Eau Claire, Wis. – The Gustavus Adolphus gymnastics team got the bounce-back performance it was looking for on Friday night in its dual against UW-Eau Claire. After finishing its home schedule with a score of 174.875 against UW-Whitewater on Feb. 13, the Gusties took to the road where they scored a 178.300 at UW-Eau Claire’s McPhee Physical Education Center. The Blugolds turned in a 185.925 to win the dual.
In what was their second-highest team total of the season, the Gusties recorded individual event scores of 46.275 on the vault, 43.600 on uneven parallel bars, 43.000 on the balance beam, and 45.424 on the floor. Gustavus’s mark on the vault bests its previous season-high of 45.725 registered against UW-Stout on Jan. 23.
UW-Eau Claire turned in individual event scores of 46.400 on the vault, 45.900 on the bars, 46.500 on the beam, and 47.125 on the floor.
Sophomore Alexandra Kopp (Wayzata, Minn.) continued her winning ways on the vault with a gold medal performance for the second straight weekend. Kopp scored a 9.525 to win the event, topping her previous season-best of 9.450 recorded on Jan. 23 against UW-Stout. She also scored an 8.850 on the bars (7th), 9.275 on the beam (5th), and a 9.150 on the floor (6th) give her the all-around title with a 36.800, which matched her season-best from the UW-La Crosse dual on Feb. 13.
Kate Schneider (Fy., Albany, Minn.) and Lauren Kershner (So., Marine, Ill.) also cracked the top five. Schneider scored a 9.225 to place fifth on the vault, while Kershner put together a 9.300 on the floor to finish fourth.
The Gustavus gymnastics team will be back in action with on Sunday, Feb. 22 when it caps the weekend at the Best of Minnesota Invite held on the campus of the University of Minnesota. The four-team meet featuring the Gophers, Winona State, and Hamline will begin at 2:00 p.m