Oregon acrobatics and tumbling got off to its fastest start in nearly a decade on Saturday. The Ducks put up a performance that hadn’t been matched in an Oregon home opener since 2015 courtesy of standout freshmen and a superb team event that pushed them over the top and readied them for a blockbuster matchup in late Feb.
Here’s what we learned from Oregon’s first meet of 2025.
The kids are alright
Oregon debuted several freshmen in the meet, including base Angelica Martin and top Cassidy Cu. Ducks head coach Taylor Susnara sent them out in the five-element acro heat, where their competed skill — Cu, held in a hand to hand press above Martin, bends backwards in midair before Martin slides into a split — earned a 9.650 score from the judges.
Susnara cited a “little hiccup” with the heat in her post-meet press conference, but reaffirmed her total confidence in the two. It’s a new sport for the pair, but they’ve been competing similar skills for years as part of their acrobatic gymnastics background.
“Sure, acrobatics and tumbling is new to them,” Susnara said on Friday. “But competing is not.”
The Ducks also sent out two freshmen tumblers: Briya Alvarado and Morgan Willingham. The two looked like veterans as they helped Oregon to recover from early falls in the tumbling event; Alvarado executed in both the duo and aerial passes to secure 9.500 and 9.850 scores while Willingham put up a 9.850 to close the event.
The high scores posted by Oregon’s newcomers were part of the reason Susnara was “ecstatic” post-meet. The Ducks were able to separate from their opponents because of the variation in start value — Oregon would often compete skills with a 9.9 or 10.0 ceiling while the Morgan State Bears sat at 9.9 or below, but that won’t be the case as the Ducks head into a ranked slate of matchups that spans the rest of their season.
Early composure, especially from freshmen, is much-welcomed.
The team event is back
Composure is valuable across the board — but especially in the team event. Held at the end of the meet, teams compete skills from each of the five previous events all at once, simultaneously. It takes three judges to score, and is worth almost double any other event.
That’s why it was so impressive when Oregon posted its highest score in the event since 2021…in its first meet.
Last year, the Ducks scored an 85.25 in their season opener against Hawaii Pacific University and largely improved on that mark through the first four weeks, where they eventually reached a season-high 94.14 mark against the Sharks in Honolulu. It was also a struggle, though, in the National Championship, where they stumbled and scored a season-worst 83.57 (quarterfinal) and 84.02 (semifinal).
Against the Bears on Saturday night, the Ducks posted a 99.180 — not only more than they scored in all of 2024, but the most they’ve managed since 2021. For the team event to run that smoothly, in their first real competition of the season, is not only a surprise but a boon for a program with national championship expectations.
Ready as can be
It’s difficult to compare teams in different games in most sports. In acrobatics and tumbling, it’s a little easier — teams aren’t influenced by the one they’re facing on that day, and they compete as they would against any other. It is important to note, however, that judges score differently, and that a 10.0 in one meet might be a 9.95 in another — and that could make all the difference.
That said, the Ducks scored 281.205 on Saturday in Eugene. Their next opponents, the No. 1 Baylor Bears, have put up marks of 276.240 and 278.540 in their first two meets of 2025. The records Oregon broke — the ones from that 2021 meet — are from the last time the Ducks beat the Bears.
In order to do so once again next weekend, it’ll more than likely take a repeat of what Oregon put on the mat on Saturday. That performance could best the champions, but it’s only happened once this year. Baylor has put up back-to-back 276-plus point meets.
We’ve seen Oregon’s ceiling. We haven’t yet seen its floor. The Ducks are ready as can be for a matchup with the one of sports’ greatest dynasties, the nine-time reigning champions. It just matters whether they can throw down what they did this weekend seven days later.
