The 2018 Lindenwood gymnastics season opened up on Friday night in Denton, Texas, with a conference showdown between the two programs that have won the last three USA Gymnastics Women's Collegiate National Championships. Texas Woman's won the first meeting of the year with Lindenwood by a score of 193.525-191.625.
 
The highlight of the night for the Lady Lions came in the new look vault lineup that included three freshmen. Lindenwood scored a 48.700 in the event, which was just outside the top-10 list in program history for the event. Kierstin Sokolowski led the team and finished second overall with a 9.825, followed by two newcomers as Jordan Boogerd scored a 9.775 and Courtney Mitchell had a 9.725. Maya Davis just missed a career-high with a 9.700.
 
Sokolowski tied for first overall on the beam event with a mark of 9.775. She was one of four Lady Lions that had team-highs of 9.650 on the bars, joining Samantha Borges, Taylor Colwell, and Ryan Henry. On the floor, Colwell, Henry, and Kayla McMullan all had team-highs of 9.625.
 
In the team competition, Lindenwood fell behind after the first rotation, and could never capture the lead. Texas Woman's put the match away in the final rotation with a floor score of 48.825, the highest team mark in any event on the evening. The beam was Lindenwood's only team event victory on the evening as the Lady Lions had a 47.900, 0.025 ahead of the Pioneers.
 
Lindenwood has a quick turnaround as it faces another MIC opponent on Monday afternoon, when it travels to Cape Girardeau, Mo. for a dual event against Southeast Missouri.