Tomorrow marks the first meet of the 2025 season for the Oregon acrobatics and tumbling team. The No. 4 Ducks — who host Morgan State University at Matthew Knight Arena on Saturday at 4:00 PM — enter the year with much of the roster that led it to a national championship semifinal last April still intact. Here’s what you need to know:
How to watch:
The Ducks compete home meets at Matthew Knight Arena. This week, they host Morgan State at 4:00 PM on Saturday, February 15. Oregon students can claim tickets through their portal. The meet will also be broadcast on Big Ten Plus.
Is this a big meet for Oregon?
Not in the week-to-week sense of the word. Morgan State is unranked and lost its first meet to No. 2 Quinnipiac last week — Oregon is expected to win. This is, though, the only chance for the Ducks to compete against another school before they welcome No. 1 Baylor to Eugene next week for undoubtedly arguably their most important meet of the season. It’s a valuable tune-up, and an opportunity to get everything right before next week.
Plus, the Ducks will only compete in seven meets this season. In an environment where top seeds in April’s NCATA National Championship are high-value, every win that can show poll voters that a team deserves the top spot is important.
What is acrobatics and tumbling?
Created to provide post-high school competitive opportunities for gymnasts and cheerleaders who didn’t want to pursue either of those sports in college, acrobatics and tumbling brings together elements of both sports in demanding competition that holds status as an NCAA Emerging Sport — on track to become an NCAA Championship competition.
For now, the sport competes under its own governing body (not the NCAA), called the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association (NCATA), and holds a championship every April. The eight highest-ranked teams qualify for the championship, plus individual best-performing athletes in individual events who compete in their discipline for an event title.
Baylor University holds the last nine titles — and its coach, former Oregon leader Felecia Mulkey, owns every title in the sport’s history. For more on the history of the sport, read the Daily Emerald’s feature series, The Opportunity Sport.
What they’re saying:
Oregon head coach Taylor Susnara:
On the program’s season-long goals: “I’d be lying if I said a national championship isn’t in our hearts.”
On the home opener: “[It’s] one to get the wiggles out, so to speak. The goal would be to be as close to perfection as possible…but I think this meet is really about getting out there for the first time, having fun, getting that bond together with each other [and] figuring out what we all need to feel really confident on the mat.”
On Morgan State: “They already saw Quinnipiac. They did pretty well — they’re a pretty new team, but I think they have a lot of fight and a lot of grit within them. They have a really great coaching staff who’s really passionate about the sport.”
Oregon senior base/tumbler Alexis Giardina:
On the home opener: “I think with the opener, there’s a little bit of grace, definitely. Obviously, we are chasing perfection as always, but there’s definitely a little bit of grace for hiccups here and there that come with your first time really being out in front of a crowd again.”
Oregon senior top Bethany Glick:
On the team chemistry: “I feel like, this year, we’ve been able to pick up on a lot of different vibes from past years. And I feel like as seniors, we have been able to curate a really amazing team culture, which I think is exciting going into this season, and I feel like it’s something that as a senior I’m pretty proud of.”
Around the NCATA:
Several ranked programs competed their first meets of the season last week — a scheduling occurrence that happens because not all programs schedule the same number of meets. Records are accurate as of publication on Friday, February 14.
No. 1 Baylor (1-0) defeated No. 5 Mary Hardin-Baylor (0-1) handily, 276.240-255.335.
No. 2 Quinnipiac (1-0) beat Morgan State University (0-1) 270.565-246.745.
No. 15 Duquesne (1-0) upset No. 3 Gannon (0-1), 253.060-251.320 in its first-ever meet as an NCATA program.
No. 6 Fairmont State University (2-0) won out in a three-team meet against West Liberty University (1-2) and Glenville State University (1-1).
No. 8 Iona University grabbed a ranked victory over No. 14 Long Island University, 258.625-239.090.
No. 7 Azusa Pacific University also beat a ranked opponent: No. 13 Hawaii Pacific University in a 248.229.735 final.
Bases swept the weekly NCATA awards in the first week of competition. Quinnipiac base Hallie Fowler was named Athlete of the Week. Fairmont State base/mid-base Brylee Knotts was named Specialist of the Week. Duquesne base Mia Dipner was named Freshman of the Week.
