The Gustavus gymnastics team wrapped up its 2009 season with a sixth place finish at the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships, which were held at Winona State University, on Friday night. The Gusties posted a team score of 179.400. UW-La Crosse won the meet with a score of 187.200. Senior Christine Askham posted the top individual finish for Gustavus as she tied for sixth place on the floor exercise with a score of 9.550.
The Gusties posted individual event scores of 46.150 on the vault, 43.050 on the uneven bars, 43.525 on the balance beam, and 46.675 on the floor exercise. Top Gustavus event performances came from senior Jenny Berglund, who posted a score of 9.400 on the vault to finish in a three-way tie for tenth, sophomore Kelly Mathewson, who scored 9.175 on the uneven bars for ninth, senior Meghan Johnson, who recorded a score of 8.975 on the balance beam, and Christine Askham on the floor exercise with a score of 9.550.
Each Gustie vault competitor scored above 9.000 led by Berglund’s score of 9.400. Other vault scores for Gustavus included Aryn Bell at 9.300, Christine Askham at 9.250, Jess Dolan at 9.125, Catherine Osterhaus at 9.075 and Melanie Deutsch at 9.050.
In addition to Askham’s score on the floor exercise, Jenny Berglund and Jess Dolan added personal-best scores of 9.500 each to finish tied for 11th. The remaining Gustie scores on the apparatus were 9.100 from Jaime Tsurusaki, 9.025 from Kelsey Stafford, and 8.500 from Catherine Osterhaus.
Askham also finished eighth in the all-around competition with a total score of 36.525. She scored 9.250 on the vault, 8.825 on the uneven bars, 8.900 on the balance beam, and 9.550 on the floor exercise.
Gustavus will now wait to see if any individuals qualify for the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association (NCGA) Championships which will be held March 20-21 at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minn.