No. 22 Eagles Hit the Road for Tri-Meet at Bowling Green

Meet Notes                  Live Stats

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- Coming off a pair of record-breaking meets, the No. 22 Eastern Michigan University women's gymnastics team returns to competition Saturday, Feb. 13, with a tri-meet hosted by Bowling Green. The Eagles, also competing against Southeast Missouri, will look to continue their success with another solid road meet against a Mid-American Conference opponent.

Following the Meet: The meet will not be streamed live. However, fans can follow along via live stats by clicking here.

Green and White Set Another Program Record: Only three days after setting a new program record for team score, the Eagles turned around and did the same thing again in their meet at Michigan, Feb. 8. The team's final tally of 195.975 bested the score set against Central Michigan, Feb. 5, by nearly four tenths. The Green and White had a great meet across the board, with three event scores finishing above 49. EMU's top event of the season, beam, came up big again with a 49.125, while the bars group finished with a 49.1. Finally, the vault lineup notched a 49.025.

Valentin Posts Highest Individual Score of the Season: In EMU's meet against Michigan, Feb. 8, Kendall Valentin turned in a performance for the books. On bars, the sophomore posted a near-flawless routine, highlighted by a stuck dismount, and scored a huge 9.925. This marks the highest individual score that any Eagle has scored this season, and is also the second-best bars score in EMU history.

Eagles Jump Back into Top-25: With a huge meet at Michigan, Feb. 8, the Eagles jumped back into the top-25 in the national rankings. As of today, Eastern sits at No. 22 in the nation with an average team score of 195.221. Additionally, the team is ranked in the top-20 in three events, with beam leading the way at No. 13. The team is also No. 27 on vault and No. 21 on bars. On the conference level, the Green and White hold a big lead as the top MAC team, as Central Michigan occupies the second-place spot with an average team score of 194.608, nearly six tenths behind the first-place Eagles. Eastern is also the top beam and vault team in the conference.

Rubin Dominating the Last Four Weeks: Throughout the last four weeks, Lacey Rubin has been on fire for the Eagles. Through those four meets, the junior has performed eight routines, seven of which have scored a 9.8 or higher. Within that time frame, she notched career-bests of 9.875 on both bars and beam. Her bars score also sits tied at third all-time in EMU program history. Rubin has provided a solid veteran presence so far this season, only missing one routine in the season opener.

Scouting the Competition: The Bowling Green Falcons currently hold a team score average of 193.775, with their season-high being a 194.8. The Falcons' best event appears to be bars, where they are ranked No. 39 and average a 48.525. The other three events are fairly close to that ranking, with the remaining three ranging from No. 41 to No. 47. The Falcons have been ascending through the past few weeks, as their team scores have been rising weekly. Last week, Alyssa Nocella paced the team, finishing with a 39.050 in the all-around. Caroline Ellingboe also had a solid meet, with two scores averaging a 9.8. Finally, Lauren Feely competed in the all-around as well, finishing just below a 39 with a total of 38.925.
   The RedHawks, on the other hand, maintain an average team score of 192.692, with their highest score being a 193.9. SEMO's best event is bars, where they are ranked No. 38 and average 48.558 on the event. The other three events are ranked around the No. 50 mark. Alexis Brawner turned in a great all-around performance last week, finishing with a 38.975 to lead the team. Three other RedHawks also competed all four events, with Lauren Israel notching a 38.7.

Last Time Against the Falcons and the RedHawks: The Eagles and the Falcons last squared off earlier this season at a tri-meet hosted by Western Michigan, Jan. 17. There, the Green and White got the best of Bowling Green, coming out on top, 195.050 - 193.575. Kendall Valentin competed all-around for the first time, finishing with a 39.025 in her debut. Catie Conrad also turned in a then career-best 9.85 on beam, and Sydney McEachern notched a personal-best 9.725 on bars.
   Back in 2013, the Eagles and the RedHawks met Mar. 3, where SEMO walked away with the victory, 194.775-194.675. The Green and White nabbed a pair of top-finishes on the day, with Anna Willette winning vault with a 9.875, while Khadijah Hudson took home gold in the all-around with a final score of 39.175. Additionally, the team took home two more podium finishes, with Shawna Ciaramella taking second on beam with a 9.775, and Hudson also taking bronze on floor with a 9.875.

Rubin Honored as MAC Specialist of the Week: The Mid-American Conference announced Feb. 2 that Lacey Rubin was named the MAC Specialist of the Week for her performance against NIU. In the home opener, Rubin scored a pair of 9.825's, taking home third and first on bars and beam, respectively. The junior has been a force for the Eagles throughout the last three weeks, as she has been consistently scoring above 9.8 on beam.

Hultgren Off to a Great Start: With six meets in the books, Megan Hultgren has notched six hit routines for the Eagles on beam. The freshman has been rock-solid so far this season, earning a trio of 9.7's, as well as two scores of 9.8 or better. At the Ball State tri-meet, Jan. 24, Hultgren turned in a career performance, as she received a 9.825 for her routine.

Slocum Leading EMU on Two Events: Sophomore Rachel Slocum has gotten off to a great start following the first six meets of the year. In the meet against Michigan, Feb. 8, Slocum notched a 9.9 on vault, placing second. Against Ball State and Illinois State, she took home two event titles, scoring a 9.9 on vault and a 9.85 on floor. So far this season, she has a total of five event titles on floor and vault, as well as four runner-up finishes. For her efforts, Slocum was named the Mid-American Conference Specialist of the Week following the first meet of the year.

Last Time Out: The Eagles continued their record-breaking season with another school-best team score in a tri-meet against Michigan and Maryland, Feb. 8. The Eagles finished with a whopping 195.975 behind three event totals above 49. Kendall Valentin also turned in one of the best bar performances in EMU history, notching a 9.925 and taking over the second-place spot in the EMU record books. Rachel Slocum kicked in another 9.9 on vault, which was her second of the season, while Catie Conrad finished with a 39.250 in the all-around, the highest all-around score for the Eagles since 2004.

Looking Ahead: The Green and White return home to the Convo for a Friday meet against in-state rival Western Michigan, Feb. 19, at 6:30 p.m. Following their meet at home, the Eagles then hit the road again for a tri-meet hosted by Ohio State, Feb. 27.

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Players Mentioned

Catie Conrad

Megan Hultgren

Sydney McEachern

Lacey Rubin

Rachel Slocum

Kendall Valentin

Anna Willette

Eastern Michigan Athletics