Michigan State University
Florida
Season Highs on Bars and Beam Lift No. 3 Spartans to Second-Place Finish at Florida Quad
1/10/2025 10:49:00 PM | Women's Gymnastics
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Season highs on bars and beam lifted No. 3 Michigan State gymnastics to a 196.650 team score and second-place finish at the Florida Quad meet Friday evening in Gainesville.Â
Preseason No. 3 Florida narrowly edged MSU for the victory, scoring a 196.675 in its season opener. MSU defeated No. 23 Nebraska (195.600) and Northern Illinois (191.950) to move to 3-1 on the season. The Gators start their season at 3-0, while Nebraska moves to 1-5 and Northern Illinois falls to 0-3.Â
"This team proved tonight that they're fighters," said head coach Mike Rowe. "It wasn't our best start on floor, but we went to vault and started building. Knowing we were going to bars we were confident that we could make even more gains and that's exactly what we did. Beam put the finishing touches on the night by hitting six for six and keeping the fans on the edge of their seats. I'm so proud of the product, grit and fight that these young ladies put on the floor tonight, especially against such tough competition."Â
Making her second career all-around appearance in as many meets, junior Olivia Zsarmani notched a career-high 39.425 to finish third behind Florida's Leanne Wong (39.725) and Sloane Blakely (39.500). Senior Gabrielle Stephen also scored a season high with a 39.400 to finish fourth, while junior Nikki Smith finished in a tie for fifth with Nebraska's Emma Spence with a 39.300.Â
MSU opened the meet on floor with a 48.900, putting up the highest team score of the night on the event. Stephen led the Spartans in the No. 5 spot with a 9.850, good for fourth place. Zsarmani scored a 9.825, while fifth-year senior Delanie Harkness scored a 9.775, Smith added a 9.750 and junior Elle Beaufait, who made her season debut, earned a 9.700.Â
The Spartans moved into second place behind the Gators after a 49.025 on vault in the second rotation. Junior Sage Kellerman earned a share of runner-up honors with a 9.875 in the anchor position. Zsarmani and Smith scored matching 9.825s and Stephen posted a 9.800, while senior Lauren Hsu earned a 9.700 in her first lineup appearance since 2023.Â
MSU tied its 10th-best bars score in program history with a 49.425 in the third rotation, its highest event score of the night and the best score of the night on the event among all teams. The Spartans put up three scores of 9.900 or better, led by Kellerman's 9.925 for her second runner-up finish of the night. Smith and Harkness added 9.900s to finish in a tie for fourth, while Stephen, Zsarmani and freshman Amy Doyle scored 9.850s. Doyle's 9.850 was a career high.Â
A season-high 49.300 on beam wrapped up the meet for MSU in the final rotation. Zsarmani topped her previous career-high by a tenth with a 9.925 to lead the Spartans on the event, finishing in a tie for second place. Stephen anchored with a season-high 9.900 to finish in a tie for fourth. Fifth-year senior Giana Kalefe scored a 9.850, Smith earned a 9.825 and freshman Cady Duplissis and sophomore Emma Misenheimer scored 9.800s. Despite a pair of falls for the Gators on floor, Florida's remaining four scores on the event proved to be enough to secure the narrow victory.Â
Up next, MSU returns home to open conference action against Michigan on Friday, Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. inside the Breslin Center. The meet will stream on B1G+.Â
Players Mentioned
