NORMAL, Ill. – For the third week in a row, a pair of Redbirds gymnasts have earned Midwest Independent Conference weekly honors as freshman Nirel Bart-Williams was named Newcomer of the Week and sophomore Jaye Mack had the Performance of the Week.
The weekly honor is the third for Bart-Williams in 2023 and the second for Mack. Also joining the Redbird duo as MIC honorees this week are Gayla Griswold of Lindenwood (Gymnast of the Week) and Mallory Desch of Southeast Missouri State (Coaches Choice).Â
Bart-Williams shined for the Redbirds in the quad meet at New Hampshire, as the Redbirds posted their second-highest team score of the season. She started the meet with a career-best score of 9.900 to win the vault competition and stayed consistent the rest of the way to finish with a career-high all-around score of 39.325 to win outright. That score is the highest of any gymnast in the MIC this season and she currently ranks No. 2 in the MIC with an all-around NQS of 38.835.
Mack was back to her old ways on floor for Illinois State at New Hampshire. For the second week in a row, Mack posted a score of 9.925 as she and the rest of her teammates put up their best team score of the season with a 49.275 on floor. That mark ranks fifth in school history and moved the Redbirds up to No. 30 in the country as a team on the floor. Mack's 9.925 is tied for the best score on the event by any gymnast this season in the MIC and it marks the fifth time in her career she has hit that number in competition.
The Redbirds return to action on Friday, when they travel to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, for a MIC matchup with Southeast Missouri State. The meet is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. at Houck Field House.
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