Results (PDF)
 
CORTLAND, N.Y. – The Ithaca College gymnastics team was back in action in its most important meet of the 2019 season on Saturday when it made the short trip up the road to SUNY Cortland for the 2019 NCGA East Regional Championships. Looking to earn a Top-3 finish to earn a team trip to the NCGA National Championships at Wisconsin-Oshkosh in two week's time, the Bombers did just that in carding a second-place finish at the annual event.
 
Ithaca certainly had a day to remember on Saturday afternoon. Although the squad came up short of repeating as Regional Champions, IC set several program records on the day.
 
On the team side, the Bombers put up new high marks for team score in their final two rotations of the day, scoring a monster 48.775 on floor exercise and a 48.325 on vault. The floor exercise score shattered IC's high from earlier this season at the Springfield Tri-Meet on February 17, while the vault score broke the mark of 48.025 set last season at the Temple University Quad Meet. The two big marks to end the day also helped Ithaca break its one-year old record for team total score, which was previously set at the 2018 NCGA East Regional Championships at Rhode Island College. The Bombers broke that mark of 191.475 by posting a 191.650 on Saturday.
 
On the individual side, senior captain Victoria Gery shattered the team's individual floor exercise record with a phenomenal 9.900. The mark broke the 9.875 mark set twice Jessica Bolduc during the 2012 season, as well as two times by Gery during the 2018 campaign. In addition to Gery's individual program record, junior Baylie Trammell set two personal career highs, scoring a 9.825 on floor exercise and 9.725 on vault to close out the afternoon. First-year Mackenzie Kennedy also equaled her career best with a 9.800 on floor exercise.
 
Overall, the Bombers posted seven All-Region honorees. The most came in the vault event, as Trammell, senior captain Carolyn Nichols and junior Cassidy Marquette all earned accolades. The uneven bars saw sophomores Courtney Christoforo and Lauren Hansen take home honors. IC earned one All-Region honoree in both the balance beam and floor exercise, as sophomore Katie Holcomb and Gery scored the honors, respectively.
 
The big day got off to a little bit of a slow start, but by no means was it a bad one. The Bombers began the day's action with a bye, before jumping into the act on bars. Christoforo led IC's competitors with a 9.525 to come in third-place, while Hansen finished right behind in a three-way tie with Brockport's Amy Eck and Candis Kowalik for fourth-place. Senior Rachel Lee earned a Top-10 finish with a 9.400 to place ninth. Sophomore Savannah Gigandet carded a 9.350 to tie for 11^th, while Holcomb rounded out IC's scoring group with a 9.300 to place 13^th. Trammell was the lone Bomber not to hit in the rotation, scoring an 8.600.
 
The Bombers kept the steady start going on balance beam during the third rotation of the day. Holcomb was IC's leader on the day, coming in a five-way tie for third-place with a 9.700. Sophomore Kylee Black posted a 9.500 to tie for 13^th, while junior Emily Szembrot scored a 9.475 to tie for 15^th. Lee came in a three-way tie for 19^th with a 9.400, while junior Paige Landes rounded out the scoring group with a 9.350 to tie for 22^nd-place. Senior Nina Bustamante was the lone miss, scoring an 8.625.
 
The fourth rotation saw IC get its second bye of the day, which it utilized to mentally hone in on the final two rotations. The break certainly was used effectively as Ithaca kicked into another level in the final two rotations of the afternoon.
 
Floor exercise has been a strength for IC all season and that trend continued on Saturday with four Bombers scoring 9.800-or-better, the most the program has ever had in a single competition. Gery was the highlight, absolutely nailing her routine to score a 9.900 to come in a three-way tie with Emma Schulz of Cortland and Alexis Castellaneta of Brockport for first-place. It is the second straight year that Gery took home a Regional Championship in the event. Trammell backed Gery as an All-Region honoree, scoring the career-best 9.825 to tie for seventh with Brockport's Stephanie Mager. Nichols and Kennedy also posted 9.800 scores to come in a three-way tie with Julie Giardina of Cortland for ninth-place. Also competing for IC were Hansen and sophomore Alexis Griffin. Hansen scored a 9.450 to tie for 27^th, while Griffin scored a 9.050.
 
The Bombers continued the momentum into the final rotation in vault. The huge scores kept on coming, headlined by IC's anchor duo of Nichols and Marquette, as well as Trammell. Nichols and Trammell tied with each other for second-place with 9.725 scores. Marquette's 9.700 was good to come in a three-way tie for fourth. Sophomore Marin Sheridan also earned a Top-7 finish with a 9.650. Gery scored her best mark of the season with a 9.575 to tie for 14^th, while Christoforo also turned in a solid 9.475 that tied for 25^th.
 
Ithaca returns to action on Saturday, March 23, when it competes at the NCGA National Championships at Wisconsin-Oshkosh. The format is changed this season with just a single day of competition to decide All-Americans and Team Champions instead of the old two-day format. The competition is set to begin at 5:00 p.m.