SAINT PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus gymnastics team Friday wrapped up its regular season with a 185.550-183.800 loss against UW-La Crosse at the Sponberg Gymnastics Studio. Amanda Malo (Sr., Greenwood, Minn.) highlighted the meet for the Gusties, tying for first on the floor with a season-high 9.700.
The Gusties scored season-bests on floor at 47.550 and on the bars at 46.425. The home team posted 46.425 on vault and 43.600 on beam.
“What an overall great day, capping off the regular season and celebrating our seniors,” Head Coach Aryn DeGrood said. “Three of our four events were really solid. We let our nerves get to us and beam got us tonight. We’re ready to leave that behind us and get it out of our system as we look towards the WIAC Championship next Saturday.”
Malo also took second on the vault with a 9.450 and placed third in the all-around with a 36.975. Sam Ardy (Sr., Thousand Oaks, Calif.) took second in the all-around at 37.300, including a second-place finish on the beam with a 9.400 and a third-place finish on the bars at 9.525.
Brooke Merila (Fy., St. Michael, Minn.) and Leah Heilig (Jr., Forest Lake, Minn.) had strong scores on the floor, taking fourth and fifth respectively, with a 9.600 and 9.550. Merila’s total was a career-high.
“Our seniors did a remarkable job tonight,” DeGrood said. “It’s easy to let the emotion of the day get the better of you and they didn’t. They showed their poise and why they are such a valuable asset to the program.
“There were huge performances across the board. We saw lots of career and season highs, particularly on floor. We had a lot of momentum after that floor rotation and that will certainly carry us in to the postseason.”
Gustavus next competes at the WIAC/NCGA West Regional next Saturday at UW-Stout.