UAA gymnast Hildebrand shines as Seawolves celebrate Senior Day

Gymnast Silje Hildebrand scored a career high in her final home meet with the Seawolves as the University of Alaska Anchorage fell to the University of California Davis 195.300-191.050 in a dual Sunday at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The teams matched up Friday, with the Seawolves scoring 186.250 total. But as the team celebrated Senior Night on Sunday, UAA saw improvements in all four apparatuses and improved by nearly five points overall.

“I’m really proud of our team for making the individual adjustments and bouncing back so strong from Friday’s performance,” UAA head coach Marie-Sophie Boggasch said in a statement. “It will be exciting to get back in the gym next week and start working on the necessary improvements for the rest of the season.”

Hildebrand, a senior from Yakima, Washington, tied her career best with a 9.675 on vault and posted the same score on the floor exercise.

Sophomore Montana Fairbairn also set a career-high mark with a 9.8 on floor exercise for a career high and a team-high score for the day. She also tied a career high with a 9.775 on balance beam and scored 9.7 on vault. Fairbairn, from Strathmore, Alberta, posted a 38.350 in the all-around.

UC Davis gymnast Emma Otsu won the all-around with a score of 38.700, followed by Amelia Moneymaker’s 38.550.

Senior Emily Walker and junior Hayley Perkins led UAA on uneven bars, each posting a score of 9.6.

The Seawolves had a number of solid scores on the balance beam Sunday, with Fairbairn and senior Jessica Johnson both earning 9.775. Freshman Claudia Lessig scored a 9.675, followed by Walker (9.65) and sophomore Marcela Bonifasi (9.625).

The Seawolves go on the road for the first time this season next week, hitting the East Coast with meets Friday at Bridgeport College (Conn.) and Sunday at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Links to live video and scoring are available at GoSeawolves.com.