the meet with a 48.775 on bars, followed by season-highs of 48.750 on beam, 48.950 on floor and 48.900 on vault.
Arizona State won the meet with a 196.200 and Southern Utah placed third with a 195.075. This is Utah State's first win against Southern Utah in Cedar City since 2018.
"What an incredible turnaround for this team," said USU head coach Kristin White. "We believed and we trusted our process. We weren't perfect, but we improved tremendously. I keep telling this team every day that we are capable of so much and we finally saw the pieces of the puzzle start to come together. We will get back in the gym and keep working on the details and building our house.
"We had three new routines in the lineup tonight. I was very proud of Juliette (Boyer), Nyla (Morabito) and Mya (Witte). They were composed and confident. We look forward to continuing to build our strongest lineups through the rest of the season."
Rotation One – Bars (48.775)
Senior Brianna Brooks and graduate student Juliette Boyer led Utah State with a pair of 9.850s on bars to tie for third on the event. Junior Dani Kirstine and sophomore Avery Bibbey followed with a 9.750 and 9.725 to place 10th and 12th, respectively. Rounding out the event was senior Lexi Aragon with a 9.600. The 9.850 is a season-high for Boyer.
Rotation Two – Beam (48.750)
Utah State's beam rotation began the highs of the night as USU scored a season-high 48.750. Aragon led the Aggies with a 9.800 and took sixth place. Kirstine placed seventh with a season-high 9.775, and in eighth place were Brooks and graduate student Alivia Ostendorf with a pair of 9.750s. Ostendorf's score was also a season-high. Freshman Mya Witte made her college debut on beam with a 9.675 and a 10th place finish.
Rotation Three – Floor (48.950)
Utah State took the floor for the third and rotation and scored a season-high 48.950. Ostendorf lead the team with a season-high 9.850 to place fourth, while senior Jenna Eagles and sophomore Marley Peterson followed with a pair of 9.800s to place ninth. Peterson's score was a season high. Junior Amari Evans took 12th place with a season-high 9.775 and freshman Isabelle Vater scored a season-high 9.725 to round out the event.
Rotation Four – Vault (48.900)
The Aggies final rotation scored another season-high of 48.900 on vault. Ostendorf tied for fifth and posted her second 9.850 of the night, which is her season-high for the event. Freshman Nyla Morabito and junior Payton Gatzlaff earned a pair of 9.775s, which placed 11th, while Boyer and sophomore Chelsea Southam followed with season-high 9.750s and tied for 13th. Gatzlaff also had a season-high on vault.
Next Up
Utah State hosts fellow Mountain West member Air Force in its home-opening meet on Friday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m.
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.
Utah State at SUU, vs. ASU | Cedar City, Utah | January 19, 2024
Team Results: 1. Arizona State – 196.200 (vault: 49.475, bars: 49.100, beam: 48.325, floor: 49.300); 2. Utah State –195.375 (vault: 48.900, bars: 48.775, beam: 48.750, floor: 48.950); 3. Southern Utah –195.075 (vault: 49.000, bars: 48.550, beam: 48.625, floor: 48.900).
Vault: 1. Halle Gregoire – ASU, 9.925; T2. Jada Mangahas – ASU, 9.900; T2. Gracie Reeves – ASU, 9.900; T2. Hannah Scharf – ASU, 9.900; T5. Alivia Ostendorf – USU, 9.850; T11. Nyla Morabito – USU, 9.775; T11. Payton Gatzlaff – USU, 9.775; T13. Juliette Boyer – USU, 9.750; T13. Chelsea Southam – USU, 9.750; T15. Brianna Brooks – USU, 9.700.
Bars: T1. Alex Routsis – SUU, 9.875; T1. Isabella Neff – SUU, 9.875; T3. Brianna Brooks – USU, 9.850; T3. Juliette Boyer – USU, 9.850; T3. Jada Mangahas – ASU, 9.850; T3. Emily White – ASU, 9.850; T3. Sarah Clark – ASU, 9.850; T10. Dani Kirstine – USU, 9.750; T12. Avery Bibbey – USU, 9.725; 15. Lexi Aragon – USU, 9.600; 17. Amari Evans – USU, 9.175.
Beam: 1. Ellie Cacciola – SUU, 9.925; T2. Gracie Reeves – ASU, 9.850; T2. Emily White – ASU, 9.850; 6. Lexi Aragon – USU, 9.800; 7. Dani Kirstine – USU, 9.775; T8. Brianna Brooks – USU, 9.750; T8. Alivia Ostendorf – USU, 9.750; T10. Mya Witte – USU, 9.675; 17. Jenna Eagles – USU, 9.125.
Floor: 1. Emily White – ASU, 9.900; T2. Jada Mangahas – ASU, 9.875; T2. Niya Randolph – SUU, 9.875; T4. Alivia Ostendorf – USU, 9.850; T9. Jenna Eagles – USU, 9.800; T9. Marley Peterson – USU, 9.800; 12. Amari Evans – USU, 9.775; T14. Isabelle Vater – USU, 9.725; T16. Nyla Morabito – USU, 9.675.
All-Around: 1. Jada Mangahas – ASU, 39.200; 2. Niya Randolph– SUU, 38.525.
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