By Diana Ly, SDA Media Relations Student Assistant
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The No. 17 Arizona State gymnastics team garnered a second-place finish in its regular season finale at Sacramento State Friday night at the Nest. Recording a team cumulative 195.900, the Gym Devils earned head-to-head victories over Sacramento State and UC Davis while falling to conference foe No. 13 Oregon State.
"We've been a little up and down over the last couple of meets," said Gym Devil head coach Jay Santos. "We have been struggling a little to put together a whole meet; we have had some terrific routines and great performances but we've also had too many shaky routines."
ASU recorded event scores of 48.950, 48.725, 49.075, 49.150 on vault, bars, beam and floor, respectively. Once again leading the effort was 2012 French Olympian Anne Kuhm and five-time Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Week Cairo Leonard-Baker. Kuhm placed third in the all-around with a 39.325. Leonard-Baker also had third place finishes on vault and floor, while Kuhm and Sophomore Ashley Szafranski tied for second on beam.
Team Scores:
1. No. 13 Oregon State - 196.850
2. No. 17 Arizona State - 195.900
3, Sacramento State - 195.275
4. UC Davis - 194.475
First Rotation: Floor | 49.150
Opening the meet in impressive fashion, the Gym Devils recorded a 49.150 on floor, spearheaded by a stellar 9.900 performance from Leonard-Baker. Nearly matching Leonard-Baker's effort, Kuhm followed close behind with an impressive 9.875. Junior Kaitlyn Szafranski and Sophomore Jessica Ginn added a 9.825 and 9.800 respectively.
Second Rotation: Vault | 48.950
After capturing the outright in the night's first rotation the Maroon and Gold managed a 48.950 on vault. Leonard-Baker led the charge with a 9.850, tying her career-high. Kuhm and K. Szafranski also added a pair of 9.800's to round out the rotation. K. Szafranski's 9.8 performance marked a career-best for the junior transfer.
Third Rotation: Bars | 48.725
The Gym Devils posted a 48.725 in the night's third rotation, led by a 9.775 from Kuhm. The Maroon and Gold's Szafranski sisters added a pair of 9.750s, while Junior Justine Callis capped the effort with a 9.725 to her credit.
Final Rotation: Beam | 49.075
Kuhm and Sophomore Ashley Szafranski led the beam effort with an impressive pair of 9.875s to help the team earn a 49.075. The 9.875 marked a new career-high for Kuhm on the event. Leonard-Baker and Juniors, Heather Udowitch and Morgan Wilson, each tallied a 9.775 to round out the meet.
"With Pac-12's next week we really need to figure out how to clean up the small mistakes and put together a complete meet," noted Santos. This team is capable of doing great gymnastics so we just need to focus on the details that will get us back to that."
Up next, the Gym Devils will travel south to Tucson, Ariz. for the 2018 Pac-12 Championships to be hosted by Arizona on Sat., March 24.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The No. 17 Arizona State gymnastics team garnered a second-place finish in its regular season finale at Sacramento State Friday night at the Nest. Recording a team cumulative 195.900, the Gym Devils earned head-to-head victories over Sacramento State and UC Davis while falling to conference foe No. 13 Oregon State.
"We've been a little up and down over the last couple of meets," said Gym Devil head coach Jay Santos. "We have been struggling a little to put together a whole meet; we have had some terrific routines and great performances but we've also had too many shaky routines."
ASU recorded event scores of 48.950, 48.725, 49.075, 49.150 on vault, bars, beam and floor, respectively. Once again leading the effort was 2012 French Olympian Anne Kuhm and five-time Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Week Cairo Leonard-Baker. Kuhm placed third in the all-around with a 39.325. Leonard-Baker also had third place finishes on vault and floor, while Kuhm and Sophomore Ashley Szafranski tied for second on beam.
Team Scores:
1. No. 13 Oregon State - 196.850
2. No. 17 Arizona State - 195.900
3, Sacramento State - 195.275
4. UC Davis - 194.475
First Rotation: Floor | 49.150
Opening the meet in impressive fashion, the Gym Devils recorded a 49.150 on floor, spearheaded by a stellar 9.900 performance from Leonard-Baker. Nearly matching Leonard-Baker's effort, Kuhm followed close behind with an impressive 9.875. Junior Kaitlyn Szafranski and Sophomore Jessica Ginn added a 9.825 and 9.800 respectively.
Second Rotation: Vault | 48.950
After capturing the outright in the night's first rotation the Maroon and Gold managed a 48.950 on vault. Leonard-Baker led the charge with a 9.850, tying her career-high. Kuhm and K. Szafranski also added a pair of 9.800's to round out the rotation. K. Szafranski's 9.8 performance marked a career-best for the junior transfer.
Third Rotation: Bars | 48.725
The Gym Devils posted a 48.725 in the night's third rotation, led by a 9.775 from Kuhm. The Maroon and Gold's Szafranski sisters added a pair of 9.750s, while Junior Justine Callis capped the effort with a 9.725 to her credit.
Final Rotation: Beam | 49.075
Kuhm and Sophomore Ashley Szafranski led the beam effort with an impressive pair of 9.875s to help the team earn a 49.075. The 9.875 marked a new career-high for Kuhm on the event. Leonard-Baker and Juniors, Heather Udowitch and Morgan Wilson, each tallied a 9.775 to round out the meet.
"With Pac-12's next week we really need to figure out how to clean up the small mistakes and put together a complete meet," noted Santos. This team is capable of doing great gymnastics so we just need to focus on the details that will get us back to that."
Up next, the Gym Devils will travel south to Tucson, Ariz. for the 2018 Pac-12 Championships to be hosted by Arizona on Sat., March 24.