N.C. State’s gymnastics team defeated Pittsburgh, Maryland, and William & Mary Friday night, posting an overall score of 196.1, a season-high for the Wolfpack.
Star sophomore Brittni Watkins and senior Stephanie Ouellette led the Wolfpack, taking the top two spots, respectively, on the all-around podium. Senior Lane Jarred was also excellent in the second all-around performance of her collegiate career, finishing fifth with a score of 39.
“Very happy with Brittni and Stephanie tonight. Very happy with Lane,” Wolfpack head coach Mark Stevenson said. “I’m very proud of all three of them for the jobs that they’re doing. They’re not afraid to get out there and get it done.”
The Wolfpack started the night on the vault and quickly established a lead, with Watkins and senior Diahanna Ham taking the top two scores. The Wolfpack dominated the vault, earning four of the top five scores, with all Pack gymnasts scoring higher than 9.750 in the event. Watkins tied her career-high, set in the Wolfpack’s meet against Kent State on Jan. 19th, posting a 9.925.
The Wolfpack continued its dominance of the podium on the uneven parallel bars, with Watkins again taking the top overall spot with a score of 9.850, and senior Kristen Harabedian taking second place with a 9.825 score. Sophomore Michaela Woodford continued her comeback from a stress fracture in her leg with a solid showing on the uneven bars, posting a score of 9.750, tying her for seventh with Ouellette.
“[Michaela] is coming along great, her bar routine is really clicking,” Stevenson said. “I can see her going into the rotation in the next couple weeks on a couple of events.”
The Wolfpack didn’t perform as well on the balance beam as it might have hoped. Senior Hannah Fallanca was the top performer for the Wolfpack in the balance beam posting a score of 9.825, high enough for second place. However, the Wolfpack placed only three gymnasts in the event’s top ten.
But the State bounced back immediately with a dominant performance in the floor exercise. The Pack posted the top four scores on the floor, with Ouellette and Watkins both receiving marks of 9.875, while Harabedian and Jarred received scores of 9.850.
“I didn’t realize how well we did until the score of 196 came out,” Ouellette said, “And that’s a really big plus for us because it helps our regional qualifying score, which will help us in the overall rankings. That made us all really excited.”
With only two more meets before the EAGL conference championship, Stevenson’s team is gearing up for the stretch run and a chance to defend its EAGL title. After posting its highest team score of the season on Friday night, Stevenson said the team is heading towards an exciting finish.
“I think we are going to peak when we are supposed to peak,” Stevenson said. “That’s part of our coaching and part of our sport, is getting the kids to be the best they can be at EAGL Regionals and Nationals. We are moving in that direction and I am really happy about that.”
