(Photo courtesy Sun Devil Athletics)
TEMPE — ASU Gymnastics started off its 2024 campaign at Desert Financial Arena on Monday with the annual intrasquad Maroon and Gold Scrimmage. The meet was a perfect place for the 19th-ranked Gym Devils to get acquainted with their home floor and arena.
The fact that the event was held only seven days before Christmas and in the prime of the holidays did not stop the Arizona State gymnastics fans from showing up to support the team, who were met with the added benefit of the meet being free and open to all.
The meet came just a few hours after the release of the Pac-12 Conference Preseason Watch List, on which senior Jada Mangahas and graduate student Hannah Scharf both made the cut. It was Mangahas’ first appearance on the list, while it was Scharf’s second straight year attracting the honor. Head coach Jay Santos said that, more than anything, it was a nice sentiment for the two gymnasts to know they are being seen.
“It’s just a little bit of validation for them,” Santos said. “All the hard work, and you’re on the watch list. Both of them, Jada has had a great fall. She was prepared and ready to go. Hannah has as well, and it’s always nice to be recognized in all of that for everything that you do.”
The list being announced on the morning of the meet seemed fitting, however, as Scharf and Mangahas both looked to lead their teams – Scharf for Gold and Mangahas for Maroon – to a win over their teammates on the opposing spectrum of ASU’s color scheme.
Halfway through the meet, Gold held a slight lead over Maroon with a score of 78.175 to 78.150 behind strong performances from Scharf, senior Emily White, freshman Lilia Purler and senior Anaya Smith on vault. But Maroon was capitalizing early on their numbers advantage as throughout the meet, even though only the top four scores were counted on each event, Mmaroon had five or six gymnasts compete in three of the four events, while Gold never had more than the required four participants. This allowed Maroon more opportunities to wipe away scores caused by costly mistakes in each rotation.
But when all was said and done, Gold held onto its lead to beat Maroon 155.925 to 155.650, which was capped off by a meet-high score of 9.950 on any event by White on beam. Maroon held close, but eventually, its downfall was floor, where Gold outscored it 39.175 to 38.375.
Although he said that there were, “definitely some jitters, definitely some shakiness, ” overall, Santos was happy with the meet and his athletes. He was pleased with where his returners and older, more experienced gymnasts were ahead of the upcoming season opener on Jan. 8.
“I think it was a very typical Maroon and Gold,” Santos said. “Actually, I would say there were certain spots that were probably a little bit stronger. … Some of these upperclassmen were ready to go, and I think they showed early-season form. … Overall, I’m happy, but we gotta make that last push.”
