The Blugold gymnasts headed to Hamline University in St. Paul, Minn. for a Friday night meet. The gymnasts won the meet by almost 35 points with a final score of 164.675-129.70.

“We were really focused going into this one,” freshman Kristin Bauer said. “We went into the meet with a lot of confidence.”

“They had a lot of injuries which had an effect on the score,” sophomore Alicia Geving said.

As a team, the Blugolds outscored Hamline substantially in every event.

Geving said the team had a really good week of practice.

“We’ve been trying new ways of practicing to get us better prepared for the meets,” Bauer said.

In the vault the Blugolds out-distanced Hamline by about eight points, 42.825-34.775.

The Blugolds dominated on the floor, out-distancing Hamline by almost 20 points. Eau Claire scored 43.7 – the highest score posted on any apparatus during the dual – to Hamline’s 25.35.

“Everyone hit their floor routines very well,” Geving said.

On the uneven bars, Hamline came close to the Blugolds, scoring 37.952 to the Blugolds’ 38.45.

The beam was a good event for the Blugolds, adding 40 points to their score while Hamline only gained 31.65 points.

This team score was one of Eau Claire’s highest of the season.

The Blugolds are looking forward to the WIAC championship meet Friday.

“We’re going to do our best to improve our team score,” Geving said. “If we each improve a little bit individually, it can have a big effect on our team score.”

“We’re a pretty young team,” Bauer said. “I think we’ve gained a lot of experience this season; we’ve really grow a lot throughout the season.”

The Blugolds will head to the WIAC Championship, hosted by UW-Whitewater at 6 p.m. Friday.