Strong performances and multiple career bests from the NC State gymnastics team were not enough to pull off another win, as the Wolfpack placed second in its third meet of the season against Pitt and Towson. The final scores were 195.700-195.425-194.475, as Pitt finished first ahead of NC State and Towson, respectively.
The Wolfpack tackled the beam in the first rotation with an especially strong performance from sophomore Chloe Negrete, who posted a 9.875. However, Pitt and Towson slowly started to pull ahead as both senior Katie Cox and sophomore Emily Shepard took a small tumble off the beam during their routines. Nevertheless, Cox and Shepard finished their performances with grace, and NC State posted a 48.425 to end the rotation as it headed into the floor routine.
NC State saw a slight uptick in performance during the second rotation, with standout performances from freshman Carina Jordan and Negrete. The rotation was bookended with star performances as Jordan, a recent EAGL Rookie of the Week, posted a 9.775 to give the Wolfpack a strong start and Negrete scored a superb 9.900, ultimately placing first in floor. Finishing with a 48.925 overall, things were starting to look up for the Wolfpack after a rocky start on the beam.
With not a single score under 9.700, the Wolfpack triumphed on the vault rotation. Shepard made a comeback with a career best of 9.900, finishing first overall thanks to a near-perfect routine. Negrete, a member of the 2020 All-EAGL Second Team for vault, posted a strong score of 9.950 to finish third alongside her teammate and give the Wolfpack a boost heading into the final rotation.
Although NC State posted its strongest score of the night on the uneven bars, it wasn’t quite enough to edge ahead of Pitt for first place. However, that’s not to say there weren’t solid performances all around — only one gymnast scored below a 9.700 and Negrete took her second title of the night as she posted a 9.875 to claim first. Additionally, Cox tied her career best on bars with a score of 9.850 to round out a great rotation for NC State. Despite finishing second to Pitt after a win against it earlier in the season, the Wolfpack finished with a score of 195.425, its season-high final score.
NC State will return to competition for a quad-meet on Feb. 6, as it prepares to face Pitt, Towson and UNC-Chapel Hill at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh.
