Redhawks slip in meet with BYU

The Southeast Missouri State women's gymnastics team has this season lost only to squads ranked among the national top 25.

That trend continued Saturday afternoon at Houck Field House, as No. 23 Brigham Young beat the No. 35 Redhawks 193.325 to 190.600.

But, unlike in their first two such setbacks -- against No. 20 Missouri and No. 25 Kent State -- this time the Redhawks (10-3) were not very competitive against their favored opponent.

That left Southeast coach Tom Farden disappointed after the Redhawks posted their lowest score of the year.

"Today was not a good display of what we're capable of," Farden said. "BYU is a very good team, and so are Missouri and Kent State.

Southeast Missouri State junior Alison Ezell competed on the bars at Houck Field House on Saturday, when the Redhawks hosted Brigham Young University.

"But if we want to get better, we have to learn how to compete with these teams."

The Redhawks also suffered a loss the day before Saturday's meet when standout sophomore Sandra Blake injured a foot during practice.

Farden said the extent of Blake's injury has not yet been determined, but she was in a walking boot Saturday and there is a chance she could be lost for the remainder of the season.

As a freshman last season, Blake was named the Midwest Independent Conference gymnast of the year.

"That's a big blow," Farden said. "In my eight years at Southeast [including four as head coach], she's probably one of the strongest athletes we've had."

Asked whether the shock of losing Blake might have had something to do with Southeast's sluggish performance, Farden said, "It's tough. But they have a job to do. They just didn't focus."

Added Farden: "But it's a learning process. I'm rotating in five freshmen. It's a really young team."

BYU swept the top three spots in three of the four individual events, and the Cougars nabbed the top two spots in the other.

Southeast received a third-place finish from freshman Jena Nguyen in the floor exercise with a score of 9.675.

Nguyen was also fourth on the balance beam (9.775).

Another Southeast freshman, Bryanna Wong, was second in the all-around (37.775), while junior Alison Ezell placed third (37.770).

BYU's Dayna Smart was the all-around champion (38.375). She also captured the vault (9.775) and beam (9.900).

Other event winners for the Cougars were Aimee Pond on bars (9.775) and Kacie Capra on floor (9.800).

Despite the performance that left Farden frustrated, he expects the Redhawks to rebound, beginning Saturday night when they host Texas Women's University.

"It was just one of those days, but we're resilient," he said. "We'll bounce back."