SAN JOSE, Calif. – For the second year in a row, the Cal women's gymnasts are the queens of Northern California. The No. 14 Golden Bears beat out No. 8 Stanford, Sacramento State, UC Davis and San Jose State for their second consecutive NorCal Classic title with a 195.575. Cal opens the season a perfect 4-0.
Stanford was the runner-up with a 194.800, followed by Sacramento State (194.325), UC Davis (192.700) and San Jose State (191.800).
Cal's 195.575 is its highest score in a season opener in program history.
Last year's Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, Toni-Ann Williams, opened her sophomore campaign with the 31st event title of her career. Williams shared the vault title with Stanford's Elizabeth Price with a 9.85, but did not compete in the all-around for the first time in her career. She did not compete on beam.
Three more Bears turned in top-three finishes. Senior Serena Leong and sophomore Arianna Robinson picked up a pair of third-place finishes with 9.80s on vault. Junior Jessica Howe, who missed much of 2015 after recovering from wrist surgery, turned in a 9.80 on beam for a share of third place, and was the runner-up on floor with a 9.875.
“Individually, Jessie really stood out to me. When Jessie's at her best, there's no stopping her,” said head coach Justin Howell. “We're thrilled to have Jessie the athlete back in our lineups, but we're even more thrilled we have Jessie the person, who has incredible willpower, back in our lineups.”
The season opener saw three Bears make their official competitive debuts for the Bears, including beam performances by freshmen Sofie Seilnacht and Sylvie Seilnacht and a bars routine from sophomore Yuleen Sternberg.
Cal opened the meet on bars, setting the tone with a 48.800 total. Junior Emily Richardson, who has competed in all but one uneven bars lineup of her career, started the Bears off with a 9.75. Sternberg, who exhibitioned on bars last season but did not see time in the competitive lineup, tallied a 9.725 in her debut. Williams turned in the top score for the Bears with a 9.80.
Howe made her full-strength return known early by executing a difficult full twisting double tuck dismount on bars. After making a mistake in her routine, she improvised and Howell expected her to dismount with her more familiar giant full double tuck, but Howe stuck to her original routine and performed the more difficult dismount.
“It gave me a lot of confidence in Jessie because she has an iron will. When she sets her mind on doing something, she's going to get it done,” he said.
On beam, an event which the Bears focused heavily on in the offseason, Cal tallied a 48.675. The mark is already better than five of Cal's beam totals from last season. In her Blue and Gold debut, Sofie Seilnacht led off with a 9.20 after a fall, a mistake which would have rattled last season's squad.
“That moment was a testing point for us. Last year, when that happened, everyone else would fall. We'd melt down and everyone felt the pressure,” Howell said.
Instead, the Bears delivered with five hit routines. Howe's 9.80 led Cal in a welcome return on her best event after she competed last season with a routine that didn't require use of her hands following the wrist surgery. Sylvie Seilnacht notched a 9.725 in her first outing as a Bear.
“This year, I think the confidence the team has in each other is really high,” Howell said.
The Bears finished strong on their final two events with two scores above 49.0. Cal racked up a trio of 9.80s on floor from Leong and juniors Charlie Owens and Zoe Draghi, and Howe continued her strong comeback with a team-best 9.875, to contribute to the 49.100 team total.
“Floor was definitely a highlight of the meet. Everybody sold it to the crowd, and it paid off,” Howell said.
The Bears capped off the meet with a 49.000 total on vault, led by Williams' event-high 9.85.
“What stood out to me the most was the way that we handled our mistakes,” Howell said. “We've talked a lot with our team about not being perfect all the time, but being perfect in our responses to our mistakes, and I thought we did that tonight.”
NEXT UP
Norman, Okla. is the site of a top-15 matchup between the Bears and top-ranked Oklahoma, set for Friday, Jan. 15 at 4:45 p.m.
NEWS & NOTES
- Event Titles: V: Williams
- Cal's 195.575 is its highest score in a season opener in program history.
- Cal is 4-0 to start the season.
- Cal is now 45-50 in season openers.
- This is the second consecutive season Cal won the NorCal Classic.
- Three Golden Bears made their competitive debut – Sofie Seilnacht (beam), Sylvie Seilnacht (beam) and Yuleen Sternberg (bars)
SOCIAL MEDIA
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