Emily Buffington captured first place on both the uneven bars and vault and Trinity Sawyer in the floor exercise to lead UW-Oshkosh to a 191.900-190.150 victory over UW-La Crosse in a top-four matchup of nationally ranked Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference women's gymnastics programs Friday (Feb. 18) in Kolf Sports Center.
UW-Oshkosh, ranked second in the Division III Rating Index compiled by RoadToNationals.com, outscored fourth-ranked UW-La Crosse in three of the four event categories to establish its highest overall score in program history. The Titans set their previous record of 191.850 against UW-Whitewater on March 2, 2019.
UW-Oshkosh, the reigning WIAC champion, produced Friday's overall score with marks of 48.325 in the floor exercise, 48.0785 on the uneven bars, 47.90 on the vault and 47.60 on the balance beam.
UW-La Crosse achieved its highest score of the season with grades of 47.925 on the balance beam, 47.625 on the uneven bars, 47.325 on the vault and 47.225 in the floor exercise.
Behind Sawyer's winning career-best score of 9.725, UW-Oshkosh attained its best team result in the floor exercise. The Titans also had Rahdea Jarvis and Olivia Keller share second place in the event with scores of 9.70 and Buffington and Alyssa Nore fifth with marks of 9.60.
Buffington took first place on the uneven bars with a career-best score of 9.75 and the vault with an evaluation of 9.725.
Jarvis finished second on the uneven bars with a score of 9.70 while Titan Samantha Zeilinger placed fourth with a mark of 9.60. The scores by Jarvis and Zeilinger were career bests.
UW-Oshkosh had fourth other top-six finishers on the vault as Emily Gilot placed third with a score of 9.65, Sawyer fourth at 9.55, Mia Lucero fifth at 9.50 and Audrey Koester sixth at 9.475.
UW-La Crosse's Emma Grant was victorious on the balance beam with a score of 9.75. The Titans had Kaylie Berens finish fourth with a score of 9.60, Delaney Cienkus fifth at 9.55 and both Keller and Kaira Hammond sixth at 9.50.
UW-Oshkosh and UW-La Crosse didn't have an all-around competitor in the meet.
UW-Oshkosh is off until it visits Gustavus Adolphus College (Minn.) on Feb. 26.
Photo by Steve Frommell, UW-Oshkosh Athletics
