Simpson qualifies five routines for NCGA Championships
INDIANOLA, Iowa – For the first time in program history, the Simpson College women's gymnastics team will send multiple gymnasts to nationals as five individual routines have qualified for the NCGA Championships taking place in Cortland, N.Y. on March 20.
Senior Kaelyn Tally qualified on both vault and floor, while junior Liz Sisler (bars), junior Evalyn Resnick (beam), and sophomore Emmie Barton (vault) also punched a ticket to the national meet.
Tally's vault and Sisler's bars qualified automatically as the top routine on their respective events from the West Regional among gymnasts whose teams did not advance. Tally also earned a second berth on floor after posting the top Season Average Score (SAS) in the region with a 9.7813.
Resnick qualified on beam as an at-large selection based on her 9.7125 SAS, while Barton earned the final individual berth on vault with an at-large SAS of 9.6938.
The quartet has combined for 14 event titles this season, including seven from Tally (four on vault and three on floor), three from Resnick on beam, two from Barton on vault, and two from Sisler on bars. Along the way, Resnick set a new Simpson beam record with a 9.775, while Tally tied her own program record on vault with a 9.800 and posted a career-best 9.800 on floor, the second-highest score in school history. Barton's 9.750 on vault is tied for second all-time at Simpson, and Sisler's 9.725 on bars, achieved at the WIAC Championships, ranks third in program history.
The NCGA Championships showcase the top gymnasts from 18 Division III programs on the national stage. From each regional (west and east), the top three teams automatically qualify along with the top three all-around competitors not on a qualifying team. The final six individual spots go to the highest-scoring event winner from a non-qualifying team in each region, the top SAS gymnast from a non-qualifying team in each region, and two at-large selections.
A gymnast's Season Average Score (SAS) is calculated from four scores, with at least one from an away meet and no more than one from a Division I or II competition.
