Spartans claim 4th straight victory in season sweep over Air Force

Spartan gymnastics cheer on teammate Emma Milne after landing a flip off the beam in a victory over the Air Force Falcons. 

Levern Johnson – The Spear

By Levern Johnson (@inkedjournalist) – Spear Reporter

In Friday’s home meet, SJSU gymnastics (5-1, 4-0 MPSF) came up huge against Air Force (4-7, 2-3 MPSF) completing the season sweep with a final of 195.800-193.275.

SJSU finished every event with two or more top scorers, with Lauren Macpherson bringing home two first-place finishes with a score of 9.900 on the bar and 9.925 on the beam. Macpherson had a career night with an all-around score of 39.375, with her score on the beam tying a school record.

Lauren Macpherson going through her routine on the beam where she scored an event high 9.925.

On the bars, Macpherson shared a three-way tie with teammates Alexa Solomon and Emma Milne, after they scored 9.900. Milne is on a roll, increasing her number of first-place finishes to a team-high 6 on the season.

“We try and hype each other before each event so we’re able to loosen up and tunnel our focus,” Macpherson said.

Macpherson has been on a fire lately earning her 7th MPSF Gymnast of the Week award this past Monday. The Spartans have now increased their current win streak to 4 as they still sit as the only undefeated team in MPSF conference play.

SJSU Junior Madison Kirsch scored her second first-place finish on the season after tying teammate Jaudai Lopes with a score of 9.850. The Spartans have 5 players with 2 or more first-place finishes through six competitions in the season (Milne 6, Mazury 5, Macpherson, Lopes & Kirsch all have 2).

“With our depth, we have the luxury to not choose our lineups based on our opponents,” Head Coach Joanna Bowers said. “We have a lot of talent so we base it around how the team is feeling that week and how they previously performed and go from there.”

The Spartans look to continue their hot streak as they head north to face conference rivals Sacramento State (2-6, 1-3 MPSF) on Friday at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

Written by