The gymnastics team scored over 192 points for the third straight meet to open the season, breaking a school record in the process. Still, the effort was not enough to earn a victory this past Sunday against Bridgeport. The Red fell by a score of 194.175 to 192.225 against the Knights.
Cornell broke another record in the defeat, scoring a 48.775 on beam to surpass the previous record of 48.700 in 2004. Cornell placed the top three performers in the event. Freshman Kaitlin Green took first place with a 9.875, and freshman Lyanda Dudley and sophomore Joy Gage tied for second place with a score of 9.775. For Green and Dudley, this is their second straight meet finishing in the top two positions. Five of Cornell’s gymnasts finished with scores above 9.675, a mark of impressive consistency. Cornell outscored the Knights by .275 in the event.
As for the vault, the Red fell to Bridgeport by a score of 48.200 to 47.575. Senior Alicia Blair was the lone standout for the Red. She finished in second place with a score of 9.650. Five Bridgeport gymnasts rounded out the top six, all of whom scored a 9.600 or above. All of the competitors in the event were able to manage scores over 9.300, the only event at the meet where the gymnasts were able to do so.
On the bars, the Red was again unable to achieve victory against a talented group of Bridgeport gymnasts. The Knights took the top two positions, and placed five of their competitors in the top seven. Green and junior Elana Molotsky placed in the third and fourth position with scores of 9.750 and 9.725 respectively. The Red lost the event by a score of 48.525 to 47.950.
Finally, Cornell was thoroughly outmatched on the floor exercises, losing by a whole point to Bridgeport. The Knights posted a staggering 48.950, a number that Cornell was nowhere close to approaching. Bridgeport claimed the top five spots of the event, with all of their competitors scoring a 9.725 or above. Molotsky and Dudley were the lone gymnasts for the Red that were able to crack into the top eight of the event. The Red finished the event with a team score of 47.925.
Although the Red came up short, the gymnasts showed an impressive amount of consistency, according to senior Sara Schupp. Schupp attributes this consistency to the team’s effort during practice.
“During our pre-season practices, we started working on getting our routines together earlier and practicing consistency on each event,” Schupp said. “This hard work spent in practice was seen.”
Dudley was the only gymnast for the Red to qualify for the all-around, and she fell to Bridgeport’s Kelsey Campbell by a score of 38.100 to 37.850. While Dudley outscored Campbell in beam and on floor, she was unable to compensate for the 8.900 she scored in bars.
This weekend, the Red will host Penn and SUNY Cortland at Teagle Gymnasium. This will be the team’s first home event of the year.
“It is always nice to have a big meet in your home gym because we can get a large crowd to support us,” Schupp said.
The Red will look to extend its record setting streak at 2 p.m. on Saturday.