DENTON, Texas - The University of Pennsylvania gymnastics team wrapped their season on a high-note, posting its highest team score of the year at the USA Gymnastics National Collegiate Championships over the weekend. Penn finished with a 193.925, fourth of four teams in the first semifinal, hosted by Texas Woman's University.
As part of its team performance, Penn landed three USAG All-America honors, as
Caroline Moore was named first-team USAG All-America on beam, advancing to Sunday's individual finals, while freshmen
Darby Nelson (all-around) and
Darcy Matsuda (beam) both notched second-team accolades.
FLOOR
The Quakers began their day on one of their biggest strengths of the season: floor exercise. The Red and Blue did not disappoint, as all five scored performances were at least a 9.700. Per usual, senior
Alex Hartke led the way in the anchor position with a 9.825, just a week removed from performing at NCAA Regionals. Junior
Morgan Hunker finished with a season-best score of 9.750, while senior captain
Kyra Levi recorded a 9.800, her third time hitting at least a 9.800 on floor this season. As a team, Penn's score of 48.850 was third in the event on the day.
VAULT
Next up for Penn was vault. The Quakers finished with a team score of 47.525, their lowest in the event since February, and were led by Moore in the five-spot with a 9.650. Both
Valerie Rube and
Ally Podsednik notched at least a 9.575 in the event.
BARS
The Quakers featured a solid performance on bars, with all five scoring performances landing numbers of at least 9.675.
Allison Frommer kicked things off with a season-high 9.800, ending her freshman year with a bang, with a similar result from fellow rookie
Darby Nelson, hitting a season-best mark of 9.750.
Caroline Mitsch was next with a 9.725, before Levi recorded a 9.675. Sophomore
Alex Kothe impressed in the five spot, with a season-best mark of 9.800, helping Penn total 48.750, tying for second among the four teams competing.
BEAM
Penn ended the semifinal with an impressive showing of 48.800 on beam, ranking as the fifth-highest event score in program history. Levi began with a 9.725, before
Nicole Swirbalus matched her season-high with a 9.800. The freshman, Matsuda, recorded a strong 9.825, matched only by Moore in the anchor position. Moore's score was good enough to advance to Sunday's event finals, landing her USAG first-team All-America honors in the process. There, Moore concluded the season with a 9.700, ranking ninth at the event.
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