SUNY Brockport’s gymnastics team traveled to Ithaca for the NCGA East Regional to take on Ithaca, SUNY Cortland, Rhode Island College, Ursinus College, Springfield College and Utica College on Saturday. The Golden Eagles posted a team score of 192.100 to capture their fourth straight NCGA East Region Championship.
“Winning regionals for the fourth consecutive season is an amazing feeling,” senior gymnast Emma Grace Sargent said. “It means a lot that Brockport has maintained its dominance in the East through a coaching change, lots of lineups change and a lot of challenges. We are all extremely proud to carry on this title.”
The team did not get off to a great start, having no placements on the balance beam. Fifth year gymnast Rachel Swick knew the team had to put the early struggles behind them.
“After a rough first rotation we were really focused on leaving it in the past and staying in the moment and focused on the events to come,” Swick said.
Brockport’s Sargent posted a 9.75 on the vault to place fourth and Maren Eramo posted a 9.80 on the vault to place second.
Brockport had two gymnasts who also finished in the top six in the floor routine. Kiara Hockman posted a 9.80 to place sixth and Kirsten Paultre had a strong performance, placing second with a 9.85.
“Kirsten is a powerhouse,” Sargent said. “She impresses me every time with her sky-high tumbling and truly earns every point she gets. Having her as our anchor on floor this season has been the cherry on top of our floor lineup all season long and it is amazing to watch.
Lienna Kay placed fifth in the all-around, posting a score of 37.675. She also placed second on the uneven bars, posting a score of 9.285 that helped the Golden Eagles set a new team record on the bars with a score of 49.00.
Swick placed first on the bars with a 9.875 score, which set a Brockport record, to capture the regional title.
“Tying my program event record and setting a new team bar record was a great way to close out the meet,” Swick said. “It was an electric rotation, and I am so happy to be a part of it. We’ve worked hard so it is very rewarding to put it all together and set a new team bar record.”
With the victory, head coach René Lyst has now led the program to three consecutive regional titles in her first three seasons at Brockport. Lyst knows that to win a national championship, the team must put together a complete performance.
“We just need to be consistent on all four events,” Lyst said. “We have shown we can do each event extraordinarily well. We just need to put all four together at one time.”
The Golden Eagles will compete at the NCGA National Championships on March 23 hosted by Ursinus College. The meet is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.
