Julia Abel Director of Gymnastics Operations | University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics Website
Julia Abel Director of Gymnastics Operations | University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics Website
The University of Illinois women's gymnastics team, ranked No. 21, secured second place at the Big 5 meet hosted by Penn State with a score of 196.850. The event saw No. 11 Michigan take first place with a score of 197.500, while host Penn State finished third with 196.775. Iowa and Maryland rounded out the competition in fourth and fifth places, scoring 196.225 and 195.100 respectively.
With this result, the Illini improve their season record to 10-8 overall and 4-5 in conference play. Head coach Nadalie Walsh expressed her satisfaction with the team's performance, stating, "Finishing second at Big 5 is a huge victory for the team." She highlighted the efforts on vault, beam, and bars as particularly noteworthy.
Freshman Lyden Saltness emerged as an event winner for Illinois by achieving a near-perfect score of 9.975 on bars. Additionally, Arielle Ward and Alea Byrne set career highs on vault with scores of 9.900 and 9.875 respectively.
In individual events, Ruthuja Nataraj led Illinois on beam with a score of 9.900 for the second consecutive week, while Mia Townes scored a notable 9.925 on floor exercise to secure fourth place in that category.
The Illini's next challenge will be in Columbus, Ohio, where they will compete against No. 14 Ohio State, Kent State, and Bowling Green on March 1 at the Covelli Center.
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