Pittsburgh, Pa. – The No. 9 Duquesne University acrobatics and tumbling team rolled past visiting La Salle, 263.400–247.630, on Senior Night Thursday inside the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, setting a program-record score.
The Dukes jumped out in front with program-best scores in both Compulsory (37.65) and Acro (28.70) and never looked back. Duquesne swept all six events and won 17 of 19 heats in the record-setting victory. The Dukes eclipsed 260 for the second time this season, closing with a program-best 89.30 in the Team Event.
Briella Unger (Aerial Pass) and
Lindsay Kivlan (Open Pass) starred in the individual tumbling, each competing from a 10.0 start value for the first time and delivering program-high scores. Unger scored a 9.725, while Kivlan charted a 9.850.
In the compulsory event, Duquesne tied program highs in each of the first two heats with a 9.65 in Compulsory Acro (
Sienna Johnson,
Mia Dipner,
Mireya Maymi,
Claire Piper,
Georgia Clancy,
Abby McDermott,
Alaina Baumgartner and
Morgan Shaffer) and a 9.85 in Compulsory Pyramid (Clancy,
Alia Ellis,
Natalie Angland,
McKenna Fisher,
Caileigh Kertis, Shaffer,
Carly Longenecker, Maymi, Unger,
Taylor Wallace, McDermott and
Addie Wright).
All three heats in acro tied or set program highs. Longenecker, Ellis, Wallace and Kertis scored a 9.90 in the Five-Element heat, marking the unit's second 9.9 of the season. The Six-Element group — Johnson, Dipner, Maymi,
Abby Eberle, Clancy, McDermott and Baumgartner — posted a 9.05. Eberle, Dipner,
Anna Trent and
Mia Kenney then closed the event with a 9.75 in the Seven-Element heat for the third time this season.
Pyramid (29.35) and Acro (28.70) both had just 0.65 total deductions across the three heats. Inversion Pyramid (
Jamie Bray, Ellis, McDermott, Kertis, Dipner,
Genevieve Muise, and
Clare Frantti) tallied a 9.85, eclipsing the 9.8 mark for the fifth straight meet. A 9.80 in the Open Pyramid —
Claire Marshall, Baumgartner, Unger, Maymi, Kivlan, McDermott, Kertis, Ellis, Longenecker and Frantti — tied a program high and capped the first half, giving the Dukes a 95.70–89.90 lead at the break.
Duquesne won all three toss heats, led by a 9.00 out of 9.40 in the open heat from Clancy, Dipner, Ellis, Baumgartner and Maymi.
In tumbling, the Quad Pass group of Frantti, Johnson,
Sarah Golie and Kivlan posted a program high for the second straight meet with an 8.350 out of 8.75. Piper added a 9.325 in the Six-Element Pass, which middled the program highs in the Aerial and Open passes.
The Team Event score that pushed the Dukes past 260 for the third time in the young program's history featured Longenecker, Trent, Baumgartner, Frantti, Johnson, Kenney, Piper, Eberle, Unger, Angland, Wallace, Shaffer, Maymi, Golie, Clancy, Dipner, Marshall,
Rebekah Hendley, McDermott, Ellis, Kertis, Kivlan,
Sabrina Kehler and Wright.
SENIOR DAY
Duquesne honored
Abby McDermott, the program's first graduate, in a post-meet Senior Night ceremony. McDermott joined the Dukes as a graduate transfer during the inaugural season and has spent two years as a veteran leader on the roster while pursuing her Master of Business Administration.
UP NEXT
Ranked No. 9 in the NCATA National Rankings, the Dukes now await Monday's release of the NCATA National Championship bracket. The top eight teams qualify for the championship, with individual heats also eligible for Event Finals. Updates will be on
GoDuquesne.com and on
X and
Instagram (@duqacrotumb).
