The California women’s gymnastics team secured second place at the Best of the West quad meet in Seattle on Saturday. The No. 20 Golden Bears posted a score of 196.000, finishing behind No. 4 UCLA, which won with 196.975 points. Cal outperformed both No. 34 Washington (195.625) and No. 17 Oregon State (195.550) in their season opener.
Junior Annalise Newman-Achee took second place in the all-around competition, while sophomore Sage Melkonian finished third.
Cal began the meet with its highest team event score of the day, recording a 49.275 on uneven bars during the first rotation. Freshman Tonya Paulsson made her debut with a routine that earned a 9.925, tying for the top uneven bars score alongside UCLA’s Jordan Chiles and Oregon State’s Taylor DeVries. All six Cal routines on bars scored at least a 9.800.
After two rotations, Cal held onto the lead following a combined balance beam score of 49.025. Newman-Achee earned a 9.900 for her performance, while Abbey Scanlon and Melkonian each scored a 9.800.
On floor exercise, junior Kyen Mayhew anchored Cal’s lineup with a score of 9.850, tying for second place on that event at the meet. Senior Jayden Silvers and Paulsson each contributed scores of 9.750 to help secure a team total of 48.725 for that rotation.
The Bears concluded their competition on vault with a team total of 48.975 points, helping them secure their runner-up finish overall at the meet in Seattle’s Alaska Airlines Arena https://gohuskies.com/sports/2017/6/28/alaska-airlines-arena.aspx. Newman-Achee received a score of 9.850—tied for second-highest among competitors—while Melkonian and Silvers both achieved scores of 9.800; Silvers’ mark was her career best on vault.
The Golden Bears will compete again next weekend at their first podium meet this season: the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad in West Valley, Utah on Jan. 10 against No. 14 Michigan, No. 6 Michigan State and No. 9 Kentucky.
