Denver gymnastics team recorded a season-high win over Utah State University on Feb. 6.
The recently No. 13 ranked Pioneers scored an overall 196.675 during Saturday’s meet including team-bests on bars, beam and floor in Hamilton Gymnasium.
In addition to the season-high team performance, seven of the Pio gymnasts tied or set career-best events during the meet.
The 2015 NCAA Championship floor runner-up, Nina McGee, (Cincinnati, Ohio) claimed her fifth consecutive title in all-around with a season best 39.600. Her score was .025 off of tying her career-best in the event. For the second week in a row, the senior won or tied a portion of all four event titles.
On the vault, freshman Diana Chesnok, (Charlotte, North Carolina) tied her career-best with a 9.850 finish. McGee joined Chesnok on the podium with a tying score.
The Pioneers swept the bars, producing a season-best score of 49.300, two-tenths higher than the previous team record. McGee matched her career-high with a 9.925 score, followed by Chesnok who took second with a career-best 9.875. Junior Julia Ross, (Henderson, Nevada) and freshman Claire Kern, (Charlotte, North Carolina) matched with 9.850 results, which marked a career-best for Kern.
On the bars, the team generated a season-high overall score of 49.125. Sophomore Claire Hammen (Loveland, Colorado) and freshman Kaitlyn Schou (Orlando, Florida) set career-highs during the event. Hammen recorded a 9.875 and tied McGee at the top of the podium. Schou received second with a 9.825 personal best.
The final event for the meet was the floor where the team earned another season-high of an overall 49.325 count. McGee tallied a 9.950 while Schou and sophomore Nikole Addison (Fort Myers, Florida) equalized with a 9.875 finish. Schou and Addison each received career-bests on the event. Senior Emily Barrett (Norman, Oklahoma) earned a career-high with her 9.825 score.
The Pioneers will travel the next two weeks to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on Feb. 12 for the Perfect 10 Challenge against the University of Oklahoma, George Washington University and again Utah State.
On Feb. 20 the team will head to University Park, Pennsylvania to compete against Penn State, the University of Alabama and Cornell University.
