Central Michigan University
MAC Championships
Gymnastics Finishes Second at MAC Championships
3/21/2015 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
By Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
KENT, Ohio - The Central Michigan gymnastics team was very, very good on Saturday.
Kent State was just a shade better.
The Flashes posted a 196.375 team score to edge the second-place Chippewas (196.275) in the Mid-American Conference Championships at Kent State's M.A.C. Center. It ended CMU's streak of first places in the MAC Championships at five.
"My words to the team were, `You know what, you can't let this define you,'" CMU coach Jerry Reighard said. "'This one-10th of a point is not defining your season and not only that, maybe it's going to motivate you to work and attain that optimal score when it really counts now.'
"I'm glad we're moving on and we have another opportunity."
The Chippewas, who are ranked 21st, will learn Monday where they are headed for the NCAA Regionals, which are scheduled for April 4.
Not since 2004 have two teams finished the MAC Championships with scores north of 196. In fact, only one team - CMU in 2014 - had surpassed the 196 mark in the event in more than a decade.
Central Michigan's Halle Moraw had a historic day in sharing first place on both the floor exercise and the vault. She was named the MAC Gymnast of the Year and the MAC Senior Gymnast of the Year, become just the second Chippewa ever to accomplish the feat after Selina Nickason in 1998.
"it's such a rare happening," Reighard said. "I think the uniqueness and the specialness of it is this is a coaches award, it's voted on by the coaches in the league, and this is how all the coaches see her.
"That's extraordinary and very well deserved. She's just done a miraculous job all season long and will continue to do that. Great captain, and a strong leader outside of the gym as well as inside the gym. And it is recognized by other people and not just by those in her family or those on her coaching staff."
Moraw, who was named the league's gymnast of the week four times this season, becomes the fifth in program history to earn Gymnast of the Year honors and the eighth to take home the Senior Gymnast of the Year award.
CMU's Brittany Petzold in 2013 was the last Chippewa to earn Gymnast of the Year; Kristin Teubner, 2012, was the last to be named Senior Gymnast of the Year.
Moraw and teammate Taylor Bolender both scored a 9.900 to finish among five gymnasts tied for first place on floor exercise. It was the first MAC title for Bolender, a junior. Moraw also won the floor at the MAC in 2013.
Moraw posted a 9.900 on vault to share first place with Lauren Feeley of Bowling Green.
CMU senior Taylor Noonan continued her remarkable comeback from injury with her second career title on balance beam.
Noonan, who missed the vast majority of the season with a knee injury, scored a 9.900 to share the top spot with Jessica Leko of Ball State. Noonan won her first MAC beam crown in 2012.
"She's a very special person," Reighard said of Noonan. "Sometimes people use that word `special' and it loses its meaning. Taylor has been a special gymnast since the day she walked onto our campus.
"She's just an excellent role model, not just in gymnastics, but overall as a very fine young lady who can set the bar high for her team and then step up to that standard herself. That's what she did when she was injured. She was there at practice and at meets, coaching and prodding, and then when she got the opportunity, she took that position and got to the podium. It's just huge."
The Chippewas' Kylie Fagan placed second (9.875) and Karlee Teet was third (9.850) on uneven parallel bars. Rebecca Osmer of Kent State won at 9.900.
As a team, the Chippewas won the vault (49.150) and the floor (49.350), and were second on bars (49.075). They placed third on beam (48.700). Kent State won bars (49.150) and beam (48.925), was second on floor (49.325) and was third on vault (48.975).
CMU was forced to count a fall, which resulted in a 49.350, on balance beam.
Players Mentioned
