• Two of the most surprising teams in the Western Athletic Conference will meet in Logan, Utah, on Friday, Feb. 17, when Sacramento State travels to Utah State for a conference meet. The action will start at 7 p.m. MT (6 p.m. PST).
• Utah State will provide live results through its website, www.utahstateaggies.com. A live video stream can also be purchased for a fee.
• This week’s meet will be a preview of the Western Athletic Conference Championships which will take place at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on March 24. The last time Utah State hosted the WAC Championships was in 2006 where the Hornets won the first of their two WAC titles.
• Sacramento State finished second in its most recent meet with a team score of 194.175. The total was the second highest for the team this season but the meet was dominated by No. 9 Oregon State which scored 197.400. Host UC Davis finished third with a season best 193.875.
• That performance elevated the Hornets’ season average to 192.638 and moved the team into 43rd place nationally. The top 36 teams at the end of the season will advance to the NCAA West Regional. The standings will be sorted by Regional Qualifying Scores beginning Feb. 27.
• Utah State scored a season high 194.875 in a narrow loss to San Jose State (194.950) last Friday. The Aggies recorded 15 career highs during the action, including freshman Sarah Landes who scored 39.350 in the all-around.
• Sacramento State holds an 11-6 edge in the all-time series, including a 4-1 mark in Logan. The Hornets won both meetings last season, winning in Sacramento and at the WAC Championships.
THE LAST TIME OUT
Sacramento State scored its third consecutive big score and needed every bit of it to finish second in a three-team meet hosted by UC Davis on Feb. 10. Despite counting a fall, the Hornets scored 194.175 to defeat UC Davis (193.875) but fall to No. 9 Oregon State (197.400).
Sacramento State used season highs on vault and beam to help secure the split in the meet. The team opened the meet on bars and scored 48.575 led by a 9.800 from Nicole Meiller. The Hornets closed the meet on vault with a 48.700 behind a 9.825 from Kalliah McCartney who finished third.
Oregon State accounted all-four individual event titles as well as the all-around crown en route to its fifth-best score in school history.
FAMILY REUNION
Friday night will mark the third time that sisters Maddie and Amelia Montoya will compete against one another. Maddie is a sophomore for the Hornets who will perform the team’s exhibition on vault. Amelia is a junior for Utah State who is in the lineup on vault and bars.
Junior Cayla Boyce is also expected to have a big rooting section with her family making the nearly three hour drive from Lewisville, Idaho.
FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH
Sacramento State showed its youth on Friday at UC Davis with 18 of the 24 routines performed by freshmen or sophomores. When you add in the four routines from juniors Cayla Beutler and Nicole Meiller, that left the Hornets with only two routines from a senior Emiko Ono (vault, bars).
BRINGING BARS BACK
After opening the season with a 47.900 on bars against California, Sacramento State has made steady improvements culminating in a season high 48.700 against OSU and UCD. Part of the Hornets’ recent success has been the fact that the lineup is back to its preseason projection after being hampered by a series of injuries both in and out of the gym.
Last week at UC Davis, sophomore Ashley Wooff returned to score a 9.725 after missing the previous meet due to a concussion and stitches suffered in a weight room accident. Cayla Beutler also returned for the first time since the season opener to score 9.675.
One constant has been junior Nicole Meiller who has scored 9.850 and 9.800 in her last two routines.
