Baylor
Duquesne
No. 1 A&T Shines On Senior Night Against No. 9 Duquesne
3/28/2026 7:48:00 PM | Acrobatics & Tumbling
Bears dominate in final home meet
WACO, Texas --The top-ranked Baylor acrobatics & tumbling team delivered an exciting victory over No. 9 Duquesne, 278.300 - 255.030 on Saturday afternoon in front of 1,523 at the Ferrell Center.
The Bears (8-0) topped the Dukes (2-3) by 23.27 points. Entering the meet, Baylor held a 14.72 point advantage in start value. The win marked the 58th consecutive win for the Bears and have won 2 straight meetings with Duquesne.
"This group is very calm, consistent, and intentionally, so you see their impact athletically, but you more feel their impact which I feel is the more impactful way to leave," Baylor Coach Felecia Mulkey said.
To start off the meet in Compulsory, BU and Duquesne executed the necessary skills, each heat with a start value of 10. In the Acro heat, Duquesne scored an 8.60, and Baylor followed with a 9.60. On the Pyramid heat, the Bears scored a 9.85, outscoring the Dukes 9.70. The Bears won the Toss heat with a 9.90, with Duquesne scoring a 9.55. In the Tumbling heat, BU scored an 8.70, and the Dukes scored a 7.70. Through the first event, the score was 38.05 to Duquesne's 35.85, with the Bears up by 0.45 points after winning three heats in Compulsory.
To start the optional portion of the meet in Acro, Baylor followed a 9.75/10 performance from Duquesne with a 9.95/10. In the synchronized 6 Element heat, the Dukes scored 8.55/9.35 before Baylor, with four different pairs of tops and bases, scored 9.70/10. In the third heat, Duquesne competed with a 9.85/10 score, and Payton Washington and Leavy McDonald scored a 9.80/10. For the Acro event, BU scored 29.55 to Duquesne's 27.50, bringing their total to 67.60 to 63.35 through two events, with Baylor leading by 4.25 points.
In the Pyramid event, Duquesne started it off with a 9.85/10 score in the Inversion heat, which the Bears followed up with a score of 9.95/10. Topping the Synchronized heat after the Dukes' 9.65/10 were Payton Washington and Bott, based by McDonald and Meredith Wells, respectively, who scored a 9.85/10. In the Open heat, Duquesne scored a 9.65/10 while Baylor competed the 3-high pyramid. Bases Becca Moore and D'ahni Branch held a three-high extended structure straddle position. Mid-level was Leavy McDonald, and top was Sofia Criado. This all resulted in a score of 9.85/10. For the Pyramid event, Baylor scored a 29.95, while the Dukes scored 29.15.
To kick off the second half with the Toss event, it was Thomas topping the 450 Salto heat, finishing with a score of 9.60/9.90 after Duquesne scored an 8.30/9.00. In the Synchronized heat, the Dukes earned an 8.35/9.40, and for the Bears, Washington and Tannehill earned a 9.65/10. In the final heat, the Open heat, Duquesne scored a 9.00/9.40 before Baylor followed with a 9.80/10 from Washington. At the end of the Toss event, Baylor totaled 29.05 while Duquesne had a 25.65. Through four events, BU had a score of 126.30 while Duquesne had a 118.15, and the Bears are up by 8.15 points.
In the Tumbling event, Duquesne's duo scored an 8.00/9.25 while Emily Bott and Lawrence Owens competed for a score of 9.10/10. In the Trio, the Dukes put a score of 7.65/8.60 on the mat, followed by BU's 8.85/10 from Alyiah Thomas, Gigi Rendino, and Ashlyn Tannehill. In the Quad pass, Washington, Criado, Sarah Kerr, and Gabby Kaminski scored a 9.40/10, after Duquesne posted a 7.85/8.75. For the Aerial pass, it was Bott who scored a 9.875/10 after the Dukes earned a 9.20/9.55. Competing in the 6 Element heat, Washington earned a 9.95/10, while Duquesne earned a 9.35/9.75. Kerr earned a 9.775/10 for the Open heat, with the Dukes' 9.25/9.55.
Combined, Baylor scored 56.95 to finish the Tumbling event, while Duquesne scored 51.30. After five events, BU led 183.25 to 169.45, up by 13.8 points headed into the last event. In the Team event, Duquesne scored an 85.58/102.23 and Baylor followed with a 95.05/109.65. The meet was finalized, BU came out on top with a 278.300 score against Duquesne's 255.030; the Bears winning by 23.27 points.
HIGHLIGHTS
● In the Open Pyramid heat, The Bears debuted a new pyramid today, topped by Criado, mid-based by Leavy McDonald, and main-based by Moore and Branch. Criado held a straddle in a three-high extended structure to then fell into a cradle caught by Kensey Schilhab, Cassie Karnbach, and Meredith Wells.
● BU is on a 58-meet winning streak.
● The Bears finished their last home meet 8-0.
UP NEXT
The Bears prepare to travel to their last regular meet of the season on Monday, April 6th at 8 p.m. CT against the Oregon Ducks in Eugene, Oregon.
To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor acrobatics & tumbling, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram: @BaylorAcroTumb.
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