BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. – On Thursday, the Mountain East Conference announced Nikki Pizzi as the 2024 Coach of the Year, while freshman Bailey Hebert took home First Team All-MEC honors and Katlyn Smith earned All-MEC Second Team.
 
Pizzi is recognized as the conference's top coach in the program's second season. She led the Falcons to a 4-4 record this year, an improvement of three wins from the Falcons' 1-5 record in their inaugural 2023 campaign. In 2024, Notre Dame beat West Virginia State, Buffalo State, Trine University and Adrian College. NDC's improvement could be seen immediately this season, when the team scored a program record 233.685 against No. 12 ranked Frostburg State in the home opener. Notre Dame improved its score nearly every week, eventually hitting a mark of 250.025, on March 21.
 
"It's no surprise that Bailey [Hebert] and Katlyn [Smith] have received All-MEC awards," Pizzi said. "They were both crucial to this team's success this year, both on the mat and off the mat. It was a pleasure coaching them both and I am very excited to see what the future holds for them!"
 
Hebert, a base/tumbler, is the first All-MEC First Team member in program history. She competed in every heat of the Compulsory Event and in the Acro Event, she was a part of the 6-element and in the Tumbling Event, she participated in the Quad Heat. The native of Fishers, Ind. helped improve the scores of both the Synchronized Heat and the Open Heat of the Pyramid Event. In the toss event, she was in the Synchronized Pass all year, and joined Open Pass about halfway through the season. In the Team Event, Notre Dame reached a score of 90.1, out of 99.59, in the tri-meet against Adrian and Trine.
 
"Bailey came in as a freshman with a gymnastics background and was able to quickly pick up all of the necessary skills needed to be a huge impact player on our team," Pizzi mentioned. "She excelled in Acros, Tosses and Pyramids as well as being a tumbler for us. As a freshman, taking on the responsibilities of being in over 10 rounds of play is no small task and she absolutely owned every single round she was in."
 
For the second consecutive season, Katlyn Smith has been recognized by the MEC. The sophomore from Waxahachie, Tex. is a Base, Back and Tumbler for the Falcons. She was a member of the Acro, Pyramid and Toss Heats in the Compulsory Event and, by March 3, she was called upon for all three heats of the Pyramid Event. In the Acro Event, she was a part of the 5-element, and was in the Duo Pass of the Tumbling Event. She participated in the Synchronized Heat and the Open Heat in the Toss Event and was also in the Team Event.
 
"Katlyn was a rockstar last year and came in this year with even more knowledge of the sport and willingness to help her team in anyway necessary. She excelled in Acro, Pyramids and Tosses and was a huge contributor in Team Event, as well."