A&T Falls In Top-Three Clash

Saturday, March 16

Eugene, OR

4:00 PM

University of Oregon

270.440

275.420

Quinnipiac

03/16/24 | Acrobatics & Tumbling

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EUGENE, Ore. — No. 2 Oregon acrobatics and tumbling came up short against No. 3 Quinnipiac, 275.420-270.440, in a high-profile clash at Matthew Knight Arena on Saturday.

The Ducks (1-2) were edged by a narrow margin by the Bobcats (4-0) in the compulsory event, 37.40-37.35, and were unable to pull into the lead throughout the meet despite season-high scores in the acro, pyramid and toss events. Oregon won the toss event coming out of halftime, but was outscored in the tumbling event and faced several deductions in the team event as Quinnipiac emerged victorious.

"With the raised start values there is a higher risk of messing up," head coach Taylor Susnara said. "I think today some of the things that went wrong were with the increased start values and some weren't in team event. I think we lost a little bit of focus there. We may have let the nerves get to us with how close we were in the meet with Quinnipiac and at the end of the day Quinnipiac looked really good and they showed out.

"Quinnipiac had a near-flawless routine [in team event], so I knew that we were going to have to hit it well. When we had some falls in there I told our team 'Lose with dignity, hold you head high and be a good sport, and at the end of the day we just have to go back and work harder.'"

How It Happened: Oregon's compulsory event had been a strength in the first two meets of the season, but low scores in the acro and tumbling heats put the Ducks behind by a slight margin early on. Looking to bounce back in the acro event, UO notched a season-best 9.85 in the seven-element heat behind sensational performances from tops Bethany Glick and Riley Watson and bases Bella Swarthout and Emilie Henningsen. Despite a season best score of 28.75 overall in the event, Oregon saw its deficit grow to 66.300-66.100.

The Ducks gathered together to produce their strongest pyramid event in 2024 with a score of 29.25 thanks to a pair of 9.80s in the inversion and open heats. Quinnipiac once again answered Oregon's performances to score 29.35, giving the Bobcats a 95.650-95.350 lead at the halfway point.

Oregon gained some ground out of halftime as they outscored Quinnipiac in the toss event, 28.90-28.80, behind a solid open heat featuring bases Kaylie Barrera, Ava Gowdy, Brylie Hoover and Italie Macchiavello as well top Emma Keogh. The Ducks narrowed the deficit 124.450-124.250 to keep things close entering the final two events.

The tumbling event was another tightly-contested affair as Quinnipiac edged out Oregon 57.100-57.050. The Ducks' were led by a 9.775 in the open pass starring Rickelle Henderson. Needing to make up ground in the team event, Oregon suffered a few deductions and was outscored 93.87-89.14 as Quinnipiac emerged victorious in the clash of top-three teams.

"I think it's just going to be repetition for us," Susnara said. "Mentally and physically they're talented enough, it's just going to be checking in every single rep, every single time without those big mistakes."

Up Next: The Ducks travel to face Hawai'i Pacific on Sunday, March 24 at 9 p.m. PT.