Acrobatics & Tumbling | 3/17/2018 6:49:00 PM

    ERIE, Pa. – The West Liberty University acrobatics and tumbling squad turned in the best overall performance of its inaugural season but it wasn't enough to avoid a dual meet road loss to No. 6-ranked Gannon Saturday afternoon at the Hammermill Center.
    Coach Treasure Fields' Hilltoppers (1-4) finished with 230.66 points, their highest score of the year, only to see the veteran Golden Knights (4-2) take advantage of their depth and experience to rack up 270.50 points for the win.
    An established program in its fifth season of competition, Gannon will be hosting next month's NCATA national championship and wasted little time showing they plan to be a factor. Coming off back-to-back narrow losses at the hands of perennial NCATA powerhouses Oregon and Quinnipiac, Gannon charted a convincing win in the opening Compulsory event and then stepped on the gas.
    Beginning with the first heat of the Acro event, Gannon closed out the first half with six consecutive heat scores of 9.10 or higher – including a 9.95 in the Inversion Pyramid heat and a 9.90 in the 6-element Acro heat – to build what turned out to be an insurmountable 94.65-83.40 lead at the break.
    The Black and Gold tried to battle back in the second half but was unable to cut into the deficit.
    Despite the setback, there were several bright spots for the young but improving Hilltopper squad.
    West Liberty had a season-high four heats scored at 9.0 or better, highlighted by a 9.35 (start value 9.70) in the Open Pyramid heat - the highest heat score for the Hilltoppers all year.
    The Pyramid event once again proved to be WLU's strongest as the Black and Gold also posted a 9.25 (start value 9.60) in the Inversion Pyramid heat.
    Other top scores for the visitors included a 9.05 (start value 9.30) in the Acro event's 6-element heat and a 9.25 (start value 10.0) in the Compulsory event's Toss heat.
    Coach Fields and her Hilltopper squad will be looking to close out their first season of competition on a high note when they return to action on March 29 at Davis & Elkins. First event is set for 7 p.m.