MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University gymnastics team posted a final score of 194.85 to finish in second place behind Penn (195.025) in a dual meet inside the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Mountaineers used season-high scores on vault and floor exercise to tally its best home score of the campaign. WVU's 48.975 on floor marked its highest on any event this season, while its 48.925 on vault was a season best. West Virginia also added totals of 48.6 on balance beam and 48.35 on the uneven bars.
 
Opening the meet on vault, sophomore Emma Wehry paced the rotation with a season-high 9.85, while fifth-year senior Abbie Pierson and senior Kiana Lewis earned a pair of 9.8's. The total marked a season high for Lewis. Junior Sierra Muns debuted her Yurchenko one-and-a-half for the first time this season, scoring a 9.775. Sophomore Olivia Pitzer anchored the lineup, earning a 9.7 in her collegiate debut.
 
Moving on to bars, junior Brooke Alban led the way with a 9.825, followed by matching 9.775's from Wehry and classmate Miranda Smith. Freshman Amber Lowe added a 9.625, while a 9.35 from Pierson was unfortunately counted after a fall later in the rotation.
 
In the third rotation on beam, freshman Julia Brown scored a career-best 9.8 to lead the lineup. Lowe and Lewis recorded matching 9.775's, and Pierson earned a 9.75 before Smith's 9.5 capped the scoring on beam.
 
Finishing the meet on floor, the Mountaineers put together their best performance on the event this season, with a season-high 9.875 from Lewis leading the squad. Pierson and freshman Jurnee Lane posted a pair of 9.825 scores, while two 9.725's from Lowe and senior Ellen Collins rounded out the meet for WVU.
 
In the all-around, Pierson totaled a 38.725 for second place in the final event standings. Wehry tied for first on vault, followed by Lewis and Pierson in a tie for third place. On bars, Alban secured a second-place finish for her first podium placement of the season. Brown earned her first career podium finish in second place on beam, while Lewis and Lowe tied for third. Lewis earned the first-place spot on floor, followed by Pierson and Lane in a tie for second.
 
West Virginia now returns to the road when it travels to Kent State on Sunday, Jan. 28. Competition inside the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center in Kent, Ohio, is set for 1 p.m. ET.
 
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