By Diana Ly, SDA Media Relations Student Assistant
TEMPE, Ariz. – The Arizona State women's gymnastics team (2-1) started the 2018 season in front of an excited crowd within Wells Fargo Arena Saturday evening, hosting No. 14 Auburn, No. 20 Iowa and Iowa State. The Sun Devils finished second with a solid 194.675, knocking off top-25 ranked Auburn and Iowa, while falling to Iowa State who took the quad meet with a 195.125.
"I'm pleased with our start tonight; lots of positive things and strong performances tonight," said Gym Devil head coach Jay Santos. "I think the atmosphere and energy in Wells Fargo Arena tonight was great and our fans got to see some good gymnastics from four strong teams. Moving forward we have plenty of room to grow and things to clean up but it was definitely a good start to season."
Starting the meet on vault, the Gym Devils earned a respectable 48.725 led by junior Morgan Wilson's 9.800. Freshman Cairo Leonard-Baker made her debut for the Gym Devils with a 9.750. Sophomore Jessica Ginn also posted a solid 9.750.
ASU showed huge improvement on bars with their clean lines and stuck landings for a team total 48.850. In her debut as a Gym Devil, junior transfer Anne Kuhm led the team with a 9.825, enough for a second place finish in the meet. Sophomore Morgan Hart notched a 9.800 while Leonard-Baker added a 9.775.
"I think we started on the first two events pretty well and did a good job of keeping the mistakes to small things.," noted Santos.
The Gym Devils were led on beam by sophomore Ashley Szafranski who notched a 9.800. Junior Justine Callis earned a 9.775 while Leonard-Baker and junior Katelyn Lentz added a pair of 9.750s.
Senior Nichelle Christopherson led ASU off on floor with a powerful routine earning her a 9.775. Ginn earned a career-high 9.825, notching a second-place finish for the Gym Devils. Leonard-Baker anchored the lineup with a 9.725.
"The nerves got to us a little bit on beam on floor and certainly have to clean up the falls on those events.," stated Santos.
In their All-Around debuts, Kuhm earned a 38.550 and Leonard-Baker notched a 39.000 for fifth.
Up next, the Gym Devils hit the road to face West Virginia in Morgantown, W Va. The meet is slated for a 11 a.m. MT start on Sunday, January 14 and will be live streamed on wvusports.com.
TEMPE, Ariz. – The Arizona State women's gymnastics team (2-1) started the 2018 season in front of an excited crowd within Wells Fargo Arena Saturday evening, hosting No. 14 Auburn, No. 20 Iowa and Iowa State. The Sun Devils finished second with a solid 194.675, knocking off top-25 ranked Auburn and Iowa, while falling to Iowa State who took the quad meet with a 195.125.
"I'm pleased with our start tonight; lots of positive things and strong performances tonight," said Gym Devil head coach Jay Santos. "I think the atmosphere and energy in Wells Fargo Arena tonight was great and our fans got to see some good gymnastics from four strong teams. Moving forward we have plenty of room to grow and things to clean up but it was definitely a good start to season."
Starting the meet on vault, the Gym Devils earned a respectable 48.725 led by junior Morgan Wilson's 9.800. Freshman Cairo Leonard-Baker made her debut for the Gym Devils with a 9.750. Sophomore Jessica Ginn also posted a solid 9.750.
ASU showed huge improvement on bars with their clean lines and stuck landings for a team total 48.850. In her debut as a Gym Devil, junior transfer Anne Kuhm led the team with a 9.825, enough for a second place finish in the meet. Sophomore Morgan Hart notched a 9.800 while Leonard-Baker added a 9.775.
"I think we started on the first two events pretty well and did a good job of keeping the mistakes to small things.," noted Santos.
The Gym Devils were led on beam by sophomore Ashley Szafranski who notched a 9.800. Junior Justine Callis earned a 9.775 while Leonard-Baker and junior Katelyn Lentz added a pair of 9.750s.
Senior Nichelle Christopherson led ASU off on floor with a powerful routine earning her a 9.775. Ginn earned a career-high 9.825, notching a second-place finish for the Gym Devils. Leonard-Baker anchored the lineup with a 9.725.
"The nerves got to us a little bit on beam on floor and certainly have to clean up the falls on those events.," stated Santos.
In their All-Around debuts, Kuhm earned a 38.550 and Leonard-Baker notched a 39.000 for fifth.
Up next, the Gym Devils hit the road to face West Virginia in Morgantown, W Va. The meet is slated for a 11 a.m. MT start on Sunday, January 14 and will be live streamed on wvusports.com.