Cougars host UC Davis and Boise State in first home meet

PROVO, Utah – BYU gymnastics hosts its first meet of the 2016 season Friday night at the Smith Fieldhouse as UC Davis and No. 13 Boise State come to town.

“We are really excited for our first home meet,” BYU head coach Guard Young said. “Both teams are great. Boise State is an in-conference game, so we’re really focused on them.”

Boise State sits ranked at No. 13 and was selected to finish first in the Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference preseason coaches’ poll, while the Cougars were chosen to finish tied for third. The Broncos captured the MRGC title last season at the championships in Denver and returns five all-conference honorees, including senior Krystine Jacobsen, the 2015 MRGC uneven bars champion. 

UC Davis and Boise State met last week in Davis. The Broncos came out on top over the Aggies 195.700-194.325. UC Davis' Stephanie Stamates scored a season-high 9.850 on beam and three other gymnasts scored a 9.800 in the same event to lead a UC Davis sweep over Boise State on beam.

BYU faced Central Michigan last Friday in a 194.775-193.575 loss in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Sophomore Mackenzie Douglas led the team on vault with a 9.775, while senior Makenzie Johnson Halliday led on beam with a 9.800. The Cougars also dropped their first meet to Utah 196.175-193.850 despite Halliday winning the all-around and tying for first on beam with a 9.825.

This week Halliday will join Jill Van Mierlo on all-around and Eliane Kulczyk will be back on bars after sitting out the first two meets due to an injury. 

“We need as much support as we can from our student body at BYU,” Young said. “We need to fill the Smith Fieldhouse, so come out and cheer us on.”

The meet will begin at 7 p.m. MST and will be broadcast on BYUtv.