BROOKVILLE, NY.— The Iona University acrobatics & tumbling team started its season with a 258.625-239.090 triumph over Long Island University. The No. 8 nationally ranked Gaels took down the No. 14 ranked hosts after a close meet that saw the two sides separated by only 0.25 points at the halfway interval. The Maroon & Gold's 19.535 point final advantage was thanks to a strong performance in the team event which secured the dual meet win.
COMPULSORY
The opening event was neck and neck as the Gaels took the close win, 36.150-35.550 in the compulsory event. A clinical pyramid heat saw the Gaels finish with a 9.60 on their way to a first stanza win.
ACRO
The Sharks responded with a narrow victory of their own, besting the Gaels in the acro event by a score of 27.25-26.65. After the first two tightly contested events, the two sides were locked at exactly 62.80 a piece.
PYRAMID
The Gaels closed out the first half of competition in the dual meet, taking a 28.80-28.55 victory. The open heat was the highlight for the Maroon & Gold in the event, taking 9.70 points out of a 9.90 starting value.
Iona headed into the break with a narrow advantage, 91.60-91.35.
TOSS
Back from halftime, the Gaels took a heat win in the toss event, edging the Sharks by a score of 26.95-25.50. In the Maroon & Gold's 450 salto and open heats, both scores finished just 0.30 points short of their top possible totals.
TUMBLING
Iona continued its momentum with a 54.225-48.150 result over the hosts in the penultimate event. Senior
Alyssa Lentz took home a 9.275 out of 9.65 in the aerial pass, while
Ty Upton delivered a 9.80 out of 10 in the 6-element pass for the Gaels.
TEAM EVENT
Iona posted an 85.85-74.09 triumph in the team event to close out the night.
OVERALL
With a top possible score of 287.050 based on start values, the Gaels earned all but 28.425 points for the dual meet. LIU's start value max was 280.790 and fell 41.70 points short.
THE LINEUP
#1
Georgia Mason
#2
Mylah Vanden Elsen
#4
Alyssa Lentz
#6
Teresa Jennings
#8
Rachelle Ricafranca
#9
Olivia Montalbano
#11
Samantha Gonzalez
#12
Ty Upton
#13
Josie Hewett
#14
Sophia Huertas
#15
Violet Strong
#19
Alexandra Swaris
#20
Riley Beauchmin
#21
Julienne Templeman
#22
Nicole Bonnett
#23
Jenna Roby
#24
Kendall Vess
#25
Emersen Johnson
#26
Rebecca Lane
#27
Leilani Morales
#28
Demi Brown
#29
Aspen Lentz
#30
Karryn Wieda
#31
Portia Dryden
#33
Cristiana Abreu
#35
Haley Merrill
#36
Laura Rojas
#43
Gia Arias
UP NEXT
Iona host the No. 2 nationally ranked Quinnipiac Saturday, with a start time of 6:00 pm from the Hynes Athletic Center.
