Titans Finish Second At WIAC Championship, Secure Berth Into National Meet

UW-Oshkosh clinched a berth in the upcoming National Collegiate Gymnastics Association (NCGA) Championship with a runner-up showing at the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC)/NCGA West Regional held Saturday (March 9) in Menomonie.

Host UW-Stout won its first conference title with a score of 190.225. The Blue Devils produced the top team score on each apparatus, tallying 47.350 on the vault, 47.050 on the uneven bars, 47.475 on the balance beam and 48.350 on floor exercise.

UW-Oshkosh finished second with a score of 188.950 while UW-Whitewater placed third with 187.425. The top three teams at the WIAC Championship/NCGA West Regional earned automatic berths into the NCGA Championship that be conducted March 23 in UW-Oshkosh's Kolf Sports Center.

Rounding out the standings were defending WIAC champion UW-La Crosse in fourth with a score of 186.550, Winona State University (Minn.) in fifth with 185.675, Gustavus Adolphus College (Minn.) in sixth with 184.725, Hamline University (Minn.) in seventh with 184.275 and UW-Eau Claire in eighth with 183.975.

UW-Oshkosh, the 1989 and 2007 national champion, will be making its 16th NCGA Championship appearance and first since 2014. The Titans' second-place finish at the conference championship was their best since also placing second on the way to winning the 2007 national title.

The Titans compiled scores of 46.800 on the vault, 46.875 on the uneven bars, 46.950 on the balance beam and 48.325 on floor exercise. UW-Oshkosh finished second among the eight teams on the uneven bars, the balance beam and floor exercise while placing third on the vault.

UW-Oshkosh had six All-WIAC performances, including Kaira Hammond and Rahdea Jarvis with second-place finishes on the balance beam and uneven bars, respectively. Hammond earned a score of 9.725 on the balance beam, and Jarvis scored a 9.550 on the uneven bars.

The top six individual finishers in each event garnered all-conference honors.

UW-Oshkosh's Jessica Bernardo placed third on floor exercise with a score of 9.750 and fifth in the all-around competition with a score of 37.300.

Baylee Tkaczuk finished fifth on the balance beam with a score of 9.625, while Emily Gilot was sixth on the vault with a 9.425.

The Titans received additional top-10 individual efforts from Jarvis with an eighth-place vault score of 9.400, Olivia Keller with an eighth-place score of 9.725 on floor exercise and Tkaczuk with a ninth-place score of 9.450 on the uneven bars.

Also placing in the top 20 individuals for UW-Oshkosh were Jarvis in 11th on floor exercise (9.700 score), Hammond in 13th on the vault (9.350), Gilot in 13th on the uneven bars (9.400), Bernardo in 16th on the vault (9.325), Hammond in 16th on the uneven bars (9.350), Alyssa Nore in 16th on the balance beam (9.375), Bailey Finin in 19th on floor exercise (9.600) and Amira Ali in 20th on the vault (9.300).

UW-Stout swept the individual event champions at the WIAC Championship/NCGA West Regional as Shadae Boone won the vault with a score of 9.725, Sierra Beaver claimed the uneven bars with a 9.625, Brooke Terry was the winner on the balance beam with a 9.750 and in the all-around with a 38.075, and Mikala Bugge won on floor exercise with a 9.825.