BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Sparked by first-place finishes from junior
Kaitlyn Hall and sophomore
Belle Huang, Rutgers gymnastics improved its team score to 193.175 to place third in a Saturday quad meet at Bridgeport. Yale edged the field with a 193.775 to win, with Bridgeport following at 193.750 and Southern Connecticut rounding out at 190.275.
"I am really encouraged by the team's performance today," head coach
Umme Salim-Beasley said. "They bounced back strong from last weekend's meet. This was the confidence builder the team needed moving in to our home meet next weekend. The team was able to keep their focus from start to finish and they had a lot of fun in the process."
Vault proved to be the best rotation once again with a 48.775 in the final rotation. Hall claimed first overall in the meet with a career-high 9.800 run. Showing consistency, freshman
Mia Betancourt, Huang and sophomore
Toni Williams all recorded 9.750, while senior
Michelle Amoresano contributed a 9.725. The 48.775 team mark signaled the highest event team score of the four teams in the meet.
The Scarlet Knights started off by totaling a 47.850 on uneven bars, as junior
Shannon Farrell led the way with a 9.675.
Moving to balance beam, Huang impressed to 9.825 for the best RU routine of the night and the top performance overall on the event. For freshman
Sage Littlejohn, she notched a 9.675 in her collegiate debut and classmate
Kiera Doherty-Herwitz matched to up her personal best. The team ended at 48.375.
Senior
Riahanah Ali and Huang both worked to a 9.750 on floor exercise to highlight the rotation. In addition, senior
Jenna Rizkalla posted a 9.725 to help the team reach 48.175.
Amoresano competed all-around for the first time since the 2017 Big Ten Championships, racking up a 38.075 to place third. Huang finished with a 37.925.
Rutgers will open its home schedule next Saturday with a Big Ten meet versus Nebraska inside the Livingston Gym. Action is set to start at 1 p.m. and admission is free.
TOTAL SCORE: 193.175
VAULT: 48.775
UNEVEN BARS: 47.850
BALANCE BEAM: 48.375
FLOOR EXERCISE: 48.175
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