No. 11 ASU women’s gymnastics traveled up the coast of California this weekend and emerged victorious with a 196.250-195.650 win over No. 20 Stanford.
The Sun Devils earned their fourth victory over a ranked opponent.
This also marks the second consecutive meet that the Sun Devils have earned over a 196. The last time they completed this feat was in 2014 with wins over Brigham Young (196.200) and Arizona (196.125).
The Cardinal were a worthy foe, with an All-American roster featuring 2015 NCAA champion on vault and 2016 Pac-12 Gymnast of the Year, Elizabeth Price.
The Sun Devils began the day on bars. Freshman Cairo Leonard-Baker began her day with an impressive 9.900 followed by junior Anne Kuhm who posted a career high in 9.825
Heading into the second rotation, the Sun Devils and Cardinal remained neck and neck, with the Sun Devils leading their opponent by .050 points. Kuhm continued her success as the team made their way to vault.
On vault, Kuhm put up another career high with a 9.800 mark, which led the Sun Devils across the board. Stanford displayed dominance on the vault as well as Price put up an incredible 9.95.
Still holding onto the lead, the Sun Devils marched through the third rotation with powerful floor routines from the entire lineup. The team was led once again by Leonard-Baker who earned herself a 9.900. Junior Kaitlyn Szafranski followed close behind with a 9.850, which marked a career high for her.
The final rotation was made up of season and career highs for the Sun Devils as four of the six members of the lineup notched in highs on beam.
The strong beam rotation by ASU was led by junior Katelyn Lentz with a career high 9.900 followed by junior Justine Callis, Leonard-Baker and senior Nichelle Christopherson all who earned scores of 9.875. The score was a career high for Leonard-Baker and Callis and a season high for Christopherson, and their performances sealed the win.
The Sun Devils hope to continue their winning streak as they return home to Wells Fargo on Saturday Jan. 28 to take on No. 23 California.
Reach the reporter at klbroder@asu.edu or follow @KellyB1459 on Twitter.
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