Victory continued for the Kent State gymnastics team, who hosted Pittsburgh for a dual meet Friday night.
The team defeated the Panthers 195.925-195.650, posting its highest team score of the season and improving its overall record to 8-2.
The win against Pittsburgh also helped coach Brice Biggin reach the 450th win of his career, with all of them coming as the leader of the Flashes.
Coming off of a crucial win against Central Michigan last week where the Flashes downed the Chippewas by .05 to keep their conference record intact at 4-0, Biggin said the success against Pittsburgh also had high importance.
“Pittsburgh is very similar to us. They’ve had little ups and downs during the season, but they’re a really good team,” Biggin said. “So anytime you beat teams that are right around you in a tight meet, it speaks volumes about the type of character our team is really building.”
During the first rotation, on vault, three Flashes claimed podium spots.
Sophomore Nene Alvine and junior Charlie Behner both recorded 9.800s to tie for first place.
Sophomore Ashley Morgan closely followed, tying for third with a score of 9.775.
Bars followed during rotation two.
Leadoff senior Brynne Tsipis tied for first place in the event with two Pittsburgh gymnasts. She recorded a season-high score of 9.875.
Two additional Flashes finished above 9.800 in the event. Behner tied for fourth place with a score of 9.850, and junior Nastia Rudnitskaya scored 9.825 for seventh place.
As a team, the Flashes scored 49.125 on bars — their highest score in the event this season.
Biggin, who often cited bars as a weak event for the team, said it was a big relief to finally see improvements in the event.
“We have a team that’s capable of doing a really good job on bars. They practice really hard, yet it just wasn’t transferring to the meets,” Biggin said. “The results today were a needed lift for the spirit of the team for them to go out, be confident and continue to do what they are capable of doing.”
Rotation three continued competition on beam.
The Flashes were led in the event by Alvine, who tied for second with a score of 9.850.
Sophomore Gabby Riley followed, scoring 9.775 to tie for fourth place.
The Flashes finished off the meet on floor where the Flashes nearly swept the podium.
Senior Alyssa Guns secured first place with a score of 9.900.
Behind her, Alvine recorded a 9.875 for second place, and Riley scored 9.825 tying for third place with two Pittsburgh competitors.
Altogether, the Flashes beat out the Panthers with their season-best team score of 195.925
“We had our highest score of the season but the better thing is, we do feel like we still have more to give,” Biggin said. “We’re getting closer and closer to putting together a full meet where the girls are going out and hitting every event. This is the time in the season, too, where you want to be complete and score your best.”
Mid-American Conference competition continues Sunday, as the Flashes hit the road to take on Bowling Green in a dual meet.
Here, Kent State will face a different rotation order than they have seen this season — starting on bars, following with beam, then floor and ending the meet on vault.
“It’s going to be crucial for us to get off to a good start Sunday,” Biggin said. “We’re seeing a different rotation, but I think it can set up really well for us if we start off the same way we did Friday night on bars.”
If the Flashes can claim another victory, this would be their 13th consecutive win against Bowling Green and boost their conference record to 5-0.
A win would also push Kent State another step further in securing the MAC regular season title.
“We have a lot of important meets coming up, but really no more important than Sunday’s meet,” Biggin said. “We have to take care of business at Bowling Green. If we go out and win, then we give ourselves at least a share of the regular season championship.”
Kailyn Tibolla is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].
