Buckeyes Win Season Opener in Front of Sold Out Covelli Crowd
1/8/2023 6:25:02 PM | Women's Gymnastics
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 19 Ohio State women’s gymnastics team opened its 2023 season with a win in front of a sold-out crowd of 3,596 at the Covelli Center on Sunday afternoon. The Buckeyes earned a final score of 196.775 to defeat No. 11 Kentucky (196.575), No. 25 Arizona (194.950) and Greenville (181.425).
“I’m pretty much feeling like I’m on cloud nine,” Ohio State head coach Meredith Paulicivic said. “Not only the win, but the sell-out crowd, the energy was crazy. I’ve been watching volleyball sort of build this arena and was hoping to get that same type of energy and crowd. Our athletes really fed off of it. I knew they were ready, but for them to come out and just relax and get the job done was spectacular.”
MEET NOTES
- Ohio State’s overall score of 196.775 is the highest season opening score in program history. The score also ties for the ninth-best in program history.
- The team earned an event title on vault (49.250) on Sunday. Ohio State ended the day with a 49.175 on uneven bars, 49.250 on floor and 49.100 on beam.
- Four Buckeyes earned individual event titles. On vault, senior Lexi Edwards won the title with a 9.925. Fifth-year Colby Miller tied for first on uneven bars with a score of 9.875. In her first career meet, freshman Payton Harris scored a 9.900 on beam to tie for first and earn her first career event title. Graduate Claire Gagliardi recorded the highest score of the meet, earning a 9.950 on floor for the event title.
- Harris started her collegiate career by scoring two 9.900s – on beam and floor – to bring her all-around score to 38.950.
- Ohio State earned two 9.900 scores on floor as Gagliardi (9.950) and Harris led the way for the Buckeyes in the final rotation. Overall, the team hit four 9.900 scores in the meet.
- Gagliardi’s floor score is a career-high mark and Tory Vetter earned a career-high 9.850 on uneven bars.
BUCKEYE SCORES
Vault: Edwards – 9.925; Harris – 9.875; Jennings – 9.850; Malas – 9.800; Hlavach – 9.800; Riccardi – 9.775
Uneven Bars: Miller – 9.875; Edwards – 9.850; Vetter – 9.850; Riccardi – 9.825; Pritchard – 9.775; Harris – 9.275
Beam: Harris – 9.900; Hankins – 9.850; Pritchard – 9.800; Jennings – 9.775; Oliveros – 9.775; Hodges – 9.225
Floor: Gagliardi – 9.950; Harris – 9.900; Vetter – 9.850; Gonzalez – 9.800; Edwards – 9.750; Hankins – 9.750
UP NEXT
Ohio State makes the trip to Athens, Ga. to compete in a quad meet against Georgia, Fisk and Rutgers on Jan. 16. The meet will start at 2 p.m. from the Stegeman Coliseum.
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