A New Season Begins Friday for Temple Gymnastics

A New Season Begins Friday for Temple Gymnastics

1.6.22 | Women's Gymnastics

ESPN+Live Results Temple -Keystone Classic Meet Notes

PHILADELPHIA - The Temple Owls women's gymnastics team will open up the season Friday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. with the Keystone Classic in McGonigle Hall. The Owls will in front of home fans for the first time in two seasons as they host the tri-meet with their cross-city rival Penn Quakers and #29 Penn State.

Temple will be hosting Front Line Workers Night, as front line workers attending will receive a free gift courtesy of the Owls gymnastics team.

Tickets for the meet are available. Adults: $6, Children $4. For more info, click on the TICKETS link.

All fans attending must comply with the vaccine mandate set in place for the 2022 season. For more info please click on the line VACCINE MANDATE link.

SEASON OPENER
Friday's meet will serve as the 2022 season opener for all three teams, but it will be the first time the Quaker gymnastics team will be in competition since the 2020 season, as last year they Ivy League canceled sports during the 2020-21 academic school year.For the Owls, they look to ride their success over the past three seasons after winning their third straight conference championship and their first in the EAGL Conference.

KEYSTONE CLASSIC
Friday's is the first-ever Keystone Classic in McGonigle Hall. The Owls will take on cross-city rival Penn and the Big 10's Penn State. The University of Pittsburgh was originally slated for competition, but due to COVID-19 protocols, the Panthers were a last minute scratch, now making it a tri-meet. In the all-time meetings, the Owls hold a 56-44 record over the Quakers, but haven't defeated Penn State in 15 times against the Nittany Lions

RAISING THE BAR
Temple begins a new season, after winning its third straight conference championship after winning the 2021 EAGL Championship in first season. With program records on floor (49.375) and beam (49.225), the Owls won the championship by earning a program record team score 196.50. In its first season of EAGL competition, Temple had 13 all-conference gymnasts and 14 All-EAGL tournament team honorees. All 13 2021 all-conference members and 12 of the 14 all-tournament team members will returning for the 2022 season. Temple ended the regular season No. 30 in the nation with an NQS of 195.963, their highest ranking in school history. The 2022 season will start with the Owls receiving votes (215) in the first Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WGGA) poll of the season, another first with their highest placement by their peers to begin a season.

STRONG SLATE
Head Coach Josh Nilson's 12-meet schedule features seven ranked teams to start the season. The list includes No. 9 Minnesota (1803), No. 20 Iowa State (1005), No. 21 NC State (981), No. 26 Utah State (607), No. 29 Penn State (432), No. 31 Maryland (425), and No. 35 North Carolina (336).

There are five teams on the slate that weren't ranked but are receiving votes in the first poll of the season that includes Eastern Michigan (205), Towson (202), George Washington (123), New Hampshire (86), and Penn (3).

PRESEASON POLLS
The Owls tallied 43 total points in the EAGL Preseason Coaches poll, which included two-first place votes, tying with UNC for third overall with one first-place vote. NC State comes in as the preseason number one with 58 points and two first-place votes, followed by Towson (44 points). Following Temple and UNC is George Washington with one first-place vote (35 points), New Hampshire with one first-place vote (30 points), Pittsburgh with one first-place vote (27 points), and Long Island (8 points) rounding out the poll.

SCOUTING TEMPLE
VAULT
Temple ranked 32nd in the nation on vault with an NQS of 49.019. The Owls hit their season-best score of 49.075 in back-to-back meets, closing out the regular season at Towson. The Owls scored 48.900 or better in six of the team's 12 meets of the season. Senior Julianna Roland finished the regular season with a 9.863 NQS and twice last season and tied Temple's program record with a 9.900. Senior Ariana Castrence had a strong season with six 9.8's or better during the season, including tying a career-best 9.875 at UNC. Castrence had the second-highest NQS on the vault for the Owls with a 9.856.

Senior Madison Brooks came on strong late in the season with an NQS of 9.819, while freshman Renee Schugman (9.794 NQS) also brought consistency to the lineup.

BARS
Though bars was Temple's lowest-scoring event of the season, the team ranks 41st in the nation with an NQS of 48.894. The Owls hit their season-high of 49.025 at Towson, which tied for the fifth-best score in program history. Castrence had the highest NQS on the Owls with 9.844, including matching her career-high of 9.875 on the bars versus North Carolina on Feb. 21. Sophomore Cyrena Whalen had a 9.838 NQS, including earning her career-high 9.850 two times., while junior Nichole Smith had an NQS of 9.763.

Nilson also noted that Graduate Tori Edwards has been the most consistent bars gymnast he's ever coached and will be a mainstay in that even this season. Last year, Edwards carried a 9.788 NQS and had a season-high of 9.850.

Temple will have some new blood vying to crack the lineup in 2022. Sophomore Brooke Donabedian, who only competed mainly on the beam a season ago, freshmen Summer Ruskey, Madison Dorunda, Jewel Clark, and Hannah and Sarah Stallings will have opportunities this season.

BEAM
Temple had a 49.144 beam NQS last season, ranking 29th nationally. The Owls season-high on the event is 49.225, which they hit at the EAGL Championships, tying the program record. Roland led the beam squad with a 9.856 NQS, hitting a season-high 9.875 twice a season ago. Donabedian was right behind her with a 9.850. Five Owls scored a 9.850 or better on beam this season, with junior Ariana Castrence topping 9.900 on the year.

According to Nilson, Schugman was a "rock" for the Owls last season. Madison Dorunda, Hannah Stallings, and Summer Ruskey will also see action on the beam.

FLOOR
The Cherry & White boasted the 22nd best floor squad in the nation, with an NQS of 49.300. Temple went 49+ on the floor in eight of 12 meets in 2021, including seven straight to close the regular season. The Owls broke the program record on the floor to end the season with a 49.375 at the EAGL Championships.

All three of Temple's top floor workers scored 9.900 on the event last season. Senior Faith Leary anchored the impressive floor lineup with a 9.888 NQS, marking her third 9.9 of her career at the NCAA Regional in Utah. Roland was second with a 9.881 NQS, Castrence was third on the team with an NQS of 9.875. Donebedian and Edwards each have NQS's of 9.856, while Schugman has a 9.838 and Oster a 9.806. All four have posted season highs of 9.875.

According to Nilson, Temple's floor lineup is deep, and Hannah Stallings will again see action in the event. Nilson also commented, "One thing we improved on this season is our leaps. Both of the Stallings sister's leaps are incredible to watch, and it's a different level."

He went on to say that the freshmen trio of Dorunda, Hill, and Ruskey will see action on the floor exercise this season.

SCOUTING PENN STATE
Penn State is coming off a 2021 season that saw them go 5-17 overall and 2-7 in the Big 10, while finishing eighth in their conference. The Nittany Lions had an NQS (195.813) to end the year, ranked 33rd in the nation, and earned a spot in the NCAA Regional team competition. The team shined on the bars recording a 49.231 NQS, which ranked 19th in the nation a year ago. Penn State returns two of its three 2021 all-conference gymnasts, Cassidy Rushlow and Alissa Bonsall. Rushlow was named 2021 first-team after setting career-highs on beam, bars, floor and the all around. In the all-around Rushlow, earned five scores of 39.000 or better, including at the Big 10 Championship and NCAA Regional.

Bonsall has nine career event titles, including six uneven bars. Bonsall picked up second -team Big 10 honors a season ago, after career-highs on the floor (9.875) and bars (9.950). Bonsall recorded a pair of 9.8's (bars and floor) NCAA Regional team competition and then followed it up with a career-high 9.95 on the bars during the NCAA Regional individual competition.

SCOUTING PENN
The Quakers are coming off the 2021 season where they didn't see competition. In the shortened 2020 season, Penn ended its season with a 8-8 record in the ECAC with the 57th ranking based on the 193.375 NQS. Based of the same NQS rankings, Penn's best event was balance beam where they 54th in the nation with NQS of 48.515. In the WGAC preseason poll, Penn was received two votes amongst in peers. The Quakers be part of the Gymnastics East Conference (GEC) and were voted by the coaches to finish first with 57 points and four first-place votes. This season's Penn squad will feature 11 gymnasts that are returning from the 2020 team. The duo of Sydney Kraez and McCaleigh Marr picked up All-ECAC honors in 2020 and Natalie Yang highlight 11 returners as all three achieved the top marks on the five events two seasons ago. Kraez earned the top marks in the all around (39.050), the floor (9.900), and vault (9.850), while Marr had a 9.825, and Yang capped off a 9.875.

SWAN SONG
Tori Edwards and Faith Leary decided to put on the Owl leotards one more time this season. The two decided to return for their fifth year after 2021 as both gymnasts have helped Owls to those three-straight conference championships and have combined to earn seven all-conference recognitions.

For complete coverage of Temple gymnastics, follow the Owls on social media @TUWG (Twitter), facebook.com/ TempleWGymnastics (Facebook), @templegymnastics (Instagram), or visit the official home of Temple University Athletics at owlsports.com and on TikTok @templeowls.