Baylor, the top-ranked acrobatics and tumbling team, defeated No. 4 Oregon in the semifinal round of the 2024 NCATA National Championships on Friday night in Fairmont, West Virginia. The final score was 267.995 to 260.470, ending the Ducks’ championship run.
Baylor, holding a perfect 10-0 record, dominated the meet by winning each heat in the compulsory, acro, pyramid, and toss events. Despite Oregon’s Rachel Furlong scoring a 9.750 in the six-element tumbling pass, the Ducks (4-4) couldn’t close the gap as the Bears secured victory in the team event,sealing the overall win.
How It Happened: Oregon started the meet well, improving upon its quarterfinal scores in both the compulsory acro and pyramid heats. Baylor outperformed Oregon in each heat, however, and carried a 38.125-37.725 into the second event.
In acro, the Ducks earned scores of 9.625 and 9.575 in the five-element and seven-element heats, respectively, but the Bears grew their lead by winning the event 29.275-28.375. The trend continued for Baylor in the pyramid event as it bested Oregon in each heat to build a 96.85-94.10 lead at halftime.
The Ducks came out of the break to put together a score of 9.575 in the open toss heat to lead its efforts in the event, but the Bears came out on top again 28.975-27.20. Looking to close the gap in tumbling, Furlong executed a tremendous six-element pass to earn a 9.75 and get her team its first heat victory of the night. Baylor won the event overall, however, before sealing the victory in a tightly-contested team event.
What’s Next: Oregon shifts its focus to the NCATA Event Finals, which will take place on Sunday. The event finals will begin at 8 a.m. PT with broadcast coverage available on ESPN+.
