FRANKLIN SPRINGS, GA – The Francis Marion University Acrobatics and Tumbling team fell to Emmanuel University in their inaugural season opener on Sunday (Feb. 11) by a score of 248.280-155.380.  
 
FMU will return to the mats on Friday (Feb. 16) in a tri-meet against Coker University and Belmont Abbey College. Events will begin at 3 p.m. in Hartsville, S.C. 
 
Acrobatics & Tumbling meets consist of six events: compulsory, acro, pyramid, toss, tumbling, and team event.  
 
Beginning with the compulsory event, each team competes identical pre-determined set of skills with a pre-determined starting value of 10.0.  There are four heats that include acro, pyramid, toss and tumbling.  
 
Freshman base Alyssa-Naomi Pippins, freshman tumbler Olivia Blanda, sophomore top Alex Mitchell, junior base Mikayla Brown, and sophomore bases Emma Barnes and Madison Dykes were the first Patriots to take the mat, scoring a 5.35 for the Acro heat in the compulsory event.  
 
Francis Marion (0-1) recorded its best score of the compulsory event with a 6.8 as Blanda, Mitchell, freshman tumbler Priscilla Vega, junior base AJ Lunn, freshman bases Jaliyah Douglas and Kaylee Rowell, and lone senior Arianna Williams demonstrated a straddle hold in the pyramid heat of compulsory. 
 
Exiting compulsory, the Patriots earned a score of 21.950 compared to Emmanuel's 34.1.  
 
Next up, both teams compete in the acro event; In the acro event, teams compete in three different heats of 5, 6, and 7 element acro skills. In the acro event, teams of typically 2-4 athletes will compete acrobatic movements demonstrating great strength, balance, technique, and core from both the bases and tops. 
 
Francis Marion posted scores a score of 6.4 (heat one), 4.0 (heat two), and 6.45 (heat three) for a cumulative total of 16.85 and running total of 38.8. The Lions ended the acro event with a total of 23.1 and a running total of 57.2. 
 
In the pyramid event, teams compete in three individual heats of pyramids valued at up to 10 points per heat for a maximum of 30 points for the event. Teams want to use as few athletes as possible to create the most unique and difficult pyramid.  
 
Brown, Dykes, Mitchell, Barnes, and freshman tumbler Hailey Gaither all competed in the open pyramid heat of the pyramid event. With a 9.2 start value, the Patriots earned a 6.7 to conclude the event.  
 
At halftime, Francis Marion trailed Emmanuel University (1-0) by a score of 85.1-56.7.  
 
Following halftime and the pyramid event is the toss event: The toss event is a high-flying event with four athletes tossing a fifth athlete (top) high in the air, while completing flipping and/or twisting forward or backward. Two of the three heats are solo tosses while one heat is a synchronized toss. 
 
The Patriots listed scores of 7.4 (heat one), 6.8 (heat two), and 7.7 (heat three) for a total score of 21.9 in toss event. 
 
Six heats construct the Tumbling Event with 10 points each for a maximum of 60 points for the event. In this event, tumbling combinations will feature difficulty, multiple flips, and twists in various passes with athletes tumbling both forward and backward. 
 
FMU tallied their highest scores of the evening throughout the tumbling event. In heat one, Gaither scored an 8.3 out of 9.1 as she completed her tumbling pass. Patriots Mitchell, Pippins, Dykes, and sophomore tumbler Camille Diaz recorded an 8.45 in the quad pass.  
 
Blanda earned the highest score of 8.55 in the six-element single pass (heat six) for Francis Marion.  
 
The last event consists of the team event. In this event, athletes perform synchronized choreographed skills in a 2 1/2-minute routine set to music. Each team competes up to 24 athletes. Routines are composed to showcase all skill sets that have been competed in the previous five events.  
 
Scored out of 110 points, Francis Marion scored a 33.1 while Emmanuel posted an 87.6 to end the meet.