T&T’s Khazia Hislop and her University of North Carolina gymnastic team-mate Mikayla Robinson both shined at the 2019 NCAA Women's Gymnastics Regional hosted on the campus of the University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia on Friday.
The England-born Hislop, the daughter of the former national goalkeeper and ESPN FC analyst, Neil “Shaka” Hislop competed on vault, beam and floor during the afternoon session and Robinson competed on the vault during the evening session.
"They both had a great week and they enjoyed the experience," said North Carolina head coach Derek Galvin. "The performances that Khazia and Mikayla had today were some of the best that they have had this year."
Hislop, who has competed for T&T in the past started the day for the Tar Heels as she rotated with the Iowa State Cyclones. On beam, Hislop sported a strong beam routine and stuck her dismount and scored a 9.800 and placed 12th in that session. On the floor, Hislop placed seventh with a powerful floor routine where her tumbles were some of the highest this season. She scored a 9.875. Her day concluded on vault with a skying vault routine with a 9.875 and fourth-place finish to break up Georgia's sweep of the top five positions.
Robinson competed on the vault during the evening session while she rotated with California. She scored a 9.875 in one of her best routines of the season, matching teammate Hislop from the earlier session. She placed sixth in the evening session on vault.
"It was fun," continued Galvin. "It was a really good experience for them. It gives them something to bring back and get the team fired up and next year hopefully they will all be here together."
The Carolina gymnasts await their fate until after the Regional competitions have concluded. The process for getting to the National Championships as an individual has become increasingly competitive, but the North Carolina staff is hopeful for both to qualify.
