No. 20 Arizona gymnastics defeated archrival ASU on Monday night in McKale Center 196.625-195.375, earning a point in the Territorial Cup against the Sun Devils. The GymCats score was also their highest total so far this season.
“It shows good growth,” Arizona gymnastics head coach Bill Ryden said. “The way we did it was we didn’t really worry about our rival; we worried about us being better. We tried new lineups on three different events. The girls are just continuing to grow.”
The GymCats remained consistent in every event throughout the night, and the Sun Devils always trailed. The victory was even more important, since the Wildcats lost the meet against the Sun Devils last season.
The Wildcats earned a team score of 49.025 on the vault, highlighted by Shelby Edwards, who scored a 9.875. Allison Flores added a 9.825, and Jessie Sisler scored a 9.800.
The GymCats pulled off their highest total team score of the season on bars with a 49.300. Victoria Ortiz nailed her routine for a career-high of 9.900, and Selynna Felix-Terrazas tied her season-high with a 9.875. Gabby Laub and Krysten Howard both scored a 9.850.
“I’ve been working on that since the beginning of the season, so it feels really good to reach that,” Ortiz said.
The Wildcats are currently ranked 17th in the nation on bars, and Ryden is confident in his bar team.
“When you can have the expectation that every single girl can do 9.800 or better and they do their job, good things are going to happen,” Ryden said.
The Wildcats then moved onto beam, totaling a score of 49.175. Madison Cindric, Flores and Shay Fox all led the GymCats with scores of 9.850. Sisler added a score of 9.825, while Edwards capped off beam with a 9.800.
The GymCats managed a total team score of 49.125 on the floor. Flores once again led her team with a score of 9.875, tying her season-high, along with Sisler who also scored a 9.875. Lexi Mills scored a career-high of 9.850 in just her second time performing on floor in her collegiate career.
Flores finished the meet in the all-around competition with a 39.350. Even though she tied career highs, she is still focused on improving.
“There’s always room for improvement,” Flores said. “I’m really hard on myself, so I know that I can do better. I only have two meets left at the McKale Center.”
Ryden said he’s proud of his team because the Wildcats can now say they own the state in gymnastics, at least for the moment.
“Certainly, it is that rivalry and we are glad to do our part,” Ryden said. “Obviously, owning the state is a goal of ours, so this just goes toward that.”
Up next, the Wildcats have a bye week and will face No. 18 California at home on Feb. 28 in McKale Center.
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