Top-ranked nationally, the College at Brockport took first on the vault, the uneven bars and the floor exercise to win the six-team National Collegiate Gymnastics Association East Regional for the second consecutive year and advance to the national championships at the University of Wisconsin-Stout March 31 through April 1.
The team started on the Uneven Bars where sophomore Meghan Cash and senior Maddie O’Braitis tied for third with 9.55 and senior Caitlin Eisadek was seventh with 9.50.
They then struggled on the Balance Beam with three competitors falling, but sophomore and defending national champion in the event Candis Kowalik took second with 9.650 and senior Jen Skelenar fourth with 9.550.
“I was a little nervous after the balance beam; we had a tough day on beam, but I went in and told them we were ranked number one in the country on vault and floor so let’s forget about beam and go out and show them why we’re number one,” Brockport head coach John Feeney said.
The Golden Eagles did just that over their final two events where they secured their victory.
Junior Brittany Vasile, Kowalik and Sklenar set personal records in sweeping the top three spots in the Floor Exercise. Vasile set a new team record with 9.90 to take top honors with Kowalik at 9.875 and Sklenar at 9.825.
They followed by duplicating it on the Vault with sophomore Stephanie Mager recording a personal-best 9.85 to take first. Kowalik was second with 9.80 and Sklenar third at 9.775. Junior Bridgette Schaal also tied for fifth with 9.70 and Vasile tied for seventh with 9.675.
“We went 49.05 out of 50 on the floor, which is pretty darn good, and 48.8 on vault, so pretty happy with them. They met the challenge and did well,” Feeney said.
Sklenar, ranked second in the nation in her first year competing in the all-around, set a team record and personal best in winning with 38.575 points.
“It feels amazing – we did not have our best day on beam, but we came back and really hit it strong on floor and vault,” Sklenar said. “That’s what this team does best, we come back if we’re down. “We all were just focused on each other and our own team, so we really didn’t know how all the other teams were doing until the end. That’s what made us win – focusing on ourselves and doing our best. “I’m really sad, actually – this is my last time competing here at Brockport and a lot of emotions, but I couldn’t be any more proud of this team.”
The team will now try to win their first national championship since 2012.
