Gymnastics: Season begins over winter break

William and Mary opened its season with a pair of close losses on the women’s side. On Jan. 10, the College fell on the road 192.400-189.050 to North Carolina. Five days later, the Tribe fell by a very narrow margin at home to Temple by a score of 190.150-190.100. The men’s team opened the season on a higher note, finishing with four individual event winners in the State Open held at Kaplan Arena Jan. 17.

Against UNC, the Tribe performed best on the floor, finishing with a score of 47.925. The top individual scorer on the floor was freshman Aaliyah Kerr, scoring a 9.675. The best individual performance in the meet for the Tribe came from senior Brittany Stover, who scored an impressive 9.800 to win the vault event. Freshman Katie Webber also starred in the vault, posting a 9.575. Junior Briana Gironda finished third in the all-around competition with a score of 38.425.

The best individual performance in the meet for the Tribe came from senior Brittany Stover, who scored an impressive 9.800 to win the vault event.

Against Temple, Stover dominated again, winning the all-around with a score of 38.225 and the vault with a score of 9.800. Kerr again won the floor event, improving her score to 9.750. The Tribe scored high marks on the bars, led by Stover with a 9.650 and sophomore Monica Ouellet with a 9.625. The final team score was a 47.825.

In the State Open, junior Aria Sabbagh starred for the men’s team. He won the high bar with a score of 14.4 and won the all-around competition with a score of 80.05. Sophomore Juan Palma won the floor event with a score of 15.1. Senior Keaton Ackerman — the Eastern College Athletic Conference Coaches’ Choice honoree — won the pommel horse event with a score of 13.85. Senior Nick Van Dyke won the rings event with a score of 13.6. Freshman Jack Hasenkopf had a solid meet for the College, opening his college career with second place finishes on parallel bars and the all-around competition.

The Tribe women will hit the road to face West Virginia University this Sunday, Jan. 24 in Morgantown, W.Va. The men compete next at the Navy Open Jan. 30 in Annapolis, Md.

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