Ball State University
Mid-American Conference
Gymnastics Finishes Seventh at MAC Championships
March 24, 2018 | Gymnastics
Central Michigan won the championships with team total of 197.025. Northern Illinois came in second with a 195.875. Bowling Green stood third with a score of 195.850. Eastern Michigan earned fourth with a 195.275. Western Michigan took fifth with a 194.675. Kent State stood sixth with a team total of 194.375 and following in seventh are your Ball State Cardinals with a 194.225.
The Cardinals finished out their season scoring 48.850 on vault, 47.575 on bars, 48.900 on beam and 48.900 on floor.
"We definitely had some strong individual performances today," head coach Joanna Saleem said. "It was so exciting watching our freshman Tia Kiaku do so well on beam and floor and I'm very happy that Baylee Bell was able to match her career high on beam with a 9.900."
Ball State started the Championships on the vault. Maddie Macdonald claimed seventh place with a score of 9.800.
The bar team struggled to gain momentum but two Cardinals stood thirteenth, both Macdonald and Jordyn Penny with scores of 9.825.
During her last collegiate beam routine Baylee Bell performed a 9.900 beam routine landing her in fourth place overall.
The Cardinals finished the competition on floor. Freshman Tia Kiaku notched a 9.875 claiming third place in her first Mid-American Conference Championships.
"The team has learned from past performances that it is important to stay in the meet till the very last routine," Saleem stated. "I'm proud of them for keeping the energy up even though we had some rough performances. It's bitter because I know the team can do better, but the MAC is so competitive that you can't count falls and unfortunately we had to count those mistakes."
Gymnast Of The Year: Rachel Stypinski, Kent State
Specialist Of The Year: Anna Martucci, Northern Illinois
Senior Gymnast Of The Year: Rachel Stypinski, Kent State
Freshman Of The Year: Morgan Spence, Western Michigan
Coach Of The Year: Brice Biggins, Kent State
All-MAC First Team
Rachel Stypinski, Kent State
Jovannah East, Bowling Green
Anna Martucci, Northern Illinois
All-MAC Second Team
Denelle Pedrick, Central Michigan
Ashley Potts, Northern Illinois
Gianna Plaksa, Central Michigan
Katy Clements, Central Michigan
Laura Mitchell, Bowling Green
Emili Dobronics, Eastern Michigan
For more news on Ball State gymnastics, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateGym and @CoachSaleem on Twitter.
Players Mentioned
