Tough trip for ‘Cats in Arkansas

 

The University of New Hampshire gymnastics team closed out its season by scoring a 193.900 for sixth place at the 2012 National Collegiate Women’s Gymnastics Fayetteville Regional, hosted by the University of Arkansas, at Barnhill Arena on Saturday night.

No. 1 seed and third-ranked UCLA scored a 197.225 to win the meet, and second-seeded/10th-ranked Arkansas placed second with a 196.825. The Bruins and the Razorbacks qualified for the National Collegiate Women’s Gymnastics Championships on April 20-22 at The Arena at Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Ga.

No. 3 seed/15th-ranked Boise State (196.050) finished in third place, followed by No. 19/fourth-seeded Missouri (195.450), sixth-seeded Maryland (194.350) and the Wildcats.

The fifth-seeded Wildcats (14-10) got off to a tough start on balance beam, where they were forced to count a fall among their five scores en route to a first-rotation tally of 47.675. Ali Carr sparkled in her performance with a team-leading 9.825, and Kayla Gray, an All-EAGL First-Team beam performer, combated tight judging to record a strong 9.750.

Following a second-rotation bye, UNH rebounded from its lowest score of the meet to put up a team meet-best 48.900 on floor exercise. The duo of Erin Machado and Austyn Fobes scored matching 9.800s to lead the way, while Hannah Barile and Kate McGeever each delivered a 9.775 in supporting efforts. In her final meet as a Wildcat, senior Tasia Percevecz earned a 9.725 for her top road score since Feb. 10 at Pennsylvania (9.750).

The ‘Cats rode that momentum into their vaulting set during the fourth rotation. Courtney Connors (Buffalo, N.Y.) equaled her season high by scoring a 9.800, the first time she’s hit for that mark since Jan. 15 against Penn State. Carr tied that score, which allowed her to cap her collegiate vault career with scores of 9.800 or higher in each of her last six meets. Jillian Hudson chipped in with a 9.775, and Adrienne Hill registered a 9.750 in her first action since March 11 as New Hampshire posted a 48.875.

After a bye in the fifth rotation, the Wildcats concluded the competition on uneven bars. Jen Aucoin and three-time All-EAGL First-Team bar performer Danielle Reibold recorded tying marks of 9.750 to pace UNH’s team total of 48.450.