PROVO -- With in-state supremacy on the line, the BYU gymnastics team posted its third-highest score of the season Friday night against Utah but came up just short, 195.925-194.375, in the gymnastics installment of the Deseret First Duel.

“We’re moving in the right direction,” said BYU head coach Brad Cattermole. “We had three really good events tonight and just made some mistakes on the fourth. I was pleased with our effort. If we can continue improving, we’ll be fine.”

The Cougars got off to a solid start in the meet with a 48.975 on the vault, their second-highest score of the season on that event. Four BYU gymnasts scored 9.800 or higher to propel the Cougars. BYU saved the best for last with marks of 9.825 from senior Megan Donehue and sophomore Natalie Eyre. Utah began the meet on the bars with a score of 49.000, resulting in a difference of just .025 between the two teams after the first event.

Utah was able to create some distance in the second rotation as the Cougars got off to a slow start on the bars while the Utes posted their second-highest mark of the season on the vault (49.250). McKell Poulson-Merkley tallied the high score for BYU on the bars with a 9.800 while Madeleine Johnson and Donehue each notched 9.775s to contribute to a 48.725 team score. Utes Annie DiLuzio and Kyndal Robarts each recorded 9.900s on the vault.

After tying her season high on the vault, Donehue once again came up big for BYU on the balance beam, equaling her career high with a 9.875. The mark helped boost the Cougars to their highest beam score of the year at 48.700. Donehue posted the top BYU scores on both the beam and the vault and the highest Cougar mark overall in the meet with her beam score. Meanwhile, Utah posted a 49.125 on the floor.

Both teams were forced to count falls on the final rotation as the heat of competition increased. Senior Danielle Goldman and freshman Jennifer Lezeu were the high scorers for BYU on the floor as each gymnast posted a 9.775. However, Utah’s Jamie Deetscreek scored a huge 9.925 on the beam to keep the Cougars at bay and secure the win for the Utes.

BYU will next compete in tri-meet action against Boise State and Utah State on Friday, March 5, in Boise, Idaho.

PROVO -- Coming off an impressive victory at Utah State, the BYU women’s gymnastics team will take on in-state rival No. 9 Utah in the Deseret Duel on Friday, Feb. 26 in the Marriott Center. The meet will begin at 7 p.m. and will be televised live on BYU-TV. Live stats can also be viewed at www.byucougars.com.

“We feel good coming into this meet,” BYU head coach Brad Cattermole said early Wednesday. “Our team continues to get better and improve. We do not have a lot of injuries this time around so we are looking forward to the meet Friday.”

The Cougars faced the Utah State Aggies last Friday and turned in their most impressive scores thus far this season finishing with a team total of 195.350. The score was BYU’s highest score since March 10, 2008 when they posted a 196.300 against Utah State.

The Cougars have been led throughout the season by their veteran gymnasts who have shown the benefits of experience. Seniors Megan Donehue and Danielle Goldman have been particularly consistent in competition for BYU. Donehue is currently 8th in the region on bars and 12th on balance beam while Goldman is ranked 12th and 13th respectively on floor exercise and vault.

“Megan and Danielle have both done a great job for us this season,” said Cattermole. “They both struggled with injuries last season but they have come back and they have improved on each event. On top of that they are both great team leaders so they have really been great for our team this year.”

Three Deseret Duel points will be rewarded to the winner of the meet. BYU currently leads in the contest 27-7.