Gymnastics team members are framed by Assistant Coach AJ Kenniv (left) and Head Coach Jessie Lowe.
Gymnasts finish second to reigning national champions in season-opening meet at PSU
1/30/2025 5:01:00 PM | Gymnastics
Share:
Freshman Malaika Campbell won the individual All-Around and junior teammate and team captain Annabella James placed third to highlight the Lady Flames' performances.
Liberty University's women's gymnastics team experienced a strong showing at this past Saturday's first meet of the 2024-25 season, finishing second to host Penn State University — the two-time defending NAIGC national champion — in the Level 9 competition of the Nittany Lion Invitational.
"The team did really well just maintaining their composure," Lady Flames third-year Head Coach Jessie Lowe said. "Some of the newcomers were nervous about competing in their first meet and they handled it really well. The team has great energy, and I am excited about their potential. To see them come out really strong knowing they have a lot left to put out there is exciting."
The Nittany Lions totaled 110.4 points to edge the Lady Flames, who accumulated 109.35 to finish in front of the University of Michigan and a partial team from Ohio State University.
"That is a fantastic score and to be hanging really close to our biggest competitors was encouraging," Lowe said, noting that she traveled with 10 competing athletes from a roster of 12. "That included four freshmen who contributed to our point total and five athletes who competed in the All-Around."
Kaylee Ockerman (from left), Victoria Bradfield, Mali Campbell, Kelsey Bailis
Individually, Lady Flames freshman Malaika Campbell finished first in the All-Around competition with a 37.05 total after placing second on the vault (9.4) and second on the floor exercise (9.25), while junior team captain Annabella James landed in third place in the All-Around (36.1) after also taking third on the balance beam (9.4).
"That was pretty awesome," Lowe said. "(Campbell) is definitely going to be a contender for our team this year and Annabella has added some difficulty and gotten more consistent (in her performances), so it's been great to see her grow."
Lady Flames junior Kate Haluck totaled 32.9 points in the All-Around, highlighted by her 8.9 score on the floor and freshman Kaylee Ockerman racked up 27.05 points despite only competing in three of the four events, led by her 9.1 score on the vault and 9.2 on the beam.
Liberty's next meet is Feb. 8 at JMU. The Dukes defeated the Lady Flames in the regular season last year before Liberty placed ahead of them at NAIGC National Championships, when it landed on the podium as a team for the first time with a second-place showing.
Then, the Lady Flames will compete at George Washington University on Feb. 23 before hosting the Flipping Flames Invitational at the LaHaye Multipurpose Center on March 22. That will be their final tune-up before they travel to the April 2-5 NAIGC finals in Pittsburgh.
"We have four meets instead of three last season and the girls are really excited about it," Lowe said. "They are hoping to add some more skills as they go on in their season, and it will be good to keep testing them and putting them in pressure situations so we can be battle-tested when we get to nationals."
