Greenlief and Evans lift No. 18 BYU to victory over No. 13 Boise State

PROVO, Utah ­– Senior Kyleigh Greenlief received a career-high 9.950 on floor while Shannon Hortman Evans posted a career-high 9.900 on bars, edging No. 18 BYU ahead of No. 13 Boise State 196.225 to 196.175 on Friday night in the Smith Fieldhouse.

“I’m super proud of this team,” head coach Guard Young said. “Tonight we were honoring those who battled cancer, so our team’s word tonight was ‘fight’ and that’s exactly what they did. Boise State is a great team that we match up well with, so I can’t wait to see them in a couple weeks at conference.”

Angel Zhong matched two of her career-highs on vault and bars at 9.850 and 9.775, respectively. Evans broke her personal record on bars with a score of 9.900 while Abbey Miner posted a new career-high 9.800 on vault. Floor specialist and senior Greenlief's 9.950 on floor gave the Cougars the final edge over the Broncos. 

“Honestly, I'm a little bit speechless,” Greenlief said. “I've been working really hard every day, so to have it pay off was so exciting.”

To begin the meet, Zhong led the Cougars on vault, matching her career high score of 9.850. Freshman Abbey Miner also posted a new career high on vault of 9.800, and, to finish, Avery Bennet added a 9.800. At the conclusion of the first rotation, the Cougars were just behind the Broncos, 49.100 to 49.000.

Evans led BYU in the second rotation on bars with a new career-high of 9.900. Brittni Hawes followed with a 9.875, while Haley Pitou added a 9.850. Zhong also matched her career high of 9.775. The Cougars took the lead at the end of the rotation with a 49.150 on bars, putting BYU ahead 98.150 to 98.025.

In the third rotation, BYU posted a 48.700 on beam. Jill van Mierlo led the team with a 9.875, and Natasha Trejo Marsh and Evans both added a 9.825 to the team’s score. However, at the end of the rotation, Boise State once again took the lead, 147.225 to 146.850.  

The Cougars recorded their highest score of the night with a 49.325 on floor, led by a new career-high from Greenlief of 9.950. Evans and Briana Pearson also contributed with a 9.875 and a 9.850, respectively. With 9.800 scores or higher from every BYU gymnast on floor, the Cougars edged out the Broncos 196.225 to 196.175.

“Kyleigh's 9.950 on floor has been a long time coming,” Young said. “I don’t even have to watch her this year. I just know that she's going to hit her routine.”

BYU vs Boise State Final Results

The Cougars travel next weekend to Logan, Utah, to compete against Utah State University on Friday, March 2. The meet will begin at 7:00 p.m. MST at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.