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<p class="MsoNormal" align="right" style="margin-bottom:4.0pt;text-align:right;background:white">
<b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:#242424">BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – Feb. 26, 2025<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><span style="font-size:13.0pt;color:#242424">No. 1 Baylor A&T Sweeps NCATA Weekly Awards<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Fifth time in program history the Bears take all accolades</span></i></b><b><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:#242424">For more information contact:
</span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:#242424">Madelon Allen; 254-252-7168,
</span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:blue"><a href="mailto:madelon_allen@baylor.edu">madelon_allen@baylor.edu</a></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:#242424">
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#242424"> </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;color:#242424"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424">WACO, Texas – </span></b><span style="color:#242424">Baylor Acrobatics & Tumbling has swept the National Collegiate Acrobatics & Tumbling Association (NCATA) awards, announced by the organization on Wednesday.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">It is the fifth time in program history that the Bears have earned all three awards in the same week.<br>
<br>
Payton Washington earned Athlete of the Week, Jordan Gruendler was named Specialist and Leavy McDonald was named Freshman.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424"><br>
This is McDonald’s second career weekly honor from the NCATA after being named for the same award on February 19. Gruendler and Washington have both been named Honorable Mention previously this season for both the Athlete and Specialist awards.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">This is Washington’s first Athlete of the Week award, being named Freshman of the Week twice last season. The sophomore competed in eight heats against No. 4 Oregon, not including team event. She did not have
a score below a 9.3 across those heats, with her highest score coming in Compulsory Toss at a 9.95. Along with that heat, she competes in Compulsory Acro (9.75/10) and Compulsory Tumbling (9.30). In the optional portions of the meet, Washington is a top in
the synchronized acro, heat two, which earned a 9.75. She is also a top in Toss heat one (9.75/9.90) and the synced heat two (9.40/9.90). In the Tumbling heats, she competes in the Quad pass (9.3/10) and the solo Open pass (9.625). In the Team Event, she competes
two standing passes with a 9.80 start value and two synced running passes that start at a 9.55. She also competes a 9.90 Toss and a synced Acro sequence.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Gruendler, a top from San Antonio, earns her eighth career Specialist of the Week honor. The senior earned the accolade for Pyramid, having competed as a top in all three heats. Both the Inversion heat (heat
one) and the Open heat (heat three) earned a 9.90/10, while the Synchronized heat (heat two) earned a 9.7/10. In all three heats, she is based by McDonald. In the Open heat, she competes the reverse planche and is the only top in the country to do so in a
pyramid. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">McDonald, a redshirt freshman also from San Antonio, bases in six heats, not including team event. In those heats, none scored below a 9.7 and five of them scored a 9.9 or above. She is seen in all three heats
of Pyramid with Gruendler and is in both heat one and three of Acro, each earning a 9.9 against the Ducks. In the third heat of acro, she completes a straight slide to split before rotating into a straddle as Gruendler competes the reverse planche. She is
the only base in the country to compete this skill. In Team Event, McDonald is in seven of the 30 required Acro elements, five of which are scored at a 10.0-start value, none below a 9.80.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424">Baylor NCATA Weekly Award Sweeps<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424">Date<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424">Athlete<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424">Specialist<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424">Freshman<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">February 21, 2018<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Ceara Gray<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Kaylee Adams<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Morgan Celum<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">April 8, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Kamryn Kitchens<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Emily Tobin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<td width="156" valign="top" style="width:116.9pt;border-top:none;border-left:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.0pt;border-right:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Riley Chimwala<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">April 16, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Kamryn Kitchens<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<td width="156" valign="top" style="width:116.9pt;border-top:none;border-left:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.0pt;border-right:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Emily Tobin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<td width="156" valign="top" style="width:116.9pt;border-top:none;border-left:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.0pt;border-right:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Riley Chimwala<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">February 28, 2024<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Riley Chimwala<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Jordan Gruendler<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Payton Washington<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">February 26, 2025<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Payton Washington<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Jordan Gruendler<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424">Leavy McDonald<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><b><span style="color:#242424">NEXT UP<br>
</span></b><span style="color:#242424">The Bears return home to face Azusa Pacific on Saturday at 5 p.m. at the Ferrell Center for the Go Gold meet.
<br>
<br>
To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor acrobatics & tumbling, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram: @BaylorAcroTumb.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><i><span style="color:#242424">- BaylorBears.com -</span></i><span style="color:#242424"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">__________________________________</span></b><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"> </span></b><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#385623;mso-ligatures:none">Madelon Allen</span></b><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#385623;mso-ligatures:none"> </span><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">| </span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Associate
Director of Athletics Communications <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">A&T, EQ, VB, BaylorBears.com</span><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Department of Athletics | Baylor University<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">C: 254-252-7168<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none"><img border="0" width="159" height="44" style="width:1.6562in;height:.4583in" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.png@01DB8859.C58CAF80" alt="signature_3568145058"></span></p>
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