In its home opener against state rival N.C. State, the North Carolina gymnastics team (1-0), clinched a 196.225-195.525 win over the Wolfpack.
What happened?
The Tar Heels began on the vault where first-year Kaya Forbes and second year Lali Dekanoidze ended the rotation on a strong note with impressive vaults that earned them scores of 9.875 and 9.9, respectively. Following the first rotation, UNC trailed by .05 points.
UNC moved to the bars next, where the team put up its strongest performance of the meet. Sophomore Julia Knower’s score of 9.85 and Dekanoidze’s score of 9.975 were enough to push them into the lead, finishing .35 points ahead of the Wolfpack.
The third rotation saw routines from UNC on the beam and N.C. State on the floor. Knower ended with the team’s highest score of the event by recording a 9.825. Regardless of this being their worst event of the day thus far by scoring a combined 48.775, the Tar Heels maintained their lead over the Wolfpack.
Going into the final rotation, all three of the top scores were from members of the UNC team. Senior Bri Greenlow delivered a strong floor routine that scored a 9.850, which furthered the gap between the two teams even more.
Who stood out?
After securing the two highest scores in the first two rotations out of both teams, Dekanoidze provided an essential push to secure a lead early on for the Tar Heels. She matched her best collegiate score on the vault with a 9.9 and scored a new collegiate best on the bars with a 9.975.
Knower’s score of 9.875 on the beam, the top beam score of the meet, was crucial in North Carolina maintaining its lead after the third rotation. With a score of 39.40, Knower was the top all-around scorer in the meet.
