Beavers Take Down No. 4 Utah in Dramatic Fashion

Saturday, February 11

Corvallis, Ore.

2:00 PM

Oregon State

196.550

196.525

Utah

The Beavers' celebrated Kaytianna McMillan's final floor routine that gave them the win over Utah.

Photo by: Scobel Wiggins/Oregon State Athletics

February 11, 2017 | Women's Gymnastics

OSU vs Utah results Results

By: Oregon State Communications

CORVALLIS, Ore. – An electrifying performance by Kaytianna McMillan on the final floor routine gave No. 11 Oregon State a thrilling 196.550-196.525 victory over No. 4 Utah on Saturday in a Pac-12 Conference dual at Gill Coliseum.

The Beavers trailed by .325 entering McMillan's routine and she needed a 9.900 to tie and a 9.925 for the Beavers to prevail. She delivered in impressive fashion, giving OSU (6-1, 2-1 Pac-12) its first win over the Utes (7-1, 2-1) since the 2013 Pac-12 Conference meet on March 23, 2013.

The season-high crowd of 3,876 on hand for OSU's annual DAM Cancer dual erupted when her score was posted and the final team score on the two end-zone scoreboards changed to OSU's favor.

"I don't know if there are any words that can describe that moment," McMillan said. "It was definitely magical. Being able to share that moment with my teammates is one of the most incredible feelings you can have."

It also served as a perfect present for OSU associate head coach Michael Chaplin, who turned 50 years old on Saturday.

A 2016 All-American on bars, McMillan was ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in the floor before Saturday with a 9.885 average. She averaged 9.925 in her most recent three meets, with a PR of 9.950 against UCLA on Jan. 28 in OSU's last home meet.

"I really think this routine is working for me," McMillan said. "It's a routine I am confident with, and I know I will hit every time. With the situation like today, where the scores were really tight, it was a good decision for me to go with that routine."

OSU scored 49.050 or better on every rotation for the third time this season and for the third time in its last four meets.

"The biggest thing was to stay in our own bubble, stay with us and what we can control," she said. "We know we have to have a solid five scores, whether we are watching the scoreboard or not, and focus on making our performances the best they can be.

"DAM Cancer weekend is really special for us. There are so many people in the world fighting through this disease every day. Many of our lives have been touched by it.

"We have all watched our loved ones fight through this and fight for their life. It gives us the motivation to go out there and fight on the floor, and do what we love to do."

The meet was close throughout. OSU held a 0.025 lead (98.125-98.100) after the first two rotations. Each team scored 49.125 on its third rotation, setting up the fantastic finish.

McMillan, Madeline Gardiner (9.875) and Isis Lowery (9.875) gave the Beavers a solid 1-2-3 closing punch on the floor that proved to be just enough for the win. Utah did not make it easy, as it scored 49.300 on its beam rotation.

McMillan tied Utah's MyKayla Skinner for top all-around honors with a 39.500, just .075 off her lifetime best. She posted 9.850s on vault and bars and a 9.875 on beam to complement the 9.925 on floor.

McMillan and Mary Jacobsen tied for second on vault with 9.850s. McMillan and Erika Aufiero shared first on bars with 9.850s; McMillan and Dani Dessaints were part of a six-way tie for first place on beam with 9.875s.

The Beavers face host California at 4 p.m. on Feb. 18 in their next meet, and then return to the Bay Area for a February 24 dual with Stanford. Their next home match is March 5 against Washington. The Pac-12 Network will televise all three events.

Team Scores: No. 11 Oregon State 196.550; No. 4 Utah 195.525.
All-Around: T1. Kaytianna McMillan (OSU), MyKayla Skinner (UTAH) 39.500; 3. Baely Rowe (UTAH) 39.300. Other OSU Score: Madeline Gardiner 39.100.
Vault (49.075): 1. MyKayla Skinner (UTAH) 9.900; T2. Mary Jacobsen (OSU), Kaytianna McMillan (OSU) 9.850. Other OSU Scores: Dani Dessaints 9.825; Erika Aufiero 9.775; Taylor Ricci 9.775; Madeline Gardiner 9.675 (Exhibition – Sabrina Gill 9.075)
Uneven Bars (49.050): T1. Erika Aufiero (OSU), Kaytianna McMillan (OSU) 9.850; 3. MyKayla Skinner (UTAH) 9.825. Other OSU Scores: Madeline Gardiner 9.800; McKenna Singley 9.775; Mary Jacobsen 9.775; Mariana Colussi-Pelaez 9.750 (Exhibition – Shireen Khamedoost ).
Balance Beam (49.125): T1. Kaytianna McMillan (OSU), Dani Dessaints (OSU), MaKenna Merrell (UTAH), Missy Reinstadtler (UTAH), MyKayla Skinner (UTAH), Baely Rowe (UTAH) 9.875. Other OSU Scores: Silvia Colussi-Pelaez 9.825; Sabrina Gill 9.800; Megan Jimenez 9.750; Madeline Gardiner 9.750 (Exhibition – Mariana Colussi-Pelaez 9.750).
Floor Exercise (49.300): 1. Kaytianna McMillan (OSU) 9.925; 2. MyKayla Skinner (UTAH) 9.900; T3. Isis Lowery (OSU), Madeline Gardiner (OSU) 9.875 . Other OSU Scores: Megan Jimenez 9.825; Sabrina Gill 9.800; Taylor Ricci 9.575 (Exhibition – Mary Jacobsen 9.775).