“Senior Night Spotlight: Thrilling Home Opener at Gymnastics Quad Meet!”

PHILADELPHIA – The gymnastics squad from the University of Pennsylvania will be competing at The Palestra for the inaugural time in 2025, welcoming Towson, Ursinus, and Yale this Friday evening. This quad meet will also be recognized as Senior Night, celebrating the seniors for their significant roles in the Penn gymnastics team.
 
The Red and Blue are arriving after a commendable performance at #16 Rutgers, achieving a score of 194.325.
 
Meet 3: Penn vs. Towson, Ursinus, and Yale
Friday, January 17 | 6 p.m. | The Palestra | Philadelphia, Pa.
Watch (ESPN+) | Live Stats | Meet Notes | Tickets
 
Acknowledging the Seniors
After the meet on Friday, six seniors will be honored. Emma Davies, Isabella Garrett, Marigold Garrett, Zara Gazdak, Isabel Song, and Olivia VanHorn have all been crucial to Penn’s consecutive GEC championships.
 
Fire in the Skye
Skyelar Kerico has received her fifth GEC Co-Gymnast of the Week accolade due to her performance at #16 Rutgers. She triumphed on the vault, matching her personal best score of 9.850. Additionally, she secured two more top five placements in uneven bars and floor exercise.
 
Effortless Victory
Zara Gazdak achieved a personal record on the floor exercise last week with a score of 9.875, tying for first place in the event.
 
Rotation Insights
*Marissa Lassiter clinched her first all-around title with a score of 38.925. She finished sixth on the balance beam with a score of 9.800.

*In her collegiate debut, Mimi Fletcher tied for second place on the beam with a score of 9.850.

 

*Penn earned first and second place honors on the vault with Jordan Barrow coming in second at 9.775.

 

RTN Rankings

Penn holds the top position in the meet with the highest Road to Nationals ranking at No. 37. Following them is fellow Ivy and GEC institution, Yale (No. 44). Towson (No. 56) and Ursinus (No. 72) complete the group.

 

Individually on vault, Kerico leads at No. 1, with Gigi Sabatini (Yale) at No. 5; On bars, Kerico and Clara Hong (Towson) are tied at No. 10; On beam, Fletcher takes No. 1; On floor, Megan Brueck (Yale) and Ella Tashjian (Yale) are tied at No. 2 with Gazdak and Ellie Kearns (Yale) sharing No. 6.

 

Analyzing Towson

In consecutive weeks, the Tigers will be facing the Quakers. Towson finished in third place at the Rutgers Quad with a score of 193.950.

 

Steph Macasu and Chelsey Dennis shared the uneven bars title, both scoring 9.825. Isabella Minervini achieved a score of 9.875 on the floor, tying with Gazdak for first place.

 

Friday will mark the return of Ana Kenefick. Kenefick dedicated four years to Penn, specializing in beam and floor exercises. She frequently competed in her final season at University City, earning Second Team All-Ivy Classic recognition (beam).

 

Examining Ursinus

Last week, Ursinus claimed first place in its season opener, dominating the Cortland Meet with a score of 186.825.

The Bears featured one event winner in Megan Matteucci, who tied for first place (floor) with a score of 9.800.

 

The last competition between Ursinus and Penn occurred during Penn’s Senior Day in February 2022, where the Quakers acquired third place with a team score of 193.025.

 

Investigating Yale

Yale triumphed at Cornell last week in a GEC tri-meet, scoring a 193.700.

 

Sabatini took the vault with a score of 9.800. In the floor exercise, Yale secured the top three positions with Brueck, Tashjian, and Kearns. Kearns was awarded GEC Newcomer of the Week with scores of 9.850 on floor and 9.625 on bars.

 

Last season, the Quakers and Bulldogs faced each other five times, with Penn winning each matchup. Their most recent contest occurred at the GEC Championships in New Haven, Conn., where Penn secured its third consecutive title.

 

For current updates on Penn gymnastics, follow @PennGym on X and Instagram, and visit the web at PennAthletics.com.

 

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