Kent State University
Ball State University
Flashes Host Ball State in Home Finale
3/5/2021 3:29:00 PM | Gymnastics
KENT, Ohio – The Kent State gymnastics team (4-6, 1-3 MAC) wraps up its regular season hosting Ball State (12-1, 1-1 MAC) in the M.A.C. Center on Sunday at 1 p.m.
For the Golden Flashes, it will be the final home meet for its five seniors. Jade Brown, Abby Fletcher, Nasha Manitkul-Davis, Toshi Richard and Sydney Chapman will be performing their final routines in the MACC.
Kent State is ranked 29th in the country with an NQS of 195.675. The National Qualifying Score considers six scores: a team's top-three road scores and the next three best scores of the season.
The 2021 Season
The Golden Flashes have been extremely consistent this year, recording a 194.600 or higher in every single meet. Kent State has been ranked as high as 23rd this season and will look to climb the rankings even further with two regular season meets to go.
The team sits fourth in the MAC all-around, but the Flashes rank first in the conference on floor and second on bars.
Abby Fletcher is having a monster senior season for the Flashes, already earning two MAC Gymnast of the Week awards and setting new career highs on multiple events. Fletcher is tied for first in the MAC on floor with a 9.900 NQS, the highest of her career, and is tied for 31st in the country. She is tied for fourth in the conference on beam and tied for 10th on vault with an NQS of 9.856 and 9.788, respectively.
Jade Brown, returning for her fifth year of eligibility, is also having a great season for Kent State. She is tied for sixth in the conference on floor (9.863 NQS) and ranks seventh on bars (9.844 NQS). The "super senior" – as her teammates and coaches refer to her – was named MAC Specialist of the Week earlier this season after posting career highs on both floor (9.925) and bars (9.900).
The 2020 MAC Freshman of the Year, Rachel DeCavitch, got off to a slow start but is right back where she left off last season. Last meet, she tied for first place on floor (9.875), tied for second place on bars (9.800) and tied for second place on vault (9.775). DeCavitch is currently tied for fifth in the MAC on bars (9.856 NQS) and tied for eighth in the conference on floor (9.856 NQS).
Scouting Ball State
Despite an impressive 12-1 record, Ball State ranks just fifth in the MAC and 34th in the country. The Cardinals do not rank in the top two of the conference on any event but rank third in the MAC on vault, bars and floor.
Ball State's Victoria Henry and Arden Hudson each rank among the top-five in the conference on vault with Bri Slonim currently tied for 10th. Grace Evans is tied for third on bars, while Megan Teter is ranked ninth in the conference. Teter also ranks in the top-10 on floor along with Claudia Goyco who is tied for sixth in the MAC.
Follow the Flashes
Sunday's MAC dual against Ball State will be streamed on kentstatesports.com and live stats are available during the meet. Be sure to follow the Kent State gymnastics team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for news and updates about the squad, including live updates during the action.
Next Up
The Golden Flashes will end their regular season at Bowling Green on Friday, March 12, at 5 p.m., before heading to MAC Championships on Saturday, March 20, at 2 p.m., in Kalamazoo, Mich.
Players Mentioned
