OPENING PASS

• The Sacramento State gymnastics team will head to The Last Frontier for a pair of meets against Alaska Anchorage on Friday and Sunday from Alaska Airlines Center. The meets will be the first trip for the Hornets to UAA since and the second since 2015. Friday's action begins at 6:30 p.m. PT while Sunday's meet starts at 3 p.m. PT.
• Links to live stats and a video stream for this week's meet can be found on hornetsports.com.
• Competing twice in a three-day span is rare but not unheard of for the Hornets. Last season, the Hornets took part in a four-team meet at Washington on Mar. 15 and then traveled to Cal for a tri-meet on Mar. 17. This week will mark the eighth time Sacramento State has had a pair of meets in Anchorage, Alaska on the same weekend but the first since 2007. In 1992, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2003 the Hornets and Seawolves competed in back-to-back days.

OPPONENT PREVIEW

• Alaska Anchorage competed in a pair of tri-meets hosted by Oregon State last weekend. The Seawolves scored 191.825 in the first meet and 190.775 in the second. UAA did not have a fall in the opening meet for the first time in program history.
• Senior Montana Fairbairn picked up six individual event wins in one weekend this season. Competing in a pair of meets against Greenville, Fairbairn scored 9.850 on floor in both meets. Fairbairn is currently eighth in the MPSF with an NQS of 9.780 on floor.
• The Hornets hold a 61-4 advantage in the all-time series and have won the past 10 matchups. Sacramento State's last loss in Anchorage came on Jan. 17, 1992.

A LOOK AT THE LAST MEET

• The Sacramento State gymnastics scored its season high and accounted for individual event wins in two events but came up just short in a dual meet at UC Davis on Feb. 16. The host Aggies used a season-best 195.175 to edge the Hornets (194.750) for the first time in three meets this year.
• Sacramento State began the afternoon on bars and found itself down nearly a half point as the team totaled 48.475 compared to UC Davis' 48.950 on vault. The Hornets' top two scores came from Hannah Sitzman and Kara Houghton in the leadoff and anchor positions, respectively. The pair each scored 9.775 to finish in first place.
• Sacramento State pulled even following the second rotation after a 48.675 on vault. Lutrel guided the team with a 9.800 from the sixth position to tie for third overall. Rylin Zimmerman was second on the team and fifth in the meet with a 9.775.
• UC Davis was able to retake the lead during the third rotation. The Aggies scored 48.800 on beam compared to a 48.575 on floor from the Hornets to give the team a .225 edge. Emma Morgenthaler set her season best with a 9.800 to lead the team and rank fourth overall in the meet. 
• The Hornets pushed UC Davis in the final rotation with a 49.025 on beam. Gilman led off with a 9.875 to win the event title for the first time in her career. Freshman Kaitlyn Driessen was second with a 9.850 while Morgenthaler and Athena Jones tied for third with each scoring 9.800.

ANOTHER ONE

• Sacramento State list of individual event winners grew last weekend as senior Grace Gilman recorded her first career win on beam. Gilman scored a season-best 9.875 from her leadoff position and saw that mark hold for the top spot. Gilman became the fifth Hornet to win at least a share of first place on beam this season. Sacramento State has accounted for at least one individual event win in each meet this season and has totaled 16 first-place finishes from nine different gymnasts.

THIS & THAT

• This week's national rankings switched from season average to National Qualifying Scores (NQS). For those unfamiliar, an NQS is calculated by taking a gymnasts top six scores, of which three must have come away from home. The top score is then dropped and the next five are averaged. NQS is used to determine the top 36 teams which qualify for NCAA postseason competition as well as individual postseason berths.
• Sacramento State has yet to use the same lineup in consecutive meets this season. The steadiest lineup has come on beam where Gilman (first), Morgenthaler (second), Jones (fourth), Lutrel (fifth) and Houghton (sixth) have started in the same position in every meet. Outside of beam, Gilman's leadoff spot in the only one to stay consistent in the six meets this season.

HOME SWEET HOME

• Sacramento State moved into its new training facility this past summer. The building, which is located on Folsom Blvd. and is within walking distance of campus, marks the first time the Hornets will have access to its own facility in school history. The training site has a full size competition floor and several sets of the other apparatus as well as a locker room, athletic training space and team lounge.

REMEMBERING RANDY

• Longtime Sacramento State gymnastics coach Randy Solorio passed away on Feb. 5 after a lengthy battle with cancer. Randy served the campus for nearly 40 years as an assistant coach, head coach and kinesiology instructor. The team will wear temporary tattoos for the remainder the year which will have a green and gold ribbon as well as Randy's initials.