Pittsburgh Gymnasts Fall to Illinois, 192.975-189.650
2/24/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
Pittsburgh Gymnasts Fall to Illinois, 192.975-189.650
2/24/2001
PITTSBURGH - The Pittsburgh gymnastics team fell to visiting Illinois, 192.975-189.650, at Trees Gym on Feb. 24. The Panthers move to 2-6 overall on the year.
Pittsburgh continued its dominance on vault by compiling a team score of 48.125 compared to Illinois' 47.375. Sophomore Nathalie Sulpher (Ottawa, Canada/Franco-Quest) and freshman Diandra O'Connor (Owasso, Okla./Owasso) finished in a tie for first place, along with Illinois' Carissa Ericson, with a mark of 9.675. Sophomore Jennifer Easter (Dover, Del./Caesar Rodney) was fourth with a score of 9.625.
Junior Raya Mullin (Runnemeade, N.J./Triton) led the Panthers on the uneven bars, claiming second place with a mark of 9.800. O'Connor had her best performance of the year on the event as she garnered a season-high score of 9.600.
Pittsburgh struggled with a number of falls on balance beam, but rallied to come back strong on floor exercise. Easter claimed first place on floor with a mark of 9.775. Sulpher was close behind with a 9.725 to finish in second. However, the Fighting Illini had top performances on both bars and beam to lead them to the victory.
The Panthers will play host to Michigan State and Wilson College in a tri-meet on Monday, March 5 beginning at 1 p.m. at Trees Gym.