FAIRMONT, W.Va. -- Fairmont State used a 91.61-89.65 advantage in the team event to rally past Hawaii Pacific by a narrow 267.560-267.125 margin on Tuesday evening at Joe Retton Arena.
 
With the win, Fairmont State improves to 3-0 on the season, as the Falcons will now prepare for a showdown with the defending NCATA National Champion Baylor Bears on March 12 in Waco. HPU falls to 0-4 on the season.
 
Fairmont State started slow in the meet, as Hawaii jumped out in front by a 37.15-35.25 advantage following the compulsory event. Fairmont State took the next two events, holding a 29.30-29.20 advantage in the acro event, and a 29.80-29.30 advantage in the pyramid event. In the pyramid heats, Fairmont State scored a 10.0 in the inversion pyramid and a pair of 9.90 scores in the sync and open pyramids.
 
With HPU holding a 95.65-94.35 advantage following three events, the Sharks opened the second half with a 28.10-27.60 victory in the toss event – adding to its halftime advantage with just two events remaining.
 
However, Fairmont State used a 9.50 in the aerial pass and a 9.60 in the six-element pass of tumbling to edge HPU in the fifth event. The Falcons then scored nearly two points higher (91.61-89.65) in the team event to pull off the come-from-behind victory.