Click to watch the video.

PROVO -- The BYU women’s gymnastics team made its home debut on Friday night in the Smith Fieldhouse, falling to No. 9 Oregon State, 194.550-188.975. Junior Kaylee Gallup posted the high Cougar score on the night with a 9.775 on the floor exercise while junior Danielle Goldman became the first BYU all-arounder of the season, tallying a total score of 36.900.

“This is an awfully young team so we expect to make mistakes,” said BYU head coach Brad Cattermole. “We’re hitting our sets very well in practice but not hitting as well in meets. We’re a lot better team than we’re showing. In time, we’ll improve.”

The Cougars began the night on vault and posted a team score of 47.875, their highest of the night. Four freshmen competed on the apparatus led by Krysten Koval with a 6.675 mark. Two other gymnasts scored in the 9.6 range as junior Danielle Goldman tallied a 9.625 and junior co-captain Megan Donehue recorded a 9.600. However, a 9.850 from Jen Kesler on the uneven bars quickly had the Beavers on top, 48.875 to 47.875.

Two falls on the uneven bars made for a tough outing for the Cougars as they notched a score of 46.575. Junior Melissa Hough paced BYU with a 9.625 followed by junior co-captain McKell Poulson-Merkley at 9.500. Koval once again did the freshmen proud with a 9.400. Meanwhile, Oregon State did not count a score lower than 9.675 on the vault to post a team score of 48.700 and establish a 3.125-point lead through two rotations.

Balance beam once again proved to be a strength for the Cougars as the topped the 47 mark with a 47.475. Gallup came within .025 of tying her career high, posting a 9.775. Canadian National Team member Jennifer Lezeu strutted her stuff on the beam to lead three freshmen Cougars with a score of 9.700, a career best. Two scores of 9.800 led the Beavers on the floor exercise to help them tally a team score of 48.350.

The final rotation for the Cougars came on the floor exercise with a score of 47.050. Goldman led the team with a score of 9.575 while Whitney Olsen posted a 9.475 in place of the injured freshman Holland Davis. But it was not enough to catch the Beavers who tallied a 48.625 team score on the balance beam to seal the meet.

BYU will continue its 2009 campaign next Friday at San Jose State.

PROVO -- The BYU women’s gymnastics team will make its home debut this Friday as the Cougars host No. 9 Oregon State in the Smith Fieldhouse. The meet will begin at 7 p.m. and be followed by autograph signing with the 2009 team.

“It’s always nice to compete at home,” said BYU head coach Brad Cattermole. “At this point in the season, we’re just trying to put the right people in the right spots. We want to do what we do the best that we can do it.”

The 2009 Cougar squad features a young lineup with no seniors and only seven of 24 routines returning from last season. Despite its inexperience, the squad has high hopes for a successful season once all the pieces fall into place.

“Our team is still learning and making mistakes, but we will get better,” said Cattermole. “We’re taking some chances with the lineup to see what the girls can do. If we can hit five of six sets on every event, that will be a great start.”

BYU opened its 2009 campaign last week at the sixth annual Cancun Classic. While the Cougars finished fourth behind three top-15 teams, including the Beavers, there were several bright spots. Several freshmen stepped up for the Cougars, including Natalie Eyre, who posted the highest BYU score of the night with a 9.825 on the balance beam. Team co-captain McKell Poulson-Merkley competed on floor exercise for the first time in her collegiate career with a score of 9.350.

Fans who cannot attend the meet can follow all the action via live stats. The link can be found by going to the schedule page of the BYU women’s gymnastics homepage at http://www.byucougars.com/gymnastics_w/.