Junior Denise Houda earned top all-around honors with a personal best score of 39.275 on her way to leading the Illinois State gymnastics team to a victory over the United States Air Force Academy in a dual meet at Horton Field House, 193.975 - 193.500.
The Redbirds started the meet on vault, where they earned the top team score of the season with a mark of 48.375. Houda claimed first-place on the event with a personal best mark of 9.775, while senior Rena Fox and junior Heather Mohler tied for third, both with marks of 9.675.
The competition was tied after the first rotation, but a team score of 48.025 on the bars put the Redbirds on top, and they never looked back. Houda led the team on bars with a second-place finish and a score of 9.825. Senior Rena Fox (9.525) and freshmen Carlee Wright (9.6) and Erin Cunningham (9.2) each earned personal bests, while senior Annie Chapman recorded her best score of the season (9.4).
We just wanted to go out there without any pressure and compete, said Houda, We just got the ball rolling, and it just kept going.
The third rotation for the Redbirds was the balance beam. Houda claimed top honors on the beam with a mark of 9.875, while teammates Fox and sophomore Megan Hara tied for third-place with marks of 9.8, personal bests for both.
Houda finished off the meet with another first-place finish, this time on the floor (9.8). Fox and Wright tied for third, each with marks of 9.750.
Head coach Beth Larson was very pleased with the effort put forth by her team.
We had the same objectives as we have had all year, and it turned out to be a great win. We needed the good score to help us out in the rankings and to build the momentum for the rest of the season, said Larson. Denise is an amazing athlete and we can count on her hitting at every meet.
Next up for the Redbirds will be their biggest in-state rivals, University of Illinois-Chicago, Tuesday, Feb.12 in Horton Field House, at 7 p.m.
