SALT LAKE CITY, Utah—The Arizona State women’s gymnastics team entered one of the fiercest competitive atmospheres in collegiate gymnastics and proved it was a force with which to be reckoned scoring a 195.450 on the road at the University of Utah. Utah ultimately bested the Sun Devils 196.425-195.450, but ASU recorded season highs on both bars and vault.

Arizona State started the meet with a series of great bar routines, with the Sun Devils counting five scores above a 9.750. Graduate student Kahoku Palafox recording a team-best 9.850, the third-best score of the meet. As a team, the Sun Devils set a season-best 48.900, a tenth of a point higher than last week’s high score against UCLA.

On vault, the Sun Devils fielded six gymnasts for the first time this season with the return of sophomore Morgan Steigerwalt to the line-up for the first time in over a year. Steigerwalt’s debut vault scored a 9.800 helping ASU drop a fall from earlier in the line-up. Sophomore Natasha Sundby led all Sun Devil gymnasts landing a 9.825.

The crowd of 14,410 in the John L. Huntsman Center rallied behind ASU when the Gym Devils moved to floor. The arena seemed particularly focused on Steigerwalt’s floor routine, which scored a 9.825. Sundby and sophomore Brianna Gades also scored a 9.825 as the top Arizona State scores on floor. 

Finishing up the meet on beam, freshman Stephanie Miceli shined in the anchor spot, scoring a 9.850 for the second-best score in the meet. Gades and freshman Risa Perez scored 9.800’s in the event.

Next up the Gym Devils host Oregon State for their annual Gold Meet on Fri., Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. in Wells Fargo Arena. Fans wearing GOLD receive $3 admission and gymnastics meets are always FREE for Arizona State students with their Sun Cards.