BALTIMORE, Md. (April 1, 2024) — The Morgan State Acrobatics & Tumbling team is eagerly preparing for their highly anticipated matchup against the Bluefield State Big Blue. The team thrilled to return to the familiar confines of Hill Field House for this pivotal contest.. This match will take place on Saturday, April 6 at 4 p.m and for those unable to attend in person, the match will be streamed live on Morgan's Athletics website..
MEET DAY CENTRAL
MATCHUP: Morgan State Bears (1-3) vs. Bluefield State Big Blue (0-1)
TIME: Saturday, April 6 at 4 p.m.
LOCATION: Hill Field House (Baltimore, Md.)
WATCH: morganstatebears.com - here
LAST TIME OUT
Morgan State recently concluded a challenging meet against Presbyterian College, narrowly falling by a score of 248.110-235.600 on March 22.
MORGAN NOTABLES
● On April 8, 2022, Morgan State announced the addition of acrobatics and tumbling as its 16th NCAA varsity sport. Saturday's meet will have historical significance, as the program will officially get underway.
● Morgan State is the first Historically Black College or University (HBCU) Division I program to offer the sport and is only the third school in Maryland (following Frostburg State and Stevenson) to add acrobatics and tumbling. The Lady Bears are also the 10th NCAA Division I program in competition this season.
● "This historic moment is so profound not only for Morgan State University, the Community of Baltimore, Maryland and HBCU's, but for all the brown girls who have a passion for these skill sets," said Morgan State head coach Regina Smith, who during her coaching career has captured over 30 national championship college and high school titles. "We are truly honored to embark on this journey and looking forward to representing Morgan State University well tomorrow."
● Morgan's score of 235.600 in a road loss to Presbyterian (248.110) on March 22 was the highest total score in the program's history.
●The team made its inaugural debut on Feb.10th as it hosted the No. 3 ranked Quinnipiac Bobcats at Hill Field House. The Lady Bears would fall short, finishing the meet with 220.770 points, while the Bobcats finished with a total of 262.580 points.
● Morgan's team will complete their inaugural campaign with a challenging road match against Long Island on April 11th in the regular season finale.
SCOUTING BLUEFIELD STATE
● Bluefield State is located in Bluefield, West Virginia and belongs to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the NCAA Division II level and primarily compete in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) since the 2023–24 academic year.
● In the 2021-22 academic year, Bluefield State became the 33rd program to sponsor Acrobatics & Tumbling at the varsity level, including the 22nd member that competes at the NCAA Division II level. BSC is also the seventh program in the state of West Virginia and is the first Historically Black College or University (HBCU) to add the sport.
● The Big Blue are led by head coach Halle Cook.
● Bluefield State opened the season with a score of 160.150 in a home loss to West Virginia State (178.600) on Feb. 23.
● Bluefield State played West Virginia State (Feb. 23) at home and their road contest versus Mars Hill (Feb. 29) was cancelled. Big Blue will face Talladega College ((March 18), Presbyterian College (March 30), Glenville State (April 2) and will have a rematch with West Virginia State (April 2) before travelling to Baltimore for their season finale against Morgan State (April 6).
ACROBATICS & TUMBLING MEET
A meet consists of six events: Compulsory, Acro, Pyramid, Toss, Tumbling, and Team Event. Teams compete in a predetermined rotation order throughout each event. Events are immediately scored by officials.
FOLLOW MORGAN STATE ATHLETICS IN CYBERSPACE
There are many ways to keep up with MSU athletics online and on the go:
• Visit www.morganstatebears.com, the official web site of Bears athletics, for news, schedules, stats, bios and more.
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu
