No. 20 West Virginia falls to No. 22 Michigan

The No. 20 West Virginia gymnastics team fell short to No. 22 Michigan in a closely contested meet Friday.

The Mountaineers (5-2, 3-0 EAGL) held a slim 146.075-145.825 lead heading into the final frame when two gymnasts fell off the beam.

The Wolverines (4-0, 3-0 Big Ten) would go on to score a 48.825 on the floor and escape with a 194.65-194.05 victory.

Most important to WVU head coach Jason Butts was how the team finished the event, as the next three to perform would go on to take the top-three scores.

"They had good spirit and kept a great attitude even though we ran into a little bit of trouble there at the end, but it was a great performance," Butts said.

Following consecutive falls from junior Chelsea Goldschrafe and senior Nicole Roach, the remaining Mountaineers finished strong.

Sophomores Hope Sloanhoffer and Amanda Carpenter (9.75) finished first and second, respectively, while junior Kaylyn Millick (9.725) finished in third.

"We weren't aggressive enough on beam," Butts said. "We've been very successful the past four meets hitting our routines, and we let ourselves get a little bit too relaxed. And, if you get too complacent or too relaxed in gymnastics, that is when you usually end up getting in trouble, because you're not being aggressive."

The Wolverines remain unbeaten after taking all four events, winning vault (49.225-48.75), bars (48.575-48.55), beam (48.025-47.975) and floor (48.825-48.775).

The Mountaineers had three girls compete in the all-around, with Sloanhoffer recording a 39.125, her third straight meet surpassing the 39.0-plus barrier. Her score was good for second place, as Michigan's Joanna Sampson scored a 39.3 to win the all-around.

Senior Tina Maloney finished fourth in the all-around with a final score of 38.5. The Hanover, Ind., native earned her highest score on the vault, drawing a score of 9.725.

Goldschrafe also competed in the all-around for the first time in her career, posting scores of 9.75 on vault and floor each, and 9.725 on bars.

"I was happy with it," Butts said. "Obviously I'm not happy she fell, but like I say, nobody means to mess up, but for her first performance to hit three of four was great, and I can see her staying in that all-around position because she is so consistent."

WVU opened the meet on bars where they draw their lowest national ranking at No. 42. Millick scored highest for the Mountaineers with a 9.775, as Sloanhoffer (9.75), Goldschrafe (9.725) and Roach (9.675) trailed.

From the uneven bars, the team rotated to the vault apparatus facing a small deficit. Junior Alaska Richardson continued her steady season as she tied with Sloanhoffer for fourth place with a 9.775.

The Mountaineers trailed 97.8-97.3 heading into the third rotation as WVU headed to the floor while UM moved to vault. Heading into the meet, WVU was No. 8 in the country on the floor exercise averaging 48.994.

Richardson and Makenzie Bristol each scored 9.8s on their way to a four-way tie for third place with two Wolverines. Michigan's Sampson and Reema Zakharia tied for first as they scored matching 9.825s.

Michigan dominated the podium, while improving their series record against West Virginia to 16-4.

With the loss, the Eastern Atlantic Gymnastics League remains winless against the Big Ten conference.

The Mountaineers will get another crack at picking up a win against the Big Ten Sunday Feb. 12, when No. 11 Ohio State comes to Morgantown in a quad meet with No. 13 Auburn and Ball State.

The meet is the teams annual "Pink Meet" and will also be Dollar Night.