RALEIGH, N.C. - The No. 20 University of Denver gymnastics team opened up its 2015 season with a 194.500 - 192.025 road win against North Carolina State. Senior Nina McGee (Cincinnati, Ohio) won the all-around title with a 39.175, picking up event titles on bars, beam and floor.

The Pioneers' score is the highest for a home opener on the road in the last five years. They last began their season away from Denver in 2012 when they visited the University of Georgia and scored a 193.700.

"I'm very proud of the team for their performance tonight," head coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart said after the meet. "We had to make several line-up changes during the meet, and I thought our student-athletes handled the adversity very well and blocked out all of the distracting factors.

"We had a brand-new line-up tonight, and it's always challenging to open up the season on the road. Certainly, we have room to improve, but it's nice to come away with a win."

Denver opened the meet on bars with six hit routines and a team score of 48.600. Sophomore Leah Lomonte (Katy, Texas) led off the Pioneers with a 9.600, which junior Katie Menhinick (Paramus, N.J.) followed up with a 9.625. Continuing the upward trend in scores, junior Emily Barrett (Norman, Okla.) scored a 9.675. Freshman Nikole Addison (Lehigh Acres, Fla.) made her collegiate debut with a solid 9.725. Sophomore Julia Ross (Henderson, Nev.) and McGee closed out the Pioneers on bars with scores of 9.750 and 9.825, respectively, and finished 1-2 in the final event standings.

Menhinick kicked off DU's run on vault, scoring a 9.725. Senior Ellese Sakai-Hart (Aptos, Calif.) and Barrett posted a 9.700 and 9.825, respectively, and McGee answered with a 9.800. Addison filled in for Ross, who was injured during the vault warm-ups, and scored a 9.750. Sophomore Rachel Fielitz (Walden, N.Y.) finished the rotation with a second 9.825 for the Pioneers, giving the team a score of 48.925. Barrett and Fielitz tied for first with North Carolina State's Brittni Watkins.

The Pioneers headed to floor for the third rotation, scoring a 48.775, beginning with Fielitz's 9.525. Sakai-Hart's routine scored a 9.750. Barrett filled in for the injured Ross and put up a 9.675, and a couple big sticks from Addison gave her a 9.700. Junior Maggie Laughlin's (Scottsdale, Ariz.) first routine of the season included a cold, hard stick on her middle pass, earning her a 9.800. McGee rocked the house with her crowd-pleasing floor routine to close out the rotation with a 9.850. Denver swept the floor event titles, finishing with McGee, Laughlin and Sakai-Hart on the podium.

Denver finished out the fourth and final rotation on balance beam. Starting off the Pioneers was Lomonte, putting up a 9.650. Menhinick and Sakai-Hart posted matching scores of 9.625. Laughlin competed fourth for Denver on the event, scoring a 9.600. Addison, competing in her fourth event of the night and filling once again for Ross, struggled with the Pioneers' only fall of the night and scored a 9.000. Needing a hit routine to avoid counting a fall, McGee came through with the highest beam score of the meet of 9.700, giving the team a 48.200. Lomonte finished in third place.

"I thought Nikole did a great job as a freshman to step into the line-ups with short notice and under pressure," Kutcher-Rinehart said of Addison unexpectedly competing all-around. "It shows her competitiveness and mental toughness, and I know she'll continue to get stronger as the season goes on.

"I thought Nina was outstanding tonight. She showed extraordinary leadership and poise under pressure on all events."

DU hosts its home season opener on Saturday, January 17, against Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference opponent Utah State at 6 p.m. in Hamilton Gymnasium. The Pioneers will compete twice over the holiday weekend, again on Monday, January 19, at 2 p.m. against No. 7 Georgia in Magness Arena.

Tickets are still available for $9 for each meet, and season tickets are available for DU's five regular season home meets for $35. For ticket information, visit denverpioneers.com/tickets or call the Ritchie Center Box Office at 303-871-2336.

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