Three Flashes Named to All-MAC Teams
3/19/2024 3:01:00 PM | Gymnastics
CLEVELAND – Sarah Haxton, Heidi Schultz, and Karlie Franz have all earned yearly honors from the Mid-American Conference, the league announced Tuesday.
After a stellar senior campaign, Haxton earned a spot on the All-MAC First Team while Schultz and Franz were each named to the All-MAC Second Team. All three have played monumental roles for a Kent State team that has posted five of the top-six scores in program history and secured their first NCAA Championship berth since 2021.
For the second season in a row, Kent State had three athletes named to All-MAC teams. Ball State led the conference with six All-MAC recipients.
Haxton has now earned end-of-year awards from the MAC twice after being named All-MAC Second Team in 2022. Haxton boasts a 9.910 NQS on bars – the highest mark in the MAC and the 28th-best in the nation – and has won the event three times. On beam, she sports the second-highest average in the conference (9.802) while serving as the team's leadoff competitor on the event. Haxton set career-highs in both events during her senior campaign, including a 9.950 on bars, which matches Kent State's program record. The Fortville, Indiana native hit on all 22 of her routines this season.
Schultz was dynamic in her first season of competition as a Golden Flash, leading Kent State with 303.8 points. The sophomore competed in three events for Kent State – bars, beam and floor – and ranked in the top-10 in the MAC in all three. Schultz won on beam four times during her first season of competition and ranks first in the conference with a 9.843 average. On floor, Schultz scored 9.8+ in 10 of 11 meets and earned four top-3 finishes. The Fond du Lac, Wisconsin native scored a career-high 9.900 twice on both bars and beam and set a personal-best 9.975 on floor after receiving a perfect 10.00 from one judge.
Franz earns All-MAC Second Team honors for the third season in a row. The graduate student shined on floor once again this season, sporting the second highest NQS in the conference at 9.920. She scored 9.8+ in 10 of 11 floor routines, scoring 9.900 or higher six times and winning the event five times. Franz became the first Kent State gymnast since 2004 and the first MAC gymnast since 2005 to score a perfect 10.000 on floor after a flawless routine at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic in January. Franz also competed on bars during her super senior campaign, matching her career high with a 9.875 in January.
The Golden Flashes will be back in action on Saturday, March 23, at the MAC Championships at Ball State. The meet will get underway at 2 p.m. and will be streamed live on ESPN+.
FOLLOW THE FLASHES
For more information on the Kent State gymnastics team, follow Kent State Gymnastics on Instagram, X and Facebook, and visit kentstatesports.com for additional information.
