2024 ACC Gymnastics Championship Recap: NC State takes the crown, soars to #16 in the nation
After a slow start on vault, the No. 1 seeded NC State Wolfpack dominated the rest of the 2024 ACC Gymnastics Championship to take home their first ACC championship trophy in 40 years on Saturday night.
The ACC regular season champions were the only team to reach the 197 mark with a 197.550, marking their second best score of the season and highest road score to date. As a result, the Wolfpack catapulted to 16th nationally to likely secure a seeded spot heading into regionals. NC State tamed second place Clemson by over a point, 197.550-196.425.
On vault, the Wolfpack posted a 49.150, where freshman Ashley Knight stole the show by sticking her front handspring front pike half to fire a 9.9 and claim the vault title. The Wolfpack trailed Clemson and North Carolina by 0.075 after the first event.
But the Wolfpack brought the energy to bars, scoring a 49.400 to take over the lead with two 9.9s from Katie Harper and Alexis Ortega. Anchor Emily Shepard capped the rotation with a 9.925 from her beautiful bar set that tied for second.
NC State continued to build on beam — an event they’re now ranked 12th in the nation — with a 49.450. Macy Jennings and Shepard both secured 9.9s, while Chloe Negrete delivered a clutch performance in the anchor spot to capture both a 9.95 and the title after a stuck double full dismount.
The Wolfpack headed into the final rotation leading by 0.775 and delivered the win after a season-high floor score of 49.550. Katya Edwards and Knight both notched 9.9s, and Shepard secured the all-around title after a 9.95. Negrete captivated the crowd with her spot-on routine to earn her second event title of the night with a 9.975.
Going into the championship, NC State was favored to win after their undefeated regular season but was expecting Clemson to put up a good fight since they’ve been the only two ACC teams to reach 197s this season. The Tigers showed nerves throughout the meet with four falls, including two on beam that resulted in having to count one of those falls that put them out of the race for first.
Clemson (196.425) notched second place over UNC and Pitt (who tied for third with matching 196.300s). The Tigers showed their strength on floor after a 49.525 led by Molly Arnold with a 9.95. Pitt, UNC, and Clemson each had one event where they scored under the 49 mark.
As for the individual ACC titles, the Wolfpack led the way with four out of five: Knight won vault, Negrete claimed both beam and floor, and Shepard secured the all-around. UNC’s Lali Dekanoidze dominated on bars to win the title with a 9.95.
As teams, Pitt and UNC are both out of regionals after being ranked below 36th but could still qualify individual competitors. As for NC State (#16) and Clemson, they’ll await the NCAA selection show on Monday to see which regional they’ll be participating in.
2024 ACC Gymnastics Championship Results
Team:
- NC State – 197.550
- Clemson – 196.425
- TIE North Carolina, Pittsburgh – 196.300
Individual:
- All-Around: Emily Shepard (NC State): 39.500
- Vault: Ashley Knight (NC State): 9.900
- Uneven Bars: Lali Dekanoidze (North Carolina): 9.950
- Balance Beam: Chloe Negrete (NC State): 9.950
- Floor Exercise: Chloe Negrete (NC State): 9.975
