The Southern Utah University gymnastics team faced both the University of California, Davis, and Utah State University in the America First Event Center in their first two of a three-meet home stint. The first meet took place on Friday, Feb. 27, against UC Davis. The Thunderbirds secured a 196.925-193.525 win. That marked their highest point total so far this season.
Their second meeting was on Monday, March 2 against Utah State. In a close match, the Thunderbirds fell short 196.875-195.725. SUU has faced the Aggies four times this season and has gone 0-4, with three of the losses being by less than a point.
The Thunderbirds now hold a 6-9 overall record. They haven’t beaten a Utah team this season.
UC Davis is 5-10 overall on the season. USU is now 14-4 overall and holds a 7-0 home record.
First meet
In the opening meet, the Thunderbirds matched a program-record vault score of 49.325 and only scored below 49.000 in one event.
Junior Niya Randolph earned first place in the all-around with a 39.450. She tied for first in both bars and floor, with her 9.875 on bars tying Mia Hampton. Randolph also recorded a stunning 9.900 on the floor, tying with Rylee Miller who set a new career high.
Kayla Pardue placed first in vault and tied her season-high score with an impressive 9.925. Elliot Bringhurst and Randolph tied for second on vault, both scoring a high 9.875.
After a fall from Miller on the beam that earned just a 9.275, Bringhurst brought the energy back with a season-best 9.900. Hampton also showcased an outstanding routine that earned a 9.925.
Second meet
In their second match at home, the Flippin’ Birds came up just short against USU, 196.875-195.725. They recorded above 49.000 in two events but fell short in the others, including a 48.425 on beam.
SUU had multiple first-places throughout the meet. Emma Nipper had an incredible 9.925 for a new career-high on the beam, Berlin Hall had a 9.900 on floor and Miller had a career-high 9.875 on the bars.
Miller also rounded out a set of second-place performances with another career-high on the beam, scoring 9.900. Hampton and Carilia Martinez tied for second on the floor with scores of 9.875.
While most of the remaining events were filled with strong routines, the Flippin’ Birds struggled on the beam. Maria Ferguson stumbled to a 9.100 while Randolph had an unusually-low 9.225 after a fall. It didn’t completely make the difference, but contributed to SUU’s loss against their cross-state opponents.
What’s next?
The Thunderbirds will look to go 2-1 at home. They will take on the University of Washington on Friday, March 6. The meet will be in the AFEC at 6:30 p.m. and can be streamed live on overnght.com.
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Authors: Andrew Streeter and Payson Davis
Photographer: SUU Athletics
Editor: Payson Davis
