In its first of two consecutive quad-meets, No. 12 ASU gymnastics traveled to Norman, Oklahoma in what would be a highly contested matchup. The Sun Devils' opponents, No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 10 Arkansas and No. 15 Denver, all came in with gymnasts poised to put on impeccable performances, and the Sun Devils ended in third with a score of 195.700, just behind Denver and Oklahoma.
The Sun Devils began the evening on floor. The event featured freshman phenom Cairo Leonard-Baker who was missing from the lineup the weekend prior.
Junior Anne Kuhm led the way for the Sun Devils with a 9.875, and Leonard-Baker followed close behind with a 9.825.
With two fun and energetic performances, sophomore Jessica Ginn and junior Kaitlyn Szafranski both earned a 9.750 to put the Sun Devils at 48.975 in the early rotations.
Leonard-Baker, who notched in a 9.825, led the vault. Three of her teammates, Szafranski, Kuhm and junior Morgan Wilson, earned 9.800’s to help the Sun Devils secure a 49.000 in the rotation.
As they moved to their way across the mat and over to the bars, the Sun Devils kept themselves poised and ready to maintain their lead over Arkansas.
Leonard-Baker led the way once again with a full-in dismount, earning her a 9.825. With another clean performance, Kuhm followed her freshman teammate with a 9.800. Wilson, and sister Kaitlyn and sophomore Ashley Szafranski displayed beautiful dismounts to earn the Sun Devils a 48.900 and secure their position at third place heading into the final rotation.
Throughout this season, the beam has been a point of difficulty for the Sun Devils. Things opened up with a great routine by Leonard-Baker, earning her a 9.750. The Sun Devils struggled early on in the lineup with junior Heather Udowitch, earning a 9.550.
To cap things off for the Sun Devils, junior Justine Callis owned the beam with an impressive triple series. She led the team in the rotation with a 9.850 and allowed the Sun Devils to remain in third place with 195.700.
The Sun Devils finished the routine 2.4 points behind Oklahoma and tied Arkansas for third place. For all-around performances, Kuhm earned a 39.150 and Leonard-Baker earned a 39.225.
The Sun Devils will travel to Sacramento, California to compete in their second consecutive quad-meet at 7 p.m. They'll face Oregon State, Sacramento State and UC Davis.
Reach the reporter at klbroder@asu.edu or follow @KellyBSays on Twitter.
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