Gymnastics Ready for Big Ten Championships
Mar 17 | Women's Gymnastics
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers gymnastics will head to Lincoln, Neb., to compete in the Big Ten Championships scheduled for Saturday inside the Bob Devaney Sports Center. The meet will be televised live on Big Ten Network with Dean Linke and Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson on the call.
The Scarlet Knights will be competing in the noon session of the event along with No. 25 Illinois, No. 18 Iowa and Maryland. No. 7 Michigan, Michigan State, No. 16 Minnesota, No. 12 Nebraska, Ohio State and Penn State will all be in the 5 p.m. gathering. The final standings will be in order of team scores regardless of session.
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Meet Preview
Rutgers will be making its second appearance at the Big Ten Championships. Last year at Michigan, the Scarlet Knights put up a 193.125 team total, which was highlighted by the second-highest vault performance in school history (49.150). The team also reached a 49.125 on floor exercise.
This year RU will begin the day on balance beam, an event the squad ranks No. 39 nationally at a 48.795 RQS. Senior Claudia Salinas (Allendale, N.J.) leads the lineup with a 9.815 RQS, landing at least a 9.700 eight times this season. Sophomore Makenzey Shank (Phoenix, Ariz.) led the team with a 9.875 last week, while sophomore Libby Groden (Abbottstown, Pa.) added a 9.850.
Rutgers has scored at least a 49.000 its last three times out on floor exercise to build a 48.885 RQS. Fifth-year senior Emma Hoffman (Union, N.J.) has a team-leading 9.835 RQS, scoring at least 9.825 the last five times with a 9.850 last week at Penn State. Freshman Riahanah Ali (Ann Arbor, Mich.) has also shown consistency in the event with at least a 9.800 the last six outings, including a 9.875 and a 9.900 recently.
The Scarlet Knights will next move to vault in the third rotation, holding a high team ranking of No. 35 at a 48.830 RQS. The lineup produced a 49.025 at Penn State, with Hoffman landing a 9.875. In addition, seniors Jenna Williams (Bordentown, N.J.) and Nicolette Wilson (Toms River, N.J.) collected 9.825 scores. Wilson leads with a 9.815 RQS by notching at least a 9.800 eight times in 2016.
The meet will wrap up on uneven bars. Rutgers has scored as high as 49.075 this season to bring in a 48.390 RQS. Shank holds a team-high 9.785 with a best of 9.875 twice.
Groden is projected to go all-around for the 11th time this season and 19th time in her career. She holds a 38.985 RQS this year, topping 39.000 three times this season.
This will be the second time this season the Scarlet Knights travel to Nebraska for a meet. The team scored a 193.075 with a high of 48.750 on vault back on Jan. 23.
Coach Levine Q&A
On last weekend: "I thought we did a really nice job on three events last week. The first two events were strong, but it didn't go our way on bars. But they we were able to bring it back and finish strong on beam."
On starting on balance beam this week: "I like this rotation for us. Beam is one of our stronger events and it gives us a chance to build some momentum for the meet."
On the state of the team: "I think we are in a good place. It wasn't what we hoped for last week, but there were some great performances to build on. We are really excited for the meet this weekend."
On the Big Ten Championships: "This is one more opportunity for us to do the best we can. We are looking to put up our best performance of the season and then we will see where that falls within the Big Ten. I think we are capable of a really good performance and that is what we are looking for."
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Players Mentioned
