The Ashland University STUNT team traveled to the national tournament in Dallas, Texas, and in the opening round took on the Concordia Irvine Eagles.

Both teams came into the contest with hype surrounding them as Ashland was slotted No. 3 in the nation, while Concordia was ranked No. 5. The two teams went toe-to-toe on Thursday, April 27, at 12:30 p.m. CST.

To start the contest, the Eagles were flat and could not gain any opening momentum. On the other hand, Concordia Irvine was solid, scoring the opening two points. At the end of the first quarter, the contest remained close with the scoreline sitting at 2-0.

The Eagles still had an opening to gain their footing in the contest, but that would start to dwindle away in the second quarter.

When it came to tosses and pyramids, Concordia Irvine called much higher levels than the Eagles were prepared for. The opposing side came away with four points, giving them a 6-0 lead over the Eagles heading into halftime.

In no way was the contest over for the Eagles just yet, as a stellar second-half showing would bring them back into the contest.

Coming out of the halftime break, both squads would be going up against each other in jumps and tumbling, something the Eagles have dominated all season long.

Before the national tournament began, Head Coach Denise Farnsworth wanted to see the Eagles show up big in this quarter.

“If I am looking at the past few weeks, we have really seen (sophomore) Elly Dukes step up in our tumbling routines,” said Farnsworth. “She is going to complete the featured skill in jumps and tumbling 8 and she is looking really solid and confident.”

Dukes and the remaining tumblers competed in the third quarter, bringing home three big points for the Eagles as they clawed back into the contest trailing, 8-3.

Now with the fourth quarter upon them, the Eagles trailed by five points.

However, the quarter would not go in the Eagles’ favor as Concordia Irvine pounded on the points, outscoring them 10-1, heading into the second round with a 20-4 victory.

Even though they fell, the Eagles showcased a lot of determination in their first appearance in the national tournament since becoming a program just four years ago.

The team’s season is also not over just yet, as they will take on Dallas Baptist University (DBU) in the opening round of the losers bracket on Friday, April 28, at 12:30 p.m. CST.