
Photo by: Greg Long, LongShot Photography
Falcons Welcome UAA to Anderson Arena Saturday
January 20, 2016 | Gymnastics
BGSU GYMNASTICS WEEKLY SCHEDULE | ||
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DATE | OPPONENT | TIME |
1/23/16 | vs. Alaska-Anchorage | 6 p.m. (ET) |
Bowling Green (0-4, 0-1 MAC) at Alaska-Anchorage (0-0, 0-0 MPSF) Saturday, January 23, 2016; 6:00 p.m. ET Anderson Arena / Bowling Green, Ohio LIVE STATS MEET NOTES |
Bowling Green, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University gymnastics team opens it's home schedule with Alaska-Anchorage this Saturday at 6 p.m. The Falcons, who host the Seawolves for the first time in program history, have improved their team score from 191.900 in the team's opener on Jan. 8 to 193.575 this past Sunday against Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan.
FOLLOW THE FALCONS
Fans can follow the BGSU Gymnastics team on Twitter @FalconGymn for in-meet updates, news and notes. Links to live stats, video (as available) and away-meet live stats can be found at BGSUFalcons.com. Fans can follow live stats by downloading the app, "Beyond The Scores," on your smartphone or tablet. Create an account, add "Bowling Green State Gym Team" to your favorites, select the meet against Alaska-Anchorage, and enjoy an interactive scoring system.
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HEAD COACH'S THOUGHTS
Kerrie Turner: "This week, I am so happy we return home to Anderson Arena to host the University of Alaska Anchorage. We have the best fans and I can't wait to have that support for our team. It has been a positive week of training and I expect the confidence of the athletes will be high. I look forward to improving on our first two scores of the season this weekend."
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ABOUT ALASKA-ANCHORAGE
The Seawolves travel to Bowling Green, Ohio for their first meet of the 2016 season. The Falcons defeated UAA twice last season, most recently in Dekalb, Ill. by a score of 195.200-190.925. Alaska-Anchorage is led by head coach Paul Stoklos, who has been with the program since its inception. Last season, the Seawolves set 20 school records, including their highest team score of 193.825 in the team's second to last meet of 2015. Senior M'rcy Matsunami leads UAA, coming off a stellar 2015 campaign where she became the second gymnast in program history to reach the 39-mark for all-around competition.
LAST TIME OUT
The Falcons last competed against Western and Eastern Michigan on Jan. 17. BGSU improved its team scores on three of four apparatuses from the opening meet to this meet, despite placing third with a 193.575. In one week's time, BGSU's scores on uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise all improved. The biggest jump came on floor exercise with the Falcons earning a 48.425 in Kalamazoo compared to their 47.725 in the season opener. The Orange and Brown won the uneven bars with a team score of 48.875.
BG'S BEST EVENT "BAR" NONE
The Falcons have had great success on the uneven bars so far this season, ranking fourth in the MAC with an average score of 48.575. The team's high of 48.875, which earned them first place on the apparatus against WMU and EMU, is the third highest in the conference this season. Seniors Alyssa Nocella and Caroline Ellingboe tied for first place on the event in last weekend's meet in Kalamazoo.
SENIORS STEPPING UP
Caroline Ellingboe, one of the team's two seniors, earned her first victory of the season against Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan. She completed a season-high 9.825 uneven bar performance, tying her for first place overall on the apparatus. The Falcons won the event with a team score of 48.875, with the five scorers, including Ellingboe, all earning a 9.725 or higher. She also stuck a season-high 9.750 balance beam routine, placing her in the top 10.
BGSU's other senior, three-time regional qualifier Alyssa Nocella, opened up 2016 with a third-place finish in all-around competition with a 38.925. Her score of 9.850 tied her for first place overall and was a team-high for the meet on any event. In the Falcons' second meet, Nocella tied her fellow senior for first place overall on uneven bars with a 9.825. For the second meet in a row, she has recorded the team's highest individual score.
THE CHAMP IS BACK
Returner Lauren Feely became the third Falcon in as many years to win at least a share of the MAC Vault Championship, as she scored a career-best 9.900 on the event in 2015. In BGSU's first two meets of 2016, she recorded idential scores of 38.725. Against ASU and Nebraska, her highest score came on vault (9.775) and versus WMU and EMU, her highest score of the meet came on floor exercise where she earned a tie for third place overall, scoring a 9.775. Feely set a new personal best on uneven bars with a 9.725, breaking her previous record of 9.700.
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NEWCOMERS TAKE OVER
The 2016 BGSU roster features eight freshmen and one redshirt-freshman who will all look to compete for the first time as collegiate gymnasts in 2016. The newcomers include Julia Beyer, Rachel Creagh, Lauren De Meno, Leslie Delgado, Chelsea Eley, Erika Houser, Taylor Livingston, Katie Morsefield and Kayla Rose. Delgado's results in the team's first meet of 2016 earned her a MAC Specialist of the Week nomination, and she continued her impressive efforts against WMU and EMU, recording the highest score of any BGSU freshman (9.725 on bars). Rose earned the second highest freshman score of the meet by a Falcon with a 9.700 on floor exercise.Â
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TOP ROUTINES IN 2016
All-Around: 38.925 | Alyssa Nocella (1/8/16 vs. at ASU vs. Nebraska)
Bars: 9.825 | Caroline Ellingboe, Alyssa Nocella (1/17/16 vs. at WMU vs. EMU)
Beam: 9.800Â |Â Laura Mitchell (1/8/16 vs. at ASU vs. Nebraska & 1/17/16 vs. at WMU vs. EMU)
Floor: 9.850 | Alyssa Nocella (1/8/16 vs. at ASU vs. Nebraska)
Vault: 9.775 | Victoria Heath (1/8/16 vs. at ASU vs. Nebraska & 1/17/16 vs. at WMU vs. EMU), Lauren Feely (1/8/16 vs. at ASU vs. Nebraska)Â
MAC RANKINGS
Listed below are the student-athletes, and their averages, who rank top 10 in the conference in each event.
Vault- 7. Victoria Heath 9.775
Bars-Â t4. Caroline Ellingboe 9.800
Beam- t3. Laura Mitchell 9.800
Floor- t10. Alyssa Nocella 9.775
All-Around- 5. Lauren Feely 38.725, 6. Alyssa Nocella 38.625
PRESEASON POLL
The Falcons were picked to finish fourth in the Mid-American Conference in 2016 as voted on by the league's head coaches. Central Michigan was selected to win the conference, while 2015 tournament winners Kent State were chosen second. Eastern Michigan and Bowling Green followed, with Northern Illinois and Western Michigan tying for fifth and Ball State rounding out the conference.
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GYMNASTICS ADDITIONS
In November, Turner announced the addition of five student-athletes for the 2017 season. Randi Morris, Shannon St. Jean, Alex Johnston, Taylor Worthington and Kelsi Kuprat have all committed to BGSU, and will join the team next fall. Additionally, the Falcons added Leslie Delgado to this season's squad in December.
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Players Mentioned
BG Gym : Coach Emmons Post Mac Championship 3.22
Saturday, March 22
BG Gym Postmeet 3.2
Sunday, March 02
BG GYM PostMeet 2.2
Sunday, February 02
BG Gymnastics Postmeet 1.26
Monday, January 27