TOWSON, Md. – The 2021 season begins for the Towson University gymnastics team as it travels to Philadelphia for a tri meet hosted by Temple on Saturday, Jan. 16. The meet is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. inside Pearson & McGonigle Hall.
The Tigers will also face Eastern Michigan.
Fans can watch the meet via ESPN+ https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/30b3f9a9-b05d-4dc8-a7a9-13695924d7ae with a subscription and live stream the scores http://sidearmstats.com/temple/gymnastics/
New Faces
The Tigers add seven newcomers to the mix this season. Towson will be introducing fans to
Mackenzie Butler,
Sarah Girot,
Simona Kerekes,
Amanda Pedicelli,
Cassidy Stuart,
Grace Vaillancourt and
Allison Zuhlke.
Returners
Towson brings back one competing senior (
Tess Zientek), two juniors (
Nikki Borkowski and
Emerson Hurst) and five sophomores (
Lauren Bolen,
Paige Casper,
Amy Stewart,
Camille Vitoff and
Jenna Weitz) to round out the roster this year.
Last Time Out
Four Tigers were named to the All-EAGL teams in 2020.
Camille Vitoff was named to the Second Team All-EAGL for vault after having a National Qualifying Score (NQS) of 9.785.
Ally Wesoly and
Tess Zientek were named to the Second Team All-EAGL on bars after having NQS' of 9.780 and 9.775, respectively.
Emerson Hurst was named to the Second Team All-EAGL for beam after finishing with a NQS of 9.815.
The Tigers went 5-1 inside SECU Arena as well as setting a new home record in the arena. Every competing student-athlete earned season-highs in their perspective events. The Tigers also walked away with two of the highest team scores in Towson history. The Tigers saw
Emerson Hurst and
Jenna Weitz win East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) weekly awards, as well as 12 student-athletes were named to the EAGL All-Academic team.
Tigers in the Community
The Towson University athletics department deems community service as one of its highest priorities to give back to the Greater Baltimore area.
Towson was on track to have its 8th consecutive year of over 10,000 hours of community service in 2019-20 before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down all activity. Towson finished with 7,527 hours last year, good for third in the NCAA Teamworks Helper Helper competition.
Towson ranked #1 nationally for community service and won the 2018 National Championship for Community Service through the Helper Helper NCAA Team Works Competition. Towson also won the 2018 Volunteer of the Year Award from Susan G. Komen of Maryland.
Scouting the Opponents
Temple Owls
The Owls are newcomers to the East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) after spending the last two seasons competing in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC). Last season, the Owls averaged a 48.614 including a program record with a 49.150 on vault and return their top vaulter in junior Ariana Castrence. On bars, Temple finished the season with a 48.715 NQS and combined for a 49.100 on beam. Floor was Temple's second-best event of 2020 with a 48.600 average.
Eastern Michigan Eagles
The Eagles have a 3-0 record over the Tigers. In 2016, the Eagles defeated the Tigers, 194.875-192.775, and followed it up in 2017, winning 196.00-193.075. In the most recent meeting during the 2019 season, the Green and White again came out on top, 194.225-192.875. The Eagles are also 5-1 against Temple.
Key returners for the Eagles include seniors Cortney Bezold and Jada Rondeau. Bezold competes on bars and Rondeau is an all-arounder.
Up Next
Towson is back in SECU Arena for the Pink Meet against Temple and North Carolina on Friday, Jan. 22. The meet is slated for a 6 p.m. start.
