No. 1 A&T Dismantles No. 4 Fairmont State in NCATA Semifinals

Friday, April 24

Azusa, Calif.

9 p.m.

Baylor

267.385

245.820

Fairmont State

No. 1 A&T Dismantles No. 4 Fairmont State in NCATA Semifinals

4/25/2026 12:30:00 AM | Acrobatics & Tumbling

Semifinals score Notes

Bears look towards 11th consecutive national finals

AZUSA, California - The top-ranked Baylor acrobatics & tumbling team delivered an exciting victory over No. 4 Fairmont State, 267.385 - 245.82, on Friday night in front of 316 at the Felix Events Center.

The Bears (11-0) topped the Falcons (12-1) by 21.565 points. Entering the meet, Baylor held a 7.19 point advantage in start value. The win marked the 61st consecutive win for the Bears and marked their 8th straight meeting win with Fairmont State.

"It's so fun to have women supporting women. That's what the sport is all about," Baylor Sophomore Leavy McDonald said about the energy in the room. Freshman Mo Arthur added on that "it meant a lot to have the other team supporting us… It was really fun today!"

To start off the meet in Compulsory, BU and Fairmont State executed the necessary skills, each heat with a start value of 10. In the Acro heat, Fairmont State scored an 8.65, and Baylor followed with a 9.375. On the Pyramid heat, the Bears scored a 9.725, outscoring the Falcons 9.425. The Bears won the Toss heat with a 9.925, with Fairmont State scoring a 9.375. In the Tumbling heat, BU scored an 8.275, and the Falcons scored a 6.875. Through the first event, the score was 37.325 to Fairmont State's 34.325, with the Bears up by 2.975 points after winning all four heats in Compulsory.

To start the optional portion of the meet in Acro, Baylor followed an 8.95/9.95 performance from Fairmont State with a 9.975/10. In the synchronized 6 Element heat, the Falcons scored 8.90/9.90 before Baylor, with four different pairs of tops and bases, scored 9.80/10. In the third heat, Fairmont State competed with a 9.55/10 score, and Sofia Criado and Leavy McDonald scored a 9.90/10. For the Acro event, BU scored 29.675 to Fairmont State's 27.40, bringing their total to 66.975 to 61.725 through two events, with Baylor leading by 5.25 points.

In the Pyramid event, the Bears and Falcons executed the necessary skills, each heat with a start value of 10. Fairmont State started it off with a 9.625 score in the Inversion heat, which the Bears followed up with a score of 9.90. Topping the Synchronized heat after the Falcons' 9.275 were Payton Washington and Bott, based by McDonald and Meredith Wells, respectively, who scored a 9.90. In the Open heat, Fairmont State scored a 9.775 while Baylor competed the 3-high pyramid. Bases Becca Moore and D'ahni Branch held a three-high extended structure straddle position. Mid-level was Leavy McDonald, and top was Sofia Criado. This all resulted in a score of 9.825. For the Pyramid event, Baylor scored a 29.625, while the Falcons scored 28.675.

At the half, BU was up 96.60 to 90.40, leading by 6.2 points.

To kick off the second half with the Toss event, it was Thomas topping the 450 Salto heat, finishing with a score of 9.50/9.90 after Fairmont State scored a 9.25/9.90. In the Synchronized heat, the Falcons earned an 8.75/9.90, and for the Bears, Washington and Tannehill earned a 9.425/10. In the final heat, the Open heat, Fairmont State scored a 9.225/10 before Baylor followed with a 9.75/10 from Washington. At the end of the Toss event, Baylor totaled 28.725 while Fairmont State had a 27.225. Through four events, BU had a score of 125.325 while Fairmont State had a 117.625, and the Bears are up by 7.7 points.

In the Tumbling event, Fairmont State's duo scored a 7.975/10 while Emily Bott and Lawrence Owens competed for a score of 8.825/10. In the Trio, the Falcons put a score of 8.05/9.75 on the mat, followed by BU's 9.05/10 from Alyiah Thomas, Gigi Rendino, and Ashlyn Tannehill. In the Quad pass, Washington, Criado, Sarah Kerr, and Gabby Kaminski scored an 8.775/10, after Fairmont State posted a 7.375/9.25. For the Aerial pass, it was Bott who scored a 9.825/10 after the Falcons earned the same score. Competing in the 6 Element heat, Washington earned a 9.90/10, while Fairmont State earned a 9.725/10. Kerr earned a 9.625/10 for the Open heat, with the Falcons' 9.475/10.

Combined, Baylor scored 56.00 to finish the Tumbling event, while Fairmont State scored 52.425. After five events, BU led 181.325 to 170.05, up by 11.32 points, headed into the last event. In the Team event, Fairmont State scored a 75.77/103.67 and Baylor followed with an 86.06/109.61. The meet was finalized, BU came out on top with a 267.385 score against Fairmont State's 245.82; the Bears winning by 21.565 points.

HIGHLIGHTS

The highest score of the night was a 9.975 in Acro 5-element.
BU is on a 61-meet winning streak.

UP NEXT

The Bears prepare to face No. 2 Oregon in the NCATA National Championship finals, set for 7 p.m. CT on Saturday night.

To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor acrobatics & tumbling, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram: @BaylorAcroTumb.

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