Wheeling, W. Va. – Earlier this season, a snow storm in the Frostburg, Maryland area forced the Wheeling University Acrobatics & Tumbling team (2-4, 1-2) to postpone their trip to the Frostburg State Tri-Meet. On Friday, the team is set to make up that event when they travel to take on Frostburg State and Fairmont State with first events beginning at 6 PM. The Cardinals look to wrap up the regular season strong as they try to qualify for the individual event portion of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) Acrobatics & Tumbling Championships.
Last time out, the Cardinals traveled to Kutztown, Pennsylvania to take on Kutztown University. The Cardinals started the event strong, putting up 28.40 points in the Compulsory event to start the night. They were only trailing by two points after one event, with their highest scoring being an 8.35 on a start value of 10.00. As they continued through the first half, Wheeling would not lose any event by more than four points. By halftime, the score sat at 83.15-72.75 and the Cardinals were within striking distance heading into their final three events of the night. They would get their first event win in Tumbling, defeating the Golden Bears 44.850-41.850, and only had a 10-point deficit heading into the team event. However, it wasn't meant to be as a 45.550 rounded out the day and the Cardinals fell 202.200-185.360.
The top event for the Cardinals during the 2026 season continues to be the Tumbling event, where they have picked up three straight event wins over their last three meets. The top heat of the Tumbling event has been the six-element Pass, led by the efforts of sophomore Gabriella Jantz. For the fourth straight meet, Jantz would put up a score of 9.00 or better, scoring a 9.175 on a start value of 9.75. It was a slim margin of victory for the sophomore, who beat out Kutztown by 0.025 points as she earned her third straight win. The individual tumblers would end up sweeping the night, with Gianna Bjorn and Laicey Angelle rounding out the day. Bjorn got things started with an 8.100 in the Aerial Pass, while Angelle wrapped things up in the Open Pass with a score of 8.457.
In the team portion of the competition, the Pyramid continues to be the Cardinal's strongest event, with Wheeling securing two 8.00 scores or higher. The highest scoring event of the night was the Open Pyramid, which is Wheeling's only event outside the Compulsory event that has a start value of 10.00. they would finish with a score of 8.70, finishing just shy of the 9.00 mark. Prior to the Kutztown event, Wheeling had scored 9.00 or better in the event in back-to-back meets, and look to get back over that 9.00 mark against two strong opponents. The Cardinals did set one season best on the day, coming in the 5-Element Acro heat. Off a start value of 9.40, the Cardinals would put up a score of 8.70 off a start value of 9.40. They would earn the heat win over Kutztown and rounded out a strong showing in the team event.
As they enter the final event of the regular season, the Cardinals are looking to qualify for the second year in a row at the MEC Individual Events Championships.. the Cardinals made their first appearance last year, when the tumbling trio pass competed and finished as the third team in the conference. This season, the Cardinals top event has been The Pyramid, with the Open Pyramid being their top heat in the event. In order to qualify for the MEC Tournament as a team, the Cardinals would need to pull off a Tri-Meet sweep of Frostburg and Fairmont State. They currently sit at 1-3 in MEC play and are looking to round out the regular season strong on the mat.
The Details
First events for Friday are scheduled for 6 PM inside Bobcats Gymnasium. You can watch the event live by clicking HERE.
