In the final rotation of a hard-fought competition, under the bright lights of Desert Financial Arena, the Gym Devils took to their floor routines with energy, elegance and the elevated performances necessary to best their in-state rival at home.
After the first round of NCAA regionals, the team eked out a score of 195.425 points to beat Arizona's 194.900 points. The Gym Devils will advance to the second round of competition, facing No. 3 Florida, No. 14 Cal and Penn State on April 2.
Just days before regionals, star senior all-arounder Kimberly Smith announced a season-ending injury to her Achilles. In her absence, her fellow gymnasts had to step up and try to fill the spot she left behind.
READ MORE: Gym Devil Kimberly Smith's battle through adversity results in new all-around talent
"We didn't have anybody like another all-arounder just waiting, so it was multiple kids all over multiple events, and we've just got to keep fighting through it," head coach Jay Santos said.
Despite being unable to compete, Smith has continued to stay involved in her teammates' practices and supported them as their captain. She could be seen cheering alongside her teammates during the competition, staying in the thick of the event while actively recovering from her injury.
"(Kimberly) is still our captain," Santos said. "She's still there."
Some of the biggest performances of the competition came from freshmen all-arounders Safia El Mammann and Kylee Bromley.
El Mammann put up a score of 9.825 on beam while Bromley was the lone Sun Devil to compete in the all-around, contributing a Sun Devil event-high 9.800 on the uneven bars.
Team veterans also contributed heavily to the Gym Devils' win. Junior all-arounder Halle Gregoire put together a commanding performance on the vault with a personal season-best tying score of 9.850, and she led the team score on floor with 9.850 points.
Beyond experience, Gregoire has brought leadership and guidance to a team looking to ride the wave of their victory beyond the first round of NCAA regionals.
"I'm able to let the underclassmen know what it's going to be like and what to expect, but not in a way that's overwhelming, but in a way that's exciting," Gregoire said.
While junior all-arounder Reese Grolla is in just her first season with the Gym Devils, she has made an immediate impact on the team in both the regular and postseason.
Thus far, Grolla has put up the highest score on beam for any Gym Devil this season with 9.900 points, and she was instrumental to the team's performance on the uneven bars and beam during the regional competition.
Grolla shared that she felt an immediate sense of belonging with her fellow gymnasts at ASU, and competing with the team is an unparalleled experience.
"It's unreal," Grolla said. "It's everything you work for, everything you dream of, and to do it with this kind of team and this support and what we've been through all year — it's just incredible."
With some wobbles on the beam and a fall on a floor routine, the Gym Devils didn't put together a seamless performance, so learning and adjusting will be crucial to success as they move toward their second session tomorrow.
"We're going to have to put together a much more complete meet … if we're going to be competitive with the teams tomorrow night," Santos said.
It was a fighting spirit that allowed the team to overcome the loss of Smith, a fighting spirit that propelled them to close the point gap in the final rotation. However, outside of individual scores and down-to-the-wire events, each gymnast can only hope to put out their best performance and continue to push toward that dream of a national title as competition continues.
"Regardless (of) if we're paying attention to the scores or not, we need to just do our job at the end of the day," Gregoire said.
Edited by Alan Deutschendorf, Henry Smardo and Pippa Fung.
Reach the reporter at bcsmit41@asu.edu.
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Brooklyn Smith is a sports reporter for The State Press and an English Literature and Economics student at ASU. She is in her 2nd semester with The State Press.
