Akron Reporter

The Kent State gymnastics team will kick off its 2023 season on the road at the West Virginia Tri-Meet against the Mountaineers and Maryland on Friday, Jan. 13. The meet will be streamed on Big 12 Now and ESPN+.

Head coach Brice Biggin enters his 32nd season at the helm of the Golden Flashes program with a veteran roster that features nine letter-winners from last year's squad and will look to make the NCAA Regional for the first time since 2018. The Flashes are ranked second in the Mid-American Conference Preseason Poll, finishing behind only last year's MAC Championship winner Central Michigan.

The Flashes return their top-five scorers from last season in three of the four events. Junior Kyndall Gilbert led the way with an NQS score of 9.835 on vault, junior Sarah Haxton posted a 9.880 on beam, and senior Karlie Franz tallied a team-high 9.905 on floor. Graduate student Cami Klein, who led the Flashes on beam with a of 9.855 a season ago, returns for one extra year at Kent State

The four individual Flashes that reached the NCAA Regional at Auburn last year – senior Rachel DeCavitch, sophomore Alyssa Guns, Franz, and Haxton – will help lead a Kent State roster that features a healthy mix of veterans and newcomers looking to make a major impact. Haxton tied a personal-best 9.900 on bars at the Auburn Regional, tying for ninth overall in the event.

Look for freshmen Nastia Rudnitskaya and Zoe Rankin to also make an immediate impact in their first collegiate meet.

LAST TIME OUT

The Flashes competed in the annual Blue-Gold exhibition meet on Dec. 9 with the Gold team grabbing the victory. 

Junior Kennedy Weinpert won the all-around competition, while DeCavitch and sophomore Grace Wehry tied for second. Weinpert also won on beam, while Guns, Wehry, and Haxton all tied for second.

On vault, Guns won the event with Weinpert and DeCavitch finishing second and third, respectively. Guns added another top-three finish as she won on floor. Franz and senior Olivia Amodei finished second and third behind her.

DeCavitch, Franz and Amodei all tied for the top score on bars.

SERIES STATS

Friday marks the 28th meeting between Kent State and West Virginia and the ninth overall between the Flashes and Terrapins. KSU has won their last three meetings against Maryland, most recently a 194.775-193.125 victory in 2011. The Flashes will also look to beat the Mountaineers for the first time since 2005. The two programs last met in 2019 when the Flashes narrowly fell 194.925-194.450.

TICKET TIME

Fans can purchase season tickets for the 2023 season now by calling the Kent State Ticket Office at 330-672-4455 or purchase online. Single meet tickets are also available here. For a full look at the 2023 schedule, click here.

Original source can be found here