Dekanoidze Wins Bars, Schaefer Takes Second At ACC Championships

Saturday, March 23

Greensboro, NC

7 P.M. ET

North Carolina

ACC Championships

Photo by: ANTHONY SORBELLINI

Dekanoidze Wins Bars, Schaefer Takes Second At ACC Championships

March 23, 2024 | Women's Gymnastics

Complete Results All-Championship Team

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Lali Dekanoidze was crowned the outright champion and Isabelle Schaefer secured a runner-up finish on bars to highlight the 2024 Atlantic Coast Conference Gymnastics Championship for North Carolina on Saturday night inside Greensboro Coliseum.

Dekanoidze scored a 9.95 on her signature event with Schaefer right behind for a career-high 9.925. Prior to the championship meet, Dekanoidze (vault, bars) and Schaefer (bars) were named to the inaugural All-ACC Gymnastics Team.

Additionally, Dekanoidze (bars, 9.95), Schaefer (bars, 9.925), Julia Knower (floor, 9.9) and Jessica Naranjo (beam, 9.875) were named to the All-ACC Championship Team for earning top-6 finishes on their respective events.

Competing in the first ACC Gymnastics Championship since 1984, the Tar Heels and Pitt tied for third place with a score of 196.300. NC State won the team title in 197.550 with Clemson taking second in 196.425.

UNC's 196.300 marked its third highest team total of its inaugural ACC season and its best on the road.

All-Around
Gwen Fink finished third in the all-around with a final tally of 39.05. The sophomore earned marks of 9.8 on vault, 9.85 on bars, 9.85 on beam and 9.55 on floor.

Knower was also on all-around duty, finishing fourth in 39.0 right behind her teammate. The junior recorded scores of 9.65 on vault, 9.75 on bars, 9.7 on beam and 9.9 on floor.

Rotation One – Floor (49.225)
Knower highlighted UNC's opening rotation with a score of 9.9 on floor. It was her 16th career floor routine at or above the 9.9 threshold and the third-straight meet of a 9.9. Kaya Forbes followed closely behind with a 9.875 with Bella Miller scoring a 9.85. Strong performances from Camryn Rueda and Amy Wozniak earned 9.8s.

The Tar Heels scored 49.225 to begin the meet, their second-highest floor rotation of the season. The Wolfpack led with a 49.550 followed by the Tigers (49.525) and the Panthers (49.350).

After rotation one, Carolina tied with Clemson for the team lead with a score of 49.225.

Rotation Two – Vault (48.875)
Leading the way for the Tar Heels on vault in their second rotation were Fink and Forbes with matching 9.8s. Paige Prejean tallied a 9.775 while a pair of 9.75s from Dekanoidze and Cory Shinohara also counted.

UNC finished vault with a 48.875, ahead of UP's 48.650. CU had a meet-high 49.200 with NCSU closely trailing in 49.150.

After rotation two, Carolina sat in third in the team standings with a cumulative score of 98.100.

Rotation Three – Bars (49.225)
Dekanoidze, the program record holder on bars, dazzled with a 9.95 to be crowned the outright ACC champion. It marked the second straight conference championship on bars for the junior, as she also won the EAGL bars title in 2023. She tied her season high score, which was also her 17th career bar routine of 9.9+.

Tying for second place on bars was Schaefer with a 9.925. The junior matched her career-high for the fifth time this season and seventh time in her career. Schaefer was also the runner-up at the EAGL Championship on bars, marking back-to-back second-place conference finishes.

Also scoring for the Tar Heels on bars were Fink's 9.85 and 9.75s from Jamie Shearer and Knower.

Carolina totaled 49.225 on bars, its second highest team performance on the event of the year. Clemson also scored 49.225, right behind Pitt's 49.250 and NC State's 49.400.

After rotation three, Carolina crept back into second place with a total score of 147.325.

Rotation Four – Beam (48.975)
Competing in her first conference championship as a freshman, Naranjo posted a career-high 9.875 to lead UNC on beam in the final rotation. Her score surpassed her previous best of 9.85 done on March 8.

Fink matched her career-high 9.85 for the fourth time in 2024 and the sixth time in her career. 9.775s from Hallie Thompson and Rueda, as well as Knower's 9.7, rounded out Carolina's beam scorers.

The Tar Heels finished their beam rotation with a 48.975, well ahead of the Tigers' 48.475. The Wolfpack had a meet-high 49.450 with the Panthers registering a 49.050.

Up Next
Although the ACC Championships marked the conclusion of postseason team competition for the Tar Heels, select gymnasts still have the opportunity to qualify individually for NCAA Regionals based on their national qualifying score (NQS).

Individual competitors will be announced during the NCAA Gymnastics selection show on Monday, March 25, at noon ET on NCAA.com.

Stay up to date with Carolina Gymnastics by following the Tar Heels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.