N.C. State Gymnastics ended its season with a trip to NCAA Regionals in Athens, Ga. on Saturday. The Wolfpack finished fifth out of the six team field, totaling a score of 194.550, marking the first time that the Pack has scored less than 195.000 since Feb. 8.
For six seniors on the Wolfpack squad, Saturday marked the last time they would put on a State uniform. Head coach Mark Stevenson said that he would miss his seniors’ contributions.
“They’ve been phenomenal, one of the best senior classes we’ve ever had,” Stevenson said. “They’ve just done a terrific job for us, and they did it again [Saturday]. We’re going to miss them a lot.”
The Pack started off on the wrong foot, beginning the meet with a rough showing on the uneven bars. Both of the first two competitors fell on their routine, receiving score of 8.900 and 9.100.
Sophomore Brittni Watkins and senior Stephanie Ouellette gave the Pack some momentum by each earning a score of 9.800. However, State could only manage to put together a total of 48.150 for the first event, putting the team in dead last heading to the second station.
“I thought we had a great warm-up, and we went into the meet and didn’t compete on the same level,” Stevenson said.
The Pack improved slightly on the beam, earning a score of 48.425. However, the mark was lacking compared to the team’s season average of 48.813. Junior Lane Jarred led the way with a score of 9.800, while Watkins and Ouellette both had slip-ups that cost them dearly in the all-around competition.
“We didn’t do bad beam, but it wasn’t as crisp [as it needed to be],” Stevenson said.
Watkins and Ouellette finished the all-around competition tied for fifth with scores of 39.000. The two finished .175 points out of second place, which would have given them an automatic bid for Nationals. Michigan’s freshman Nicole Artz took home gold with the top score of the night: 39.325.
State really started to pick up the slack in the third event, as the team tied its second-best mark in the floor exercise with a score of 49.125. Five of the Pack gymnasts recorded scores more than 9.800, with Watkins and Jarred leading the way. Sophomore Aubrey Hine broke her personal best with a score of 9.825.
The Pack closed with a strong performance on a good note, as the team notched a 48.850 on vault to end the meet. Once again Watkins led the way with 9.850, while Ouellette and fellow senior Diahanna Ham both recorded scores of 9.775.
Of the six teams, only the top two would advance to the NCAA Championships in Birmingham, Ala. on April 18. No. 7 Michigan and No. 6 Georgia took the top two spots on Saturday, posting scores of 196.750 and 196.375 respectively.
The Pack ended its 2013 campaign with a similar result, recording a fifth-place in the NCAA Regionals at Ohio State. Though the Pack has qualified for Regionals every year since 2003, the team has failed to advance to the next stage.
This season, injuries took quite a toll on the Pack, as the team lost key gymnasts throughout the season, such as senior Ellen Marion and 2013 EAGL Rookie of the Year sophomore Michaela Woodford. Stevenson said that next year, with a healthy team, he has high hopes for a strong season.
“Brittni is back, [Woodford] is back, and Lane is back, so that’ll be a good base for us,” Stevenson said. “Hopefully in the scheme of all of those people, we’ll find those replacements with the consistency that our seniors have had.”
