University of North Carolina Athletics
UNC Squares Off Against EAGL Rival Pittsburgh on Friday
January 25, 2017 | Women's Gymnastics
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The University of North Carolina gymnastics team will return to competition on Friday for a dual meet against Pittsburgh, a fellow member of the East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL). The meet is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Fitzgerald Field House.
The Tar Heels are currently ranked fifth in the EAGL with a record of 1-3 (0-1 EAGL). UNC looks to pick up its first EAGL win of the season against the Panthers on Friday.
Pittsburgh is coming off of a stellar 2016 season, as the Panthers won the EAGL Championship for the first time in program history with a score of 195.675.
“Our intent is to go up there and improve upon what we did last weekend,” said UNC head coach Derek Galvin. “Certainly, we would like to outscore Pitt, particularly with them being the defending EAGL champions.”
WEEK #2: HOME DUAL MEET VERSUS FLORIDA
On Jan. 20, North Carolina opened its home schedule by hosting the third-ranked Florida Gators in Carmichael Arena for a #BETRUE event. The Tar Heels were defeated by the Gators, 197.325-194.300, but the team showed significant improvements throughout the competition.
North Carolina set season-best scores on the uneven bars (48.925), balance beam (48.225), floor exercise (48.775) and the team score.
Eight newcomers to the UNC gymnastics program made their debuts in front of the home crowd in Carmichael Arena on Friday. Jamie Antinori, a freshman out of Park City, Utah, made her collegiate debut for North Carolina, as she was in the lineup on the floor exercise.
“I was pleased with the adjustment that some of the newcomers made in their second collegiate competition. I felt that they did a much better job of maintaining their focus than they did in the first meet. We want to take the next step in that, which is getting more people in that same confident composed way of competing,” said Galvin.
According to Galvin, each gymnast that competed for UNC made significant progress on at least one event. This was particularly evident among the newcomers, who are starting to settle in to collegiate gymnastics following their debut at the Lindsey Ferris Invitational last week.
A number of Tar Heel gymnasts had stellar performances on Friday to lead the team to an impressive performance against a highly talented Florida team.
Morgan Lane placed second in the all-around competition with a season-best score of 39.250, which extends her streak of 39.000 or better performances to 11 consecutive meets. This was the highest all-around score reported by any athlete in the EAGL this past weekend. Lane was also on the podium for the balance beam (9.875) and floor exercise (9.875). On Tuesday, Lane was named the EAGL Gymnast of the Week for the second consecutive week.
Khazia Hislop had a phenomenal meet for North Carolina, as she set career bests on both of the events that she competed on. Hislop placed second on the floor exercise with a score of 9.925 and scored a 9.775 on the balance beam to tie for seventh place. Her score of 9.925 on floor was the highest individual score posted by any EAGL athlete all weekend. Hislop was named the EAGL Rookie of the Week on Tuesday as a result of her stellar performance for the Tar Heels.
Kaitlynn Hedelund had a stellar performance on the uneven bars to tie for third place with three Florida gymnasts. She tied her season-high of 9.825 to land on the podium against a team of highly skilled athletes.
Newcomer Mekyllah Williams set a new career-high of 9.800 on the uneven bars to tie for seventh place in just her second appearance in the lineup for the Tar Heels.
“We do not anticipate any significant changes to the lineup at this point. The people who competed for us last week did a good job,” said Galvin.
THE OPPONENT: PITTSBURGH
Pittsburgh currently has a record of 2-2 (0-1 EAGL) and is ranked sixth in the EAGL. On Saturday, the Panthers competed in a tri-meet against EAGL rival New Hampshire and Southern Connecticut, placing second with a score of 191.675. Pittsburgh notched a 48.750 on vault, a 47.550 on bars, a 46.875 on beam and a 48.550 on floor.
The week prior, Pittsburgh had a huge upset victory over No. 21 West Virginia to kick off the home schedule. The Panthers won, 194.025-193.875, which snapped a 51-meet losing streak to the rival Mountaineers that dated back to 1992. A Panther gymnast took first place on every event and in the all-around competition.
In 2017, the freshman class has been off to a sizzling start, as Alecia Petrikis was named EAGL Rookie of the Week for the first week of the season and Rachel Dugan won the honor in week two. Dugan was also named the First National Bank Pitt Athlete of the Week following her stellar performance against the Mountaineers.
Players Mentioned
