Ball State University
Northern Illinois University
The Cardinals Soar to Victory Over the Huskies
January 15, 2017 | Gymnastics
MUNCIE, Ind.-- The Ball State gymnastics team opened the Mid-American Conference competition against rival Northern Illinois, Sunday, Jan. 15, in Worthen Arena. The Cardinals stood victorious with a 194.175-193.475 win.
"I'm really proud of this team," Ball State gymnastics head coach Joanna Saleem said. "It's always great to get a win, but I'm most please that we kept fighting until the last routine on the last event. We have spend a lot of time talking about keeping our focus in the present and letting our mistakes go, today we were able to do just that."
The team scored a 48.750 on vault, 48.475 on bars, 48.025 on beam, and a 48.925 to finish on floor.
Sarah Ebeyer placed second on vault with a score of 9.800. While freshman, Bri Slonim matched her performance from the previous meet with a 9.775 landing her in third place.
On bars Jordyn Penny swung into second place with another impressive bar set of 9.825.
Kayla Beckler stood at the top of the podium on beam with a score of 9.800. Slonim took third with a score of 9.725. Jala Washington and Kaitlyn Menzione both stood fourth with scores of 9.700.
The Cardinals concluded the meet on floor where four Ball State athletes finished in the top three. Beckler took first place with a 9.850. Menzione claimed second place and a new career high of 9.800. While Ebeyer and Sydney Finke followed in third with scores of 9.775.
In the all-around competition of today's meet, Kaitlyn Menzione took first place with a 38.950.
"We have a shorter turn around before our next competition against North Carolina State this Friday." Saleem stated. "I'm exciting to be on the road again, because this should be a fun trip. I'm looking forward to being on the floor against another top program."
The Cardinals travel to NC State to compete a non-conference tri-meet against the Wolfpack and William and Mary on Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. E.T.
For more news on Ball State gymnastics, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateGym, and @CoachSaleem on Twitter.
Players Mentioned
