Gymnastics Records Season-Best Score In Win Over Air Force

Friday, March 3

Chapel Hill, NC

6 p.m.

North Carolina

196.475

193.850

Air Force

Photo by: Andy Mead

March 3, 2023 | Women's Gymnastics

Complete Results

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – After winning all four events and recording its highest team score of the season, the University of North Carolina gymnastics team posted a 196.475-193.850 victory over Air Force in the home finale Friday evening at Carmichael Arena.

Following the win, the Tar Heels improve to 14-4 (6-0) overall on the year.

Carolina won every event and had the highest team score on each rotation. It was also the first time this season Carolina posted 49.000+ on all four events in the same meet.

At the conclusion of the meet, the Tar Heels honored their seven seniors in Elizabeth Culton, Tina Ghashghaei, Bri Greenlow, Hannah Nam, Sophie Silverstein, Hallie Thompson and Jay Weil as part of the Senior Day celebration.

Rotation One – Vault
Lali Dekanoidze got things off to a stellar start on vault, winning the event with a score of 9.900 to tie her career-high. Paige Prejean set a new personal best of 9.850 for second while Kaya Forbes' 9.775 was good enough to third. Isabelle Schaefer, who competed on vault for the first time this season, checked in at 9.750 and Gwen Fink recorded a 9.725.

The Tar Heels scored a 49.000 on its first rotation while Air Force totaled 48.400.

Rotation Two – Bars
Marking her 13th individual event win this season, Dekanoidze took the top spot on bars with a score of 9.925, her seventh time above 9.900 this season. Culton put together her best routine of the season at 9.900 for second as Jamie Shearer matched her career-best 9.850 for third. Also scoring for UNC was Fink (9.825) and Schaefer (9.725).

For the ninth meet in a row and ever since the season opener, the home team had the highest team score of the meet on bars at 49.225 to the visitors' 48.200.

Rotation Three – Beam
A pair of seniors shared the top of the podium on beam, as both Culton and Nam recorded scores of 9.850 with the latter notching a season-best. Taylor Schulze matched her best score of the year at 9.825 to tie for third as Fink (9.775), Knower (9.750) and Thompson (9.750) all contributed.

UNC had a collective score of 49.050 on beam and Air Force finished the rotation at 48.700.

Rotation Four – Floor
Concluding the meet on floor, Knower dazzled with a 9.950 for the second time in her career to win the event. Culton and Nam ended their final home meet with a bang, finishing second and third, respectively, with a career-best 9.900 and a season-high 9.850. Entering the floor lineup for the first time this year was Fink with a mark of 9.775 while Bri Greenlow tallied a 9.725.

Carolina went four-for-four on the night for rotations above 49.000, ending the meet with a 49.200 on floor. Air Force posted a score of 48.550.

Up Next
Next, the Tar Heels will wrap up the regular season with a trip to Columbia, Mo., for a quad meet against Ball State, Southeast Missouri State and host Missouri on Friday, March 10. The meet will begin at 7 p.m. ET (6 p.m. CT) at the Hearnes Center.

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