DENVER – Stanford women's gymnastics had a strong performance in Denver Sunday, finishing fourth at the Denver Quad Meet with a team score of 196.100.
No. 1 Oklahoma won the competition with a team score of 198.325, followed by No. 10 Denver at 197.175 and No. 11 UCLA at 196.550.
Junior Brenna Neault led the Cardinal in the all-around competition, earning a season-best total of 39.300. Sophomore Claire Dean matched her career-best effort with a 39.225 with fifth-year Chloe Widner finishing shortly behind her with a 39.200.
The Cardinal rebounded from a shaky bars rotation in its season opener with a stellar effort to kick off the quad meet in Denver. The team's 49.250 team score was led by sophomore Ava Sorrento's 9.875 in the third spot, her career-best by more than half a point. Senior Ira Alexeeva and juniors Anapaula Gutierrez and Brenna Neault each added scores of 9.850 while sophomore Claire Dean and fifth-year Chloe Widner both totaled scores of 9.825.
Stanford followed on beam, earning a team score of 48.475. Neault led the way with a 9.850, while Dean opened the rotation with a 9.750. Widner, Nguyen, and sophomore Ashley Carter rounded out the scoring routines with scores of 9.625.
After tough time on beam, the Cardinal bounced back with a strong floor rotation, led by Widner's season-best 9.925. Dean followed with a season-best 9.875, while Zeng added a 9.850, matching her career-best effort for the second week in a row. Completing the Cardinal's scoring efforts were Neault and Nguyen, tabbing scores of 9.825 and 9.800, respectively. In her Stanford debut, freshman Temple Landry scored a 9.775.
Stanford finished the quad meet on vault, earning a season-best vault total of 49.150. Nguyen's career-best effort of 9.900 led all Cardinal, followed by a 9.850 from Gutierrez in her season's debut and a 9.825 from Widner. Zeng matched her career-best effort for the second week in a row, scoring a 9.800, while Dean added a career-best matching effort of 9.775 in the leadoff spot.
The Cardinal ends its three-week road swing next Saturday, taking on the No. 17 Arizona Wildcats in Tucson, Ariz. Jan. 27. Stanford's conference season-opener is set for a 1 p.m. PT start.
