PITTSBURGH, Pa. (March 9, 2025) – For the second meet in a row and the second time this week, the West Virginia University gymnastics team scored a new season-high team score, reaching a 196.275 in a dual meet at Pitt inside Fitzgerald Field House in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Sunday afternoon.
The score marked WVU’s second 196.0+ score of the season, as well as the first time the squad has reached two or more scores of 196.0 or higher since 2023. Additionally, the total is now tied for No. 33 on West Virginia’s top 50 team scores in program history. The Mountaineers reached the new season high with scores of 48.925 on vault, 48.95 on the uneven bars, 49.1 on balance beam and a season-best 49.3 on floor exercise. Of note, the score on floor was the squad’s highest since it hit a 49.35 at NCAA Regionals on March 31, 2023.
In the final team standings, Pitt outscored the Mountaineers to finish in first place with a 196.575, while West Virginia took second place.
Opening the meet on uneven bars, fifth-year senior Trinity Macy and senior Brooke Alban tallied a pair of season highs to lead the lineup. Macy earned a 9.85, while Alban was just behind her with a 9.825. Sophomore Amber Lowe scored a 9.8, and senior Anna Leigh followed with a 9.775. Sophomore Jayden McDonnell capped the scoring on bars with a 9.7. Of note, junior Brooke Irwin made her return from an injury sustained earlier this season and tallied a 9.675.
In the second rotation on vault, Alban once again helped lead the way, matching her career best and setting a new season high with a 9.875. Freshman Sophia Rice was just shy of her career high with a 9.825, while classmates Karleigh DiCello and Emerson Smith secured a pair of 9.75’s. Junior Carlee Nelson’s 9.725 wrapped up the vault rotation.
The Mountaineers shined on floor, with all five scoring gymnasts recording a 9.8 or higher. Smith paced the floor squad in a huge way, reaching a career-best 9.925 for her first career 9.9+ score. Leigh added a 9.875, followed by a pair of 9.85’s from Rice and classmate Riley Maness. Lowe’s 9.8 finished out an impressive floor rotation for WVU. Of note, Rice made her career debut in the floor lineup on Sunday.
Finishing up on beam, five scores of 9.8 or higher helped WVU earn its third 49.0+ score on the event this season. Freshman Eden Webster once again helped the squad clinch the 49.0+ score, as she delivered a much-needed, season-high tying 9.85 routine in the anchor spot following a fall before her in the lineup. Leigh also matched her season high with a 9.85, while Lowe, Nelson and sophomore Julia Brown all scored a 9.8 to reach the season-high team score.
In the final event standings, West Virginia secured individual wins on three of four events, while six Mountaineers made the podium in all. Alban earned the win on vault, her first career win on the event and fifth overall. Rice also finished in a tie for second place on vault. Macy finished in a tie for first place on bars, while Leigh and Webster tallied second-place finishes on beam. On floor, Smith’s new career-high score helped her secure her first career event win.
Of note, with Sunday’s season-high score, the Mountaineers’ National Qualifying Score (NQS) in the Road to Nationals Rankings moves to 195.47, ranking the squad No. 38, which is up eight spots from last week.
Up next, West Virginia prepares for the final stretch of the regular season with a pair of meets on the road. The weekend begins at Penn on Friday, March 14, as competition at The Palestra in Philadelphia, Pa., is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET.
Press Release Courtesy of West Virginia University Athletics Communications
