The Gustavus women’s gymnastics team finished fourth with a score of 180.15 at the NCGA West Regional held at UW-Eau Claire on Friday night. Brittany Moore led the Gusties by finishing first on the vault with a score of 9.525. Gustavus missed qualifying for the NCGA National Championships by five-tenths of a point. The top three teams in the West Regional, UW-La Crosse (183.65), UW-Eau Claire (182.15), and UW-Oshkosh (180.675) will advance to the NCGA Championships which will take place on April 1-2 at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. The Gusties will now wait to see which individuals will qualify to compete in the national meet.
The Gusties team score of 180.15 was the best of the season by two full points (the previous best was 178.00 on 2/12/05 at the Best of Minnesota). Coach Kris Glidden’s squad scored 45.825 on the vault, 43.525 on the bars, 44.375 on the beam, and 46.425 on the floor exercise. The score of 45.825 on the vault was also the team’s best this season.
Individually, Gustavus was led by sophomore Brittany Moore who won the vault with a score of 9.525. Moore’s score was the best of her two-year career at Gustavus. Other top finishes for the Gusties included senior Amanda Parker placing third on the uneven bars (9.250) and 14th on the floor exercise (9.325), Therese Gay finishing fifth on the uneven bars (9.175), Ashley Erickson placing eighth on the uneven bars (9.050), Nicole Gergen finishing eighth on the floor exercise (9.450) and 20th on the beam (9.050), and Katie Balcom finishing 22nd on the balance beam (8.975).