Gymnastics Opens Season at Pitt Quad

Gymnastics at Pitt Quad
Date	Saturday, Jan. 12 \| 2 p.m.
Venue	Pittsburgh, Pa. \| Fitzgerald Field House
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Live Results
Watch	ACC Network Extra
Twitter	@EMUGym \| @EMUAthletics

PITTSBURGH, Pa. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University gymnastics team begins its 2019 regular season campaign as it takes on the Pittsburgh quad in Pittsburgh, Pa. Saturday, Jan. 12.
   The quad will include meet-host Pittsburgh University, Utah State University, and West Virginia University.

FOLLOWING THE MEET: Fans can follow the meet through live stats and a live stream offered by the ACC Network Extra. Links for both can be found on the EMU gymnastics schedule page located on EMUEagles.com.

MICHIGAN EXHIBITION: For the fourth straight season, EMU took part in an exhibition hosted by the University of Michigan. The exhibition included two Mid-American Conference foes, Central Michigan University and Western Michigan University.
   EMU finished with a final score of 192.0, besting the likes of CMU (191.85) and WMU (191.725), while coming up short against the Wolverines (195.125).
   The Eagles posted an event score of 48.6, led by senior Ciara Gresham, who posted Eastern's highest score of 9.775 in her first time back into the official lineup since Jan. 13, 2017. Junior Emili Dobronics and sophomore Cali Harden also turned in solid performances, each recording a 9.725 to tie for 12th overall.
   Dobronics claimed EMU's highest individual score of all performances on the day, marking a 9.8 on floor to place fifth overall in the event.
Key Returners: The Eagles lost a talented group of seniors over the offseason, which consisted of Kirsten Gendron, Megan Marino, Lacey Rubin, Jules Schwartz, and the program's first-ever All-American, Kendall Valentin. Despite the turnover, EMU returns a strong group of student-athletes, including 2018 NCAA Regional Qualifier, junior Emili Dobronics.
   Along with Dobronics, Eastern welcomes back eight Eagles who were consistently relied upon last season. Included in the aforementioned group is senior Megan Hultgren, who is poised for a stellar final season after posting career-highs in all four events a season ago. Additionally, senior Ciara Gresham, a 2017 Mid-American Conference All-Tournament selection, looks to return to competition after battling with injury in 2018. Gresham has marked career-bests of 9.875 in both vault and floor, as well as a 9.85 on beam while donning the Green and White, all of which were marked in the 2017 season.

DYNAMIC DOBRONICS: Junior Emili Dobronics was named to the All-Mid-American Conference Second Team for her efforts in 2018. Dobronics was the seventh Eagle to earn All-MAC honors in gymnastics since the conference created them in 2013.
   A workhorse for Eastern throughout the season, Dobronics competed in the all-around in all but two meets. The Orland Park, Ill. native marked new career-highs in each event throughout the season, including a score of 9.9 on floor which she earned in EMU's win against Kent State, Feb. 25. Altogether, the junior accumulated 10 performances that warranted a score of 9.8-or-higher, and eclipsed a 39 in the all-around four times.
   Beyond the regular season and conference competition, Dobronics acted as one-of-three Eagle qualifiers for the NCAA Regional meet. Additionally, that served as her second trip to regionals, having marked a 9.75 on floor as a freshman when the team qualified in 2017.

SUPER SOPHOMORES: Eastern will rely heavily on the outstanding sophomore class, which includes five gymnasts who had stellar rookie campaigns. The second-year student-athletes consisting of Megan Benzie, Cortney Bezold, Cali Harden, Bri Price, and Jada Rondeau, combined for 21 performances that earned a 9.75-or-better in their first year of competition.

NEW FACES IN THE GYM: EMU welcomes six freshmen to the 2019 squad: freshmen Shannon Gregory, Brooke Hylek, Carly Kosanovich, Charlotte Reynolds, Kara Roberts, and Caitlin Satler.

EAGLES WELCOME RETURN OF ELLA DOVER: This will be the third year as a member of the Green and White for Ella, as the Eagles, in unison with Team IMPACT, announced Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016, that the team signed 10-year old Ella Dover to a ceremonial letter of commitment to join the team for the next few years.
   Ella suffers from chronic epilepsy and has multiple seizures daily. This, however, does not have an impact on her attitude, as she is always smiling and approaching life with a positive mentality. Ella will be a regular at practices and meets, and will also join the Green and White for team activities and events throughout the year. This season, the Eagles honor Ella with the hashtag "#EforElla" to show support for the admirable and brave team member.

EMU SELECTED FOURTH IN MAC PRESEASON POLL: After losing five seniors from last year, the Mid-American Conference preseason poll selected Eastern fourth in the conference. The Eagles finished fourth in the MAC last season and are looking to top that performance this year.

EAGLES ON ESPN3: For the fourth consecutive season, the Eagles will have a pair of home meets broadcast on ESPN3. This season, fans will be able to watch their Eagles compete on ESPN3 against MAC-opponent Northern Illinois, Feb. 9, and Illinois State, Feb. 15.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Megan Benzie

Cortney Bezold

Emili Dobronics

Ella Dover

Kirsten Gendron

Shannon Gregory

Ciara Gresham

Cali Harden

Megan Hultgren

Brooke Hylek

Carly Kosanovich

Megan Marino

Brianna Price

Charlotte Reynolds

Kara Roberts

Jada Rondeau

Lacey Rubin

Caitlin Satler

Jules Schwartz

Kendall Valentin

Eastern Michigan Athletics