Gymnastics Treks to Maryland

Sunday, February 11

College Park, MD.

1 PM

Rutgers University

Maryland/Brown/William & Mary

Photo by: Justin Tafoya

Feb 07 | Women's Gymnastics

Meet Notes Live Results Fact Book

Scarlet Knights set for Sunday quad meet

MEET FIVE • RUTGERS at MARYLAND w/ BROWN, WILLIAM & MARY
February 11, 2018 • 1 p.m.
XFINITY Center • College Park, Md.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Having increased its team score in each of the last three weeks, Rutgers gymnastics will look to continue the momentum Sunday at a quad meet hosted by Maryland. The competition inside the XFINITY Center will start at 1 p.m. and also include Brown and William & Mary.

It will be the final regular season Big Ten meet for RU until the Big Five meet at the RAC on March 17. The Scarlet Knights have topped the Terrapins in each of the last two Big Ten Championships.

RUTGERS MEET PREVIEW
Rutgers posted a 194.800 last time out in front of a sold-out crowd at the Livingston Gym. The team registered season-best marks on both balance beam (48.825) and uneven bars (48.425), and did not have to count a fall on any event. Senior Makenzey Shank highlighted the outing by taking first place on balance beam with a 9.850.

In the all-around race, freshman Belle Huang tallied a 38.875 in her second career meet participating in all four events. Senior Libby Groden has ran the circuit 37 times, adding a 38.875 on Jan. 13 and a personal high of 39.075.

Junior Jenna Rizkalla sparked the vault last week with a career-high 9.850, the highest run by a Scarlet Knight in 2018. She is also the floor exercise leader with a 9.813 average and a best of 9.900. Sophomore Shannon Farrell leads the uneven bars group with an average of 9.737 in four swings, while Huang is at 9.775 on balance beam. Also worth noting on beam, sophomore Erin McLachlan brought in a career-high 9.800 most recently. The Scarlet Knights are ranked No. 43 nationally in the event with a 48.438 average.

On Sunday, RU will start on uneven bars before moving to balance beam, floor exercise and vault.

COACH LEVINE Q&A
On raising the team score each week: "We have been getting up and hitting routines. That consistency has been there. Each week in the gym there has been competition for spots and we have added people into the lineup. This was the first week we used four exhibitions. Competition is a great thing. It helps everyone step their game up. We took another step forward last week. Vault started us off really well and we carried that through. It was a good meet for us. We still have some steps to take to be where we want to be and we look forward to doing that this weekend."

On managing the short and long term: "We take it week to week. A lot of it is keeping everyone healthy. That plays a major role in it. We keep track of our numbers and are always looking for ways to improve. In gymnastics, unless you are scoring a 10, you can always get better. That is what it will take. We want each person to do a little bit better and that helps the team do a little bit better. This week and the weeks moving forward, how do we get a little bit better each day? If we continue to do that, the scores will continue to go up and we will go where we want to be."

On focusing on details: "When you talk about details, you're talking about the difference between a 9.75 and a 9.85. A 9.85 on every event, you're putting up a heck of a score. Whether it is being the handstand on bars, or a little bit bigger split on beam, everyone person has their own details that are theirs to focus on. If you want to get up to 9.9, you have to be nearly flawless. If you have things that are there every single time, that's where we want to get better. Those 9.9s are the difference between the great teams and the teams that are just good. That's where we have been pushing."

TICKETS ON SALE FOR BIG FIVE MEET
After staging the Big Ten Championships last season, Rutgers is scheduled to host a Big Five meet at the RAC on March 17. The competitive meet will also involve Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Penn State to determine positioning for the Big Ten Championships, which will be held at Illinois. Click here to purchase tickets.

Follow Rutgers Athletics on Facebook and Twitter (@RUAthletics) for all of the latest news and updates. For specific updates regarding women's gymnastics, follow the program on Twitter (@RUGymnastics), Facebook (/RUGymnastics), Instagram (@rutgersgymnastics) and Snapchat (rutgersgym).