Pink Out Night
vs. Lindenwood
Meet Information
Date: Friday, Feb. 7, 2020
Time: 5:30 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Venue: Houck Field House
Series: Lindenwood leads All-Time Series 14-4         
Coaches: Ashley Lawson (Second Season at SEMO);
Jen Llewellyn (Eighth Season at Lindenwood)
 
Media Coverage
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Video: ESPN+
  
Follow the Redhawks on Twitter @SEMOGymnastics for in-meet updates.
 
Meet Notes: Southeast Missouri 
 
Promotions
• It's Pink Out Night at Friday's Southeast Missouri women's gymnastics meet.
- The Redhawks will be wearing special neon pink leos to promote breast cancer awareness.
- The first 400 fans in attendance will receive a SEMO Gymnastics neon glow in the dark T-shirt compliments of Burrito-Ville.
- Glow sticks will also be handed out to fans. 
- The first 100 students will receive a free slice of Imo's pizza. 
- The 2020 Southeast Missouri gymnastics team will sign autographs at the conclusion of the dual meet.
 
Southeast Faces MIC Rival Lindenwood Friday on Pink Out Night
Southeast Missouri women's gymnastics continues its two-meet home swing Friday at Houck Field House when it hosts Midwest Independent Conference rival Lindenwood. The first rotation is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m., CT.
 
After the meet, head coach Ashley Lawson will be inducted into the Southeast Missouri Hall of Fame in a ceremony held at the Show Me Center at 7 p.m. 
 
Looking at Lindenwood
The Lions set a season-high team score of 193.625 against Eastern Michigan on Sunday. Lindenwood also had a season-high on the vault with a score of 48.900, which edged the Eagles at the meet. EMU won the dual with 195.325.
 
Gayla Griswold won the vault (9.825) and floor (9.850) titles to earn MIC Newcomer of the Week. Ryan Henry captured the bars (9.900) and finished third in the all-around competition with 37.475. She was awarded the MIC Performance of the Week for her bars set. 
 
Lindenwood Head Coach Jen Llewellyn is in her eighth season at the helm of the Lions program in 2020, and her ninth as a member of the coaching staff. The Lions had its inaugural season in 2013. In her seven seasons, the program has advanced to six USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate National Championships, won the 2015, 2016, and 2019 USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate national titles, won the 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 MIC Championships, and became just the third-ever NCAA Division II program to compete in an NCAA Regional in 2019.
 
Congrats Jen and Cody Llewellyn!!
Lindenwood Head Coach Jen Llewellyn and assistant coach Cody Llewellyn welcomed a baby boy last Tuesday. 
 
Redhawks Lindenwood Connection
Southeast Head Coach Ashley Lawson previously served as an assistant at Lindenwood in 2018 under head coach Jen Llewellyn. There, she was the balance beam coach, helping lead the Lions to their fourth-straight Midwest Independent Conference title. Lindenwood also finished second in the team finals of the 2018 USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate National Championships.
 
Redhawks Volunteer Assistant Coach Andavea Alexander came to Southeast after a standout gymnastics career at Lindenwood. Alexander helped the Lions win their fifth consecutive MIC Championship and third USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championship in the last five years in 2019. She also competed with Lindenwood, a Division II program, in the school's first ever NCAA Regional. Alexander graduated from Lindenwood with a B.S. in Athletic Training in 2019.
 
Home Opener Recap
Southeast edged Illinois State, 192.775-192.475, behind a huge 49.025 on floor in the final rotation of SEMO's home opener at Houck Field House last Friday. The team score and floor mark were season highs for the Redhawks.
 
Anna Kaziska was second in the all-around with 38.850 and Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso was fourth, totaling 38.100.
 
The home dual win was the first for head coach Ashley Lawson at SEMO and the first for the Redhawks since March 9, 2018.
 
Titles on Titles on Titles
A trio of Redhawks captured event titles last Friday in Southeast's home-opening win over Illinois State. Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso captured the vault (9.700) and beam (9.700) titles, Jordan Jones earned her first career event title on bars (9.875) and Anna Kaziska won the floor exercise (9.875) in the final routine of the evening.
 
Kaziska leads Southeast in 2020 with eight titles while Solorzano-Caruso is second with six.
 
I'm Floored by that Rotation
Trailing 144.700-143.750, entering the final rotation, Southeast hit a season-high 49.025 on floor in its home opener last Friday against Illinois State. The Redhawks last hit a floor score of 49.000 or higher on March 5, 2017 against Air Force (49.000).
 
SEMO's five scorers registered marks of 9.750 or higher on floor. Lindsey Moffitt (PR), Mackenzie Slee and Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso (PR) each registered identical season-best 9.800s for second overall at the dual. Slee, the 2019 Midwest Independent Conference Vault Champion, competed on the event for the first time in 2020 Friday. Solorzano-Caruso had previously notched five straight floor scores of 9.725 to start her collegiate career before her career-best mark.
  
Molly Maxwell had a career-best 9.750 in the third lineup slot. Anna Kaziska rounded out the meet with a season-high 9.875 to claim the title. Mallory Desch added a personal-best 9.650 which was dropped.
 
Lawson to Be Inducted into Hall of Fame Friday
Head coach Ashley (Godwin) Lawson will be inducted into Southeast Missouri's 18th Hall of Fame class on Friday at 7 p.m. at the Show Me Center after the Redhawks dual meet with Lindenwood. Lawson holds school records in the all-around (39.550), uneven bars (9.925), balance beam (9.975) and floor exercise (10.000) and is in her second season as head gymnastics coach. Lawson was a MIC Champion four times in her career, winning the uneven bars in 2002 and the balance beam, floor exercise and all-around in 2003. She was an NCAA Regional qualifier in the all-around each of her final three seasons at SEMO (2002, 2003, 2004). Lawson's highest NCAA Regional finish was an 11th-place showing in 2002. 
 
Yeah Vault!!
Southeast registered a season-high vault total of 48.750 in the third rotation on Jan. 26 at Ball State. The vault score was the highest for the Redhawks since the team posted a 48.825 against Oklahoma and Texas Woman's on Jan. 23, 2015 in Norman, Oklahoma (11th in SEMO program history).
 
Each of SEMO's gymnasts during Jan. 26's vault rotation matched or surpassed their season high. Gabrielle Adams led off with a season-best 9.750. Molly Maxwell followed with a career-high 9.650. Mackenzie Slee, the 2019 MIC Vault Champion, hit a 9.725 in her season debut. 
 
Anna Kaziska finished as the runner-up at the quad with a career-high 9.825. In the anchor position, Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso tallied her second career-best 9.800 for fifth overall at the meet. Makenzie Marciniak also had a personal-best vault score of 9.575 which was dropped.
 
Solorzano-Caruso, That's Fun to Say
Freshman Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso etched her name in the Redhawks record books with a career-best 9.900 on beam on Jan. 12 in a dual meet at Alaska Anchorage. The score tied for fifth all-time in Southeast program history for the event. Solorzano-Caruso became the 10th Redhawk to post the score with Lauren Israel last earning the mark on Feb. 26, 2016. Head coach Ashley Lawson holds the SEMO beam record of 9.975.
 
We Beamin' From Ear to Ear
Trailing 142.975-142.525 after three rotations on Jan. 12, Southeast utilized a season-best beam mark of 48.700 in the fourth rotation to edge the host Seawolves, 191.225-190.825. The beam mark was the highest score for the Redhawks since SEMO hit a 48.725 at Texas Woman's with Bridgeport and Centenary on Feb. 25, 2018. 
 
Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso's record-setting beam score set the tone for SEMO. Jordan Jones was third overall at the dual with a personal-best 9.850 in her second career collegiate meet. Anna Kaziska finished fourth with 9.775. Molly Maxwell added a 9.600 and Jolie Miller had a 9.575.
 
First Dual Win Since 2018
Southeast's 191.225-190.825 dual meet victory over Alaska Anchorage on Jan. 12 at the Alaska Airlines Center was the Redhawks first dual meet win since 2018. The dual meet victory was also head coach Ashley Lawson's first at the helm of her alma mater and the first for the team since March 9, 2018 when SEMO bested Centenary, 191.950-189.125, at Houck Field House in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
 
Kaziska Grabs Three Titles
Anna Kaziska won her first three event titles in 2020 on Jan. 10 at Alaska Anchorage's Tri Meet. The sophomore from Louisville, Kentucky, matched her career-best beam routine with her third career mark of 9.875 to earn the crown. She also won the all-around with a total of 38.950 and placed first on the vault with a 9.675. Kaziska also was third on floor (9.750) and fourth on bars (9.650).
 
Anything You Can Do, Dahl Can Do Also
Freshman Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso won her first three career individual titles on Jan. 12 at Alaska Anchorage. Solorzano-Caruso registered three career-bests to capture the vault (9.800), balance beam (9.900) and all-around (39.175) titles. She also posted personal-bests on bars (9.750) and on floor (9.725) for third in both events.
 
Redhawk Debuts 
Seven Redhawks have made their debuts in 2020. Jordan Jones made her collegiate debut at Alaska Anchorage on Jan. 10 and 12. She posted a 9.500 on bars on Jan. 10 and improved on her beam set with a career-best 9.850 in her second career meet on Jan. 12. 
 
In the season opener at Missouri, sophomore Makenzie Marciniak and freshmen Jolie Miller, Lindsey Moffitt, Mallory Desch, Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso, and Molly Maxwell all made their debuts. Marciniak tallied a 9.450 on vault after missing 2019 with an injury suffered in the preseason. Miller competed on bars (9.700) and beam (9.400). Moffitt made her collegiate debut on floor (9.725), vault (9.475) and beam (8.900). Desch appeared in the floor lineup (8.800). Solorzano-Caruso (38.675, fourth) and Maxwell (37.675, sixth) both were all-arounders.
 
Missouri Tri Meet Recap
Southeast surpassed its 2019 season-high team score with 191.275 in SEMO's season opener on Jan. 4 at #16-ranked Missouri's tri meet. The Redhawks opened with a 46.600 on beam before dropping a 48.525 on floor. In the third rotation, SEMO added a 47.700 and concluded the meet with a 48.450 on bars. The #27-ranked Illini captured the team title with a score of 195.850. Missouri was second with 195.600.
 
The Redhawks notched a season-best team score of 190.275 at the 2019 Midwest Independent Conference Championships last March (3/22/19) and overcame that mark by a point in their 2020 opener. 
 
We SEE You Bars!!
Southeast totaled its best bars mark in over two years with a 48.450 in its season opener at #16-ranked Missouri's tri meet. The score was SEMO's first 48.000 plus total since the 2018 MIC Championships (3/23/18, 48.250). 
 
The Redhawks top-five scorers posted a 9.550 or higher on bars. Southeast topped Missouri on the event, 48.450-48.150. Molly Maxwell led off with a 9.550 before Jolie Miller compiled her first-career 9.700. Lindsey Bates followed with a personal-best 9.775 for fourth overall at the meet. Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso added a 9.750 and Anna Kaziska concluded the meet with a score of 9.675.
 
Welcome Back Lindsey Bates!!
Lindsey Bates registered a personal-best bars set of 9.775 in her first meet back from injury since the 2019 opener, a year ago to the day at Alabama (1/4/19), at #16-ranked Missouri's tri meet on Jan. 4, 2020. The mark tied for fourth overall at the meet.
 
2019 Signees
Southeast signed four gymnasts during the early signing period on Nov. 14. Anna Speller (St. Louis, Missouri), Sophia Studdard (Blue Springs, Missouri), Lydia Test (Plano, Texas) and Lydia Webb (Wylie, Texas) will join the team this upcoming fall for the 2021 Redhawks season.
 
Roster Breakdown
Southeast returns 10 student-athletes from 2019. Seniors Kendra Benak and Mackenzie Slee along with juniors Gabrielle Adams, Alana Fischer and Michael Sanders were regular contributors to lineups last season. Anna Kaziska also returns for her sophomore season after competing as an all-arounder in every meet in 2019. Kaziska, Adams, Slee and junior Lindsey Bates have all won individual event titles at Southeast. 
 
The 2020 Redhawks team also features eight freshmen in Catherine Costantini (Centerton, Arkansas), Mallory Desch (Lenexa, Kansas), Taylor Fishkin (Manlius, New York), Jordan Jones (Buford, Georgia), Molly Maxwell (Milton, Wisconsin), Jolie Miller (Aurora, Colorado), Lindsey Moffitt (Ferris, Texas) and Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso (Courtice, Ontario, Canada) who will all vie for lineup spots. Junior transfer Ashley Albrecht (Everett, Washington) from Illinois-Chicago rounds out the newcomers.
 
New Coaches, Who Dis?
Head coach Ashley Lawson also added a pair of new coaches ahead of the 2020 season in Jason Collins and Andavea Alexander. Collins will coach the bars team while Alexander will serve as the beam coach and team choreographer. 
 
Collins was previously an assistant coach at Yale in 2019 and prior to that he served as the vice president, chief athletic officer and director of men's gymnastics, and was the women's elite team coach at EVO Athletics in Sarasota, Florida. Alexander was a standout gymnast at Lindenwood who was a seven-time USA Gymnastics All-American and a seven-time All-MIC performer. She also helped Lindenwood win their fifth consecutive MIC Championship and third USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championship in the last five years in 2019.
 
Fischer Competes for Team Canada
Junior Alana Fischer competed for Team Canada at the 2019 FISU Summer Universiade in Naples, Italy, this past July. Fischer, a Georgetown, Ontario, Canada native, and Team Canada earned fourth in the women's artistic gymnastics team event. Fischer along with her teammates Denelle Pedrick and Jessica Dowling totaled a team score of 97.700 for fourth in the seven-team competition. 
 
What a Freshman Season for Kaziska?!?
Anna Kaziska led the Redhawks in 2019 with 33 scores of 9.700 or higher and totaled 11 individual event titles while earning MIC Newcomer of the Year after being awarded MIC Newcomer of the Week six times during her freshman campaign. The Louisville, Kentucky native, competed as an all-arounder at every meet and finished as the runner-up on floor at the MIC Championships. She also was awarded Second-Team MIC All-Conference laurels for vault and represented SEMO at the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional on floor (9.825).
 
Kaziska capped her inaugural collegiate season with second place finishes on both beam (9.875) and floor (9.875) at the 2019 USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate National Championships to earn First Team All-American honors for all-around (39.025, fifth), beam and floor and garnered Second Team All-American laurels on bars.
 
2019 MIC Vault Champion
Senior Mackenzie Slee was crowned the 2019 MIC Vault Champion at the conference Championships in Shreveport, Louisiana, with a career-best 9.825 to earn First-Team MIC All-Conference honors. The event title marked the first for Slee who hails from Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand.
 
USAG All-Americans
Three Redhawks were named USA Gymnastics All-Americans in 2019. Gabrielle Adams (vault), Mackenzie Slee (vault) and Anna Kaziska were all awarded All-America honors at the 2019 USA Gymnastics National Championships. They are the second Redhawks trio to earn the accolades after Alexis Brawner, McKinzie Jones and McKenna Stanley recorded the achievement at the 2018 USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate National Championships. Alana Fischer also represented Southeast at the 2019 USA Gymnastics National Championships.
 
2019 in Review
Southeast posted a season-best 190.275 for sixth at the 2019 MIC Championships at the Gold Dome in Shreveport, Louisiana. Mackenzie Slee tied for the vault crown with a personal-best 9.825 for her first career individual event title and Anna Kaziska, the 2019 MIC Newcomer of the Year, was second on floor with a mark of 9.875 as both earned First-Team MIC All-Conference honors. Slee and Kaziska also captured Second-Team MIC All-Conference accolades for floor and vault, respectively. Slee tied for 10thoverall on floor with a 9.800 and Kaziska had a vault score of 9.700 (17th).  
 
Redhawks Crushing it in the Classroom 
Southeast ranked 13th overall in the Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) for team grade-point averages (GPAs) for the 2018-19 academic year. The Redhawks registered a 3.67 GPA during the spring and had a cumulative GPA of 3.65 for the 2018-19 academic year. The Redhawks ranked 35th in the WCGA during 2017-18.
 
Eleven members of the 2019 Redhawks team earned WCGA Scholastic All-America Awards. Lindsey Bates, Allyson Bell, Kendra Benak, Megan Dennis, Alana Fischer, Samantha Gallet, Anna Kaziska, Makenzie Marciniak, Michael Sanders, Kenna Skepnek and Mackenzie Slee each posted GPAs of 3.5 or higher during 2018-19 to garner the award.
 
Looking Ahead
Southeast next hits the road for three consecutive weeks (four meets). The Redhawks take a short trip to St. Charles, Missouri, for the GymQuarters Mardi Gras Invitational on Valentine's Day (Feb. 14) at 2 p.m. SEMO will compete against Seattle Pacific, Centenary (Louisiana) and Bridgeport in the quad meet held at The Family Arena. 
 
Southeast competes in its second consecutive meet hosted by a private gymnastics club on Friday, Feb. 28 when they face Northern Illinois in the Tennessee Collegiate Classic held at the Wilson County Expo Center in Lebanon, Tennessee. The Redhawks then trek to Shreveport, Louisiana, for a dual against Centenary on Sunday, March 1. 
 
The Redhawks close out their road swing with a return trip to St. Charles, Missouri, for a tri meet against Air Force and host Lindenwood on March 6.