KNOXVILLE, Tennessee – Junior Makenzie Johnson finished with a meet-high all-around score of 38.975 to lead BYU gymnastics to first place at the Ozone Invitational on Saturday.

“We started out of balance on the beam and floor, but we came back strong on the vault and bars,” BYU gymnastics head coach Brad Cattermole said. “The girls are doing well, but we’re making goofy mistakes. It’s early in the season and we just need to keep improving.”

The Cougars took first with a total score of 193.075 with No. 14 Bowling Green State trailing with a 191.175 for second place. University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and University of Alaska-Anchorage finished at 189.975 and 188.850, respectively. 

Johnson led all gymnasts on the vault with a season-high 9.850 with Jordan Schult following with a 9.775.

BYU had the top three finishes on the bars with Eliane Kulczyk leading with a 9.850 and Johnson and Jill Van Mierlo scoring a 9.825 and 9.775, respectively. Van Mierlo also finished in fourth place with an all-around score of 37.975.

Ashley Robinson scored a team-high 9.625 on the beam, while Johnson and Emily Vidmar led the team on the floor each finishing with a 9.725.

The Cougars return to the Smith Fieldhouse to host Utah State for the first Mountain Rim Gymnastics Championship conference meet on Friday at 7 p.m. MST. The meet will be televised live on BYUtv with live stats found on the schedule page.

PROVO, Utah – The BYU gymnastics team hits the road for the 2015 Ozone Invitational to compete against University of Alaska-Anchorage, No. 14 Bowling Green State and University of Wisconsin-Whitewater on Saturday.

“We did some really good things in our first meet,” BYU gymnastics head coach Brad Cattermole said. “We also did some stuff I’d like us to do better, but we’ve been working on improving that. Typically the biggest improvements you make are between the first couple of meets. One of ours would be to remain calm and hit our routines.”

The Cougars dropped its first meet 196.900-193.350 to No. 4 Utah. Junior Makenzie Johnson led BYU in the vault with a 9.775, while Eliane Kulczyk led the team on the bars with a 9.775, which also tied her career high.

Alaska-Anchorage, Bowling Green State and Wisconsin-Whitewater all won their last meet with a 192.250, 194.775 and 183.275, respectively. 

The meet will begin at 8 p.m. CST at the Knoxville Convention Center in Knoxville, Tennessee.