Halliday helps Cougars to second-place finish

PROVO, Utah – Makenzie Johnson Halliday's all-around score of 39.250 helped BYU women’s gymnastics place second in the first home meet of the season. The Cougars recorded a season-high score of 195.475 against UC Davis and No. 13 Boise State Friday night at the Smith Fieldhouse.

“It was a great first home meet,” BYU head coach Guard Young said. "I was really happy with how the team faced adversity tonight. It was nice to see the scores a little bit higher and it feels like we're finally starting to turn the corner with scoring." 

Boise State placed first, scoring 196.425, while the Cougars edged out UC Davis’s score of 194.750 for a second place finish. 

The Cougars started off the first rotation with a strong performance on vault, achieving a score of 49.050.  Sin To and Mackenzie Douglas each recorded season-high scores of 9.875 to generate momentum for the Cougars. Halliday also recorded a personal season-high score with a 9.800, putting the Cougars in second after one rotation. Boise State came in first with a score of 49.225 and UC Davis held third with a 48.9580.

On the uneven bars, the Cougars scored a 48.725. Brittni Wilde recorded a 9.825 while Emily Vidmar, Halliday and Douglas each scored a 9.750. At the end of the rotation BYU trailed UC Davis by only .100 and Boise State by a slim .175 margin.

In the third rotation, Halliday’s 9.875 score, which was the highest score on beam of the night, helped the Cougars rally to tie UC Davis for second place at an overall score of 146.500. Natasha Trejo also contributed with a 9.750 performance. Boise State stayed in the lead with an overall score of 147.175.

On floor, BYU came through with a 48.975 score to beat out UC Davis for second place. Halliday and Vidmar's 9.825 scores set the pace for the Cougars while Trejo and Douglas added scores of 9.800 and 9.775, respectively. 

Halliday recorded season highs on all four events giving her an all-around score of 39.250, tying Boise State's Shani Remme for first in the all-around. 

The Cougars travel to the CenturyLink Arena to face Boise State again in the Gem State Invitational next Friday at 7:30 p.m. MST.