Columbia News

Southeast Missouri women's gymnastics will host fellow MIC-member Illinois State in Houck Field House for the first time in the 2023 season. Competition is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m., CT. on Friday, March 3rd in Cape Girardeau.  
Senior Night
Southeast Missouri gymnastics will honor 6 seniors prior to the competition on Friday night including Mallory Desch, Taylor Fishkin, Jordan Jones, Molly Maxwell, Jole Miller, and Lindsey Moffitt.  
MIC Coaches Choice
Senior Mallory Desch brought home the MIC Coaches Choice Award voted on by the Conference's coaches, the league announced Wednesday morning. 
 
Desch, a senior from Lenexa, Kan., competed in her first rotation of the season (outside of exhibition routines) for SEMO on the bars last Saturday night against Greenville. Desch registered a 9.275 for the rotation. 
 
Head Coach Ashley Lawson had this to say about her Senior: "Mallory has had an onslaught of issues since her freshman year for our program. Freshman year she was knocked out at the end of the season with a double ankle roll, dealt with a back injury her sophomore year, and suffered an Achilles rupture last year. She has worked hard to get back into line-ups and has filled our exhibition spot on floor over the last few weeks. This year she has been working extremely hard on all events and has been close to hitting a bar routine. When Jordan went out with her Achilles, and another athlete got a concussion from a car accident this week, Mallory rose to the occasion. We put her in the lineup for bars this weekend and she HIT. It was her first collegiate bar routine (as a senior) and the excitement from her, and the team was indescribable. To say we are very proud of Mal is an understatement, and what a testament to her team to step up in a big way!  
Last Time Out
Southeast Missouri women's gymnastics scored a 192.950 to win last  Saturday's meet against Greenville at the American Farm Heritage Museum in Greenville, Ill. 
 
Greenville registered a 183.775 to take second place in the meet. 
 
Freshman Taylor Ingle and junior Lyida Webb finished first and second, respectively, in the All-Around category for the meet. 
 
Ingle scored a 38.400 with her highest score on the Beam (9.800), while Webb recorded a 37.900 with her best score coming from the Bars (9.725). 
 
The Redhawks started the night on the Bars as SEMO recorded a 47.775 as a team in the rotation. 
 
Webb led the Redhawks with her 9.725 from the fourth spot in the SEMO lineup followed by a 9.625 from Ingle and a 9.600 from Janelle Lopez in the fifth spot, rounding out the top-three highest scores in the first rotation. 
 
Next up for the Redhawks was the Vault which resulted in a 48.275 for SEMO. 
 
Sophomore Madison Greene led the rotation with her 9.775 from the sixth-slot. 
 
In the fifth spot, Lopez registered the second highest score for SEMO with a 9.650. 
 
Webb and sophomore Nyah Reader tied for third, hitting back-to-back 9.625s to round out the top-three for the Redhawks. 
 
At the end of two rotations, the Redhawks had a running score of 96.050. 
 
Moving to the floor rotation, the Redhawks' Molly Maxwell started the rotation with a 9.700 to get off to a strong start on SEMO's best rotation. SEMO registered a 48.500 on the Floor.   
Lindsey Moffitt and Madison Greene tied for the team's highest-score with a 9.775 In the fourth and sixth-slots, respectively.   
Nyah Reader rounded out SEMO's top-three scores with a 9.750. 
 
Reader scored the highest score on the final rotation for SEMO. Reader registered a 9.875 in the sixth-slot.   
Taylor Ingle hit a 9.800 for the Redhawks second highest scorer in the rotation. Molly Maxwell rounded out the top-three with a 9.675 as SEMO finished with a 48.400 on the Beam to conclude the meet.  
Scouting the Opponent 
Illinois State
Illinois State, currently at 9-8, will be traveling to Cape Girardeau for the first time this season as they attempt to continue their win streak against the Redhawks and finish their season strong. 
 
The Redbirds are currently 1-3 in away matches this season but have won the past two meets against the Redhawks held in Houck Field House. ISU has won 7 straight against SEMO with their most recent win occurring on Feb. 17, of a score of 194.600-192.925.
 
ISU has now averaged 194.65 in meets they have played away from Normal, Illinois this season.
 
In Illinois State's most recent meet they placed second in a quad-meet consisting of New Hampshire (196.550), Pitt (194.875), and Southern Connecticut State (193.400). Redbirds posted a 195.600 which is their second-highest team score of the season at the meet in Durham, N.H.
 
Freshman Nirel Bart-Williams won the all-around with a career high score of 39.225 with her teammate Alana Laster second overall, posting a 39.150
 
Redbirds started off at the Beam led by Bart-Williams with an even 9.800 as Laster just behind her with 9.675 for the second highest score for the team
 
After the second rotation the Redbirds were in second place before heading on the Floor where they recorded a season high in the event with a team score of 49.275.
 
ISU's Jaye Mack tied to win the Floor event with her second-straight score of 9.925 after obtaining MIC Performance of the Week honors a week ago for the Floor.
 
Bart-Williams and Kaitlyn Donovan tied for the team's second highest score for the event both with 9.850s.
 
Vault was next for the Redbirds where they once again posted a season high for the event and the meet's highest score for the Vault as the team recorded a 49.225.
 
Bart-Williams all-around victory was highlighted by a new PR in the vault with a 9.900.
 
Second and third for the team in Vault was Laster (9.875) and J'Chelle Heard (9.850) to round out the team's scores.
 
The Redbirds finished at the Bars as the team scored a 48.975 to put their total to 195.600 in the quad-meet. 
 
In the Bars, tied for first for the team is Angelica Labat and Sara Wabi both scoring 9.825, followed by 3 scores of 9.775 by Bart-Williams, Laster, and Julia Heiner.  
Looking Ahead
Gymnastics will take the road next Friday night, March 10. The Redhawks will compete in a quad-meet in Colombia, Mo against Missouri, Ball State, and North Carolina.. Competition is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m., CT.       

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