Flyin' high at home.
Penn gymnastics held its first home meet of the season at The Palestra on Jan. 17 against Yale, Ursinus, and Towson, and the Quakers finished second — ahead of Yale and Ursinus but behind Towson — even after some unexpected falls.
The Red and Blue started on vault, with the same lineup seen in the past two meets. Freshman Sienna Zuccaro started the rotation with a 9.575, and senior Isabel Song followed her lead with a 9.600. The trio of junior Marissa Lassiter, freshman Manama Fofana, and junior Skyelar Kerico all scored 9.725. Sophomore Jordan Barrow ended the rotation with a 9.800. The Quakers ended with a 48.475 score overall, behind Towson’s 49.200 but ahead of Yale’s 48.200 and Ursinus’ 47.525.
The Quakers didn't change what wasn't broken with its bars rotation. The Red and Blue had the same bars lineup as the previous two meets. After a fall in her routine, Lassiter received a 9.200, but junior Carly Oniki brought back the momentum for the team with a 9.700. Barrow continued improving with a score of 9.800. Senior Zara Gazdak had a big Senior Night with a stuck landing and a 9.850.
After a history-making meet last week, Kerico earned a new personal record with a score of 9.900, while both Barrow and Gazdak tied their career-best scores on the bars. Penn ended with a 48.450 for the bars, once again behind Towson (49.150) but ahead of Yale (47.450) and Ursinus (47.375).
The next rotation took the team across the court of The Palestra to the beam — a rotation that was not as strong as in previous meets.
Lassiter (9.250), Fofana (9.325), and Kerico (9.400) all had uncharacteristic falls. Their teammates helped to rebuild momentum with some strong scores: Barrow with a 9.750 and freshman Mimi Fletcher with a 9.875, beating her beam debut score from last week.
Junior Samantha Wu returned to her anchor spot from last season with a 9.325 —putting the Red and Blue at a 47.675 event total. Towson once again held the lead with 48.650, Yale surpassed Penn for the first time in the meet with a 48.000, and Ursinus remained in last with a score of 46.700.
Regarding how Penn gymnastics approaches fierce competition and high expectations, Gazdak says it's a team effort.
“We keep our heads down, keep working … we know we can rely on each other." Gazdak said, "Trust your teammates, trust yourself, everyone going up has got this.”
Finally, the Red and Blue headed to the floor — a traditionally strong event for the team. Junior Alyssa Rosen opened the rotation with a 9.650, and senior Emma Davies received a 9.600 after going out of bounds in her routine.
Lassiter followed in the line of personal records being set at the meet — hitting a season-best with a 9.825, which won the event. Fofana, Kerico, and Gazdak rounded out the event for the team with scores of 9.700, 9.675, and 9.750 respectively. Penn tied with Towson for first in this rotation with a 48.600, followed by a 47.850 from Yale, and a 45.425 for Ursinus.
In all, Penn ended with a total score of 193.250 — down by more than a point from the previous two meets. Towson won with a 195.600, which is their season-best team finish. Yale and Ursinus followed Penn in third and fourth place respectively.
While this meet may not have been the strongest of the season thus far, Penn gymnastics' goal ahead remains the same.
"The goal always is to earn a fourth-straight [GEC regular season title] and keep going," Lassiter said, "I would say that our team has bigger goals. We want to go to regionals like NCAA … We would be the first Ivy to do it…We know that we are the team to do it now more than ever."
The team hits the road to take on Fisk and Yale on Jan. 26th at George Washington.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
Donate
