Career-high and season-high performances on vault and bars were not enough to launch the gymnastics team ahead of Bridgeport or Maryland in the Quakers’ penultimate meet before ECAC Championships on Mar. 24.
The Red and Blue finished with a score of 191.650, a total that is just a point less than their Ivy Classic-winning score from February 26. Bridgeport, a program ranked second among Division II teams, took second place in the tri-meet with a total score of 192.950, and host team Maryland was well ahead with 195.075.
The Quakers nearly swept the podium with second and third place finishes in the All-Around, with strong performances from juniors Dana Bonincontri and Kirsten Strausbaugh. Junior Megan Milavecand freshman Amber Woo took fourth and fifth place, respectively.
In the individual events, the Quakers posted the third-best score in program history and a season-high total on the uneven bars, with a team total of 48.725. The Red and Blue had three top-ten finishes, with Bonincontri and Strausbaugh earning second and seventh place finishes, respectively. Junior Megan Milavec gave a career-high performance on bars with a score of 9.750 and finished ninth. Senior Laura DiPaolo just missed the top 10, but tied her season high with an even 9.700.
Although the Terps took four of the top five places on vault, the Quakers were also a strong presence with three athletes cracking the top-10. Freshman Wynne Levy gave a season-high performance that earned her sixth place, while Strausbaugh and Bonincontri finished eighth and tenth, respectively.
The Red and Blue struggled on balance beam and floor exercise, however, earning two top-10 finishes on beam, while third-place finisher Strausbaugh was alone in the top 10 on floor.
The Quakers have a short week in the gym before they return to action Friday against Towson, George Washington and Yale, in the final meet before ECAC Championships.
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