WEST LIBERTY, W. Va. - The Frostburg State Acrobatics & Tumbling team is set to face second-seeded Oregon in the NCATA Championship Quarterfinal round on Thursday afternoon.
How They Got Here
The Bobcats enter the meet as the MEC regular season and tournament champions, having defeated NCATA No. 8 seed Fairmont State twice this season to secure both titles. FSU boasts a 10-2 record on the year, more wins for the program than in the previous two seasons combined. The only losses this year have come against No. 1 Baylor and No. 4 Quinnipiac, as Head Coach Katie Nunley was named the NCATA Coach of the Year for the team's success in just its third season of competition.
The Ducks opened the year with three straight wins before back-to-back losses against BU, finally ending the season with a win over No. 3 Azusa Pacific in the season finale. Under second-year Head Coach Taylor Susnara, Oregon turned around a 2-5 season in 2022 for a 4-2 record in 2023, securing the second seed having been the fifth seed at last year's championships.
The Matchup
This is the first-ever meeting between the two schools, with the Ducks having made every available NCATA National Tournament since the conception of the sport and Frostburg qualifying for the first time in its history.
The Athletes
FSU earned its first-ever NCATA All-American, as junior Abbie Baker followed up her MEC Athlete of the Year honors. Also in the conference accolades, freshman Isabella Mongelluzzo earn the conference's Freshman of the Year, while juniors Navah Marierose and Laiken Spahr earned First Team All-MEC. Junior Kaitlin Bolton earned a spot on the All-MEC Second Team and was also an NCATA Academic All-American.
Oregon placed a pair of athletes on the NCATA All-American list, with Karly Nowak and Makena Carrion becoming the 15th and 16th athletes, respectively, to earn the distinction for the program.
The Rest of the Field
In the first matchup of the quarterfinal round, three seed Azusa Pacific will face six seed Limestone, then No. 1 Baylor takes on No. 8 Fairmont State, with the day concluding in the four-five matchup of Quinnipiac versus Gannon.
2023 NCATA National Championship Schedule
Academic, Sports and Recreation Complex (ASRC) | West Liberty, West Virginia
Quarterfinals (Thursday, April 27, 2023)
Meet #1: #3 Azusa Pacific vs. #6 Limestone – 10:30 a.m.
Meet #2: #2 Oregon vs. #7 Frostburg State – 1:30 p.m.
Meet #3: #1 Baylor vs. #8 Fairmont State – 4:30 p.m.
Meet #4: #4 Quinnipiac vs. #5 Gannon – 7:00 p.m.
Semifinals (Friday, April 28, 2023)
Meet #5: Azusa Pacific/Limestone vs. Oregon/Frostburg State – 4:30 p.m.
Meet #6: Baylor/Fairmont State vs. Quinnipiac/Gannon – 7:00 p.m.
Finals (Saturday, April 29, 2023)
Meet #7: Semifinal winners – 5:00 p.m.
Event Finals (Sunday, April 30, 2023) – 11 a.m.
