Bowling Green gymnastics (0-2) (0-2 in MAC) lost Saturday night’s meet against Central Michigan (2-1) (1-0 in MAC) 189.975 to 193.225.
The loss was the Falcon’s second straight to start the young season. It was also the second straight MAC loss after losing a close one to Eastern Michigan last week.
The loss was a big regression from last week as the Orange and Brown scored worse in every category compared to their nail-biter against the Eagles.
The Chippewas on the other hand have been one of the best gymnastics teams in the MAC this year, beating BIG 12 school West Virginia and only losing by 1.50 points to BIG 10 opponent, Minnesota.
Vault
Vault was the closest category of the meet with Central Michigan coming out on top 48.700 to 48.450. Despite this competitiveness, five out of the top six scores were CMU gymnasts.
Chippewa Jenna Germond won the vault with a score of 9.775. This was only the five-foot sophomore’s second career first-place finish on the vault.
Bowling Green freshman Kayla Shaw continued her impressive start to her rookie campaign by placing in 2nd with a score of 9.750.
Uneven Bars
The early season struggles on the uneven bars continued to get worse for the Falcons on Saturday night. CMU crushed Bowling Green 47.800 to 45.925; this was the lowest score for any event this season for the Falcons.
CMU sophomore Samantha Shannon led the way with a 9.8. This was one of two category wins for Shannon in the evening.
The Orange & Brown had two gymnasts finish in the top five, including junior Megan Bingham, whose 9.650 score was enough to nab her fourth place. Bingham is the only Falcon to finish in the top five on the uneven bars for both contests this season.
Balance Beam
The balance beam was a closer event, but it was still won by the Chips, 47.925 to 47.200. CMU’s Samantha Shannon took first place, making her the only player to get two first-place finishes in the meet.
Megan Bingham once again finished in the top five for the Falcons, placing in third with a score of 9.650.
However, maybe the more encouraging storyline for Bowling Green was its pair of sophomores who finished tied for fifth place in the event. Nadia Parente and Faye Dubin each scored a 9.575, earning them their first top-five finishes of the year for Bowling Green.
Floor Exercise
The floor exercise completed the sweep for Central Michigan as the Chippewas won by a score of 48.8 to 48.4.
The Central Michigan senior duo of Hannah Appleget and Quinn Skrupa tied each other for first, each scoring 9.825 points.
Kayla Shaw finished in third place as the only Falcon to finish in the top five. She scored a season and career-high of 9.800 on the floor.
Top Gymnasts
Overall, Central Michigan’s Samantha Shannon was the star of the meet, winning in both the uneven bars and balance beam events.
For the Orange & Brown, Megan Bingham and Kayla Shaw each notched two top-five finishes on the night.
Overall Thoughts
Saturday night’s meet showed just how dominant the Chippewas can be in MAC play. After coming off their surprise victory over West Virginia, CMU didn’t hold anything back against Bowling Green, beating them in all four events.
A plethora of Chippewas finished in the top three or top five of events, whereas only two Falcons (Bingham and Shaw) finished in multiple top fives.
The depth seems to be the problem early on this season for Bowling Green as they will need more gymnasts to step up if they want to get their first victory.
Next, the Falcons will play their first home meet of the season at the Stroh Center on Jan. 26 at 2 pm. The meet will be a tri-meet between Bowling Green, the currently 2-6 SEMO Redhawks, and once again the dangerous CMU Chippewas.
