CLEMSON, S.C. – The No. 20 California women's gymnastics team (7-3, 3-1 ACC) clinched a dramatic 196.950-196.900 victory over No. 16 Clemson Saturday night in Littlejohn Coliseum. In a dual meet that was decided by the final scores of the fourth rotation, the Golden Bears notched their season-best overall score, in addition to season highs on balance beam and floor exercise, to claim the road victory.
 
Tonya Paulsson won the all-around and shared the uneven bars title with fellow Bear Sage Melkonian, while Abbey Scanlon and Sarah Lee tied for first place on beam. Newman-Achee reached the podium in the all-around for the sixth consecutive meet, this time taking bronze.
 
Cal won the first rotation with a 49.400 on uneven bars, which was the highest event score of the meet. Mya Wiley matched her season best with a 9.875 before Melkonian earned a career-high 9.925 on bars. Paulsson anchored with another 9.925, her fourth bars score that has scored 9.925 or above this season.
 
Casey Brown stuck her vault landing from the leadoff spot to earn the highest score of the Bears' rotation. She tied for Cal's highest score on the event with Annalise Newman-Achee, with both of them receiving a 9.850. Clemson took the lead with a 98.525 to Cal's 98.475 at the midway point of the competition.
 
The Brown and Newman-Achee pair continued their success on floor, each notching a career high in the event. Brown scored a 9.825 from the leadoff spot while Newman-Achee recorded a 9.875 from the No. 2 spot. CJ Keuneke and Kyen Mayhew put up back-to-back 9.875 routines, which was a new season best for Keuneke and matched Mayhew's highest floor score of 2026. Cal took back the lead, heading into the fourth rotation with a slim 0.050 advantage over the Tigers.
 
Despite the pressure, the Bears rose to the occasion, putting up their strongest beam rotation of 2026 to close out the win. Paulsson posted a career-high 9.875 from the second position in the lineup to get the momentum going. Lee set a new career high on the event for the second straight meet, putting up a 9.900 – her first score that was 9.9 or higher in collegiate competition. Scanlon followed with a 9.900 of her own right after, which was a season-best for the fifth-year senior. Aderinto posted her personal best on beam with a 9.850 to lift the Bears to a 49.275 event score.
 
Cal will take a break from dual-meet action to head to the Metroplex Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, next Saturday, Feb. 14. The Bears will be a part of the evening session which begins at 5:15 p.m. PT. Cal will face Georgia, Air Force and Stanford in the competition.
 
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