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<b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:#242424">BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – March 19, 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 Sees McDonald Earn NCATA Freshman of the Week<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Bears have earned honor in all six weeks</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"></span></i></b><b><i><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;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’s Leavy McDonald has earned her fourth weekly award from the National Collegiate Acrobatics & Tumbling Association (NCATA),
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">Leavy McDonald was named Freshman of the Week for the fourth time while Payton Washington earned Honorable Mention Athlete, as well as Jordan Gruendler being named Honorable Mention Specialist for Acro after
competing against No. 15 Duquesne in Pittsburgh, Penn., on March 11.<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">The Bears have earned at least an Honorable Mention award in all six weeks of competition thus far.<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">A redshirt freshman from San Antonio, McDonald is a base in six different heats as well as Team Event. She participates in all but two events on the mat. As the base in Acro H3, her top brought back the "pencil"
for 7 Element Acro, starting with a one-handed handstand and slenderizing, before McDonald competes the straight slide to split with the top, Gruendler, in a straight handstand, earning a 9.90/10. They are the only duo in the country to compete this skill
and sequence. In heat one of Acro, the 5 Element heat, she competes with two different tops, competing both hand-to-hand and hand-to-foot connections. She competes in all three Pyramid heats with two different tops throughout, not scoring below a 9.7 on any
of the heats, all with start values of 10. In the Team Event, she competes seven of the 30 required acro elements, five of which have an SV of 10, and is the mid-level base for a synched pyramid with an SV of 10.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#242424">NEXT UP</span></b><b><span style="color:#242424"><br>
</span></b><span style="color:#242424">The Bears return to the Ferrell Center for a three-meet homestand, beginning with No. 8 Iona on March 22 at 5 p.m. It will be “Youth Day”, with a Baby Race as well as a post-meet skills activity for kids aged 12 and under.<br>
<br>
To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor acrobatics & tumbling, follow the team on Facebook, X, TikTok and Instagram: @BaylorAcroTumb.<br>
<br>
</span><b><span style="color:#242424"><o:p></o:p></span></b></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 lang="EN"><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@01DB98DE.78753330" alt="signature_3164754386"></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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