PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers gymnastics broke multiple major records in a home dual with Illinois on Saturday at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Scarlet Knights' 196.375 team score broke the school record for a home meet, aided by a new school-record 49.375 on the balance beam.
 
Through it all, Rutgers senior Hannah Joyner powered the effort by breaking the school record for all-around score at 39.525 while winning the bars and beam events. Her 9.900 on bars tied a career-high, while her 9.925 on beam tied for the fifth-best score in program history on the apparatus. Joyner rounded out the record-breaking all-around performance with scores of 9.825 on vault and 9.875 on floor.
 
The Rutgers all-around record stood since March 8, 2013 when Luisa Leal scored a 39.500. The team home score record beat 2014's 196.225 and the beam standard was reset from the 49.325 scored 19 years ago on Feb. 28, 2004.
 

Beam this into your eyeballs immediately. Hannah scores a 9.925 and helps us set a new program record with a 49.375 team score on beam‼️#ouRyear /// #GoRU! pic.twitter.com/HhxW8Xnhf7

— Rutgers Gymnastics (@RUGymnastics) January 21, 2023

"The team is competing so composed and confidently," said head coach Umme Salim-Beasley. "They are doing the exact gymnastics they are doing in practice. We continue to improve every meet. This team is determined and they know they are only scratching the surface of what they are capable of. We will continue to focus on tiny details and expect we will continue to climb week to week."
 
The Scarlet Knights combined to tie or set eight career highs on Saturday during the record-breaking team performance.
 
Illinois eked out the dual meet victory by two-tenths of a point, 196.575-196.375.
 
TOP 3 FINISHES

• Emily Leese finished second in the dual with her 9.85 on vault.
• Gianna Ortiz and Anna Pagliaro tied for third with 9.875's on beam.

Leesey leads us on vault with this 9.850, helping us post a 49.100 on the rotation for our fifth highest score in program history.#ouRyear /// #GoRU! pic.twitter.com/djSKh5Docl

— Rutgers Gymnastics (@RUGymnastics) January 21, 2023

KNIGHT NOTES

• Hannah Joyner broke the school record in all-around with a 39.525, surpassing Luisa Leal's 39.500 from the 2013 season.
• Rutgers' 196.375 is a new program record for a home meet and is just 0.025 off the overall program record set last season.
• The Scarlet Knights' 49.375 team score on beam is a new program record, surpassing the 49.325 standard from 2004.
• Rutgers' 49.100 vault team score is tied for the fifth highest in program history.
• Hannah Joyner's 9.925 on beam is tied for the fifth-best score in Rutgers history, a mark she has reached six other times.
• Hannah Joyner tied her career-high on bars with a 9.900, her second career 9.9 on bars and program-record 29th overall. It is tied for the 10th highest score in program history.
• Anna Pagliaro posted a career day, reaching a career-best 9.825 on vault and significantly improving her career-high on beam with a 9.875, moving past her previous best of 9.625.
• Brayden Battavio tied her career-high on beam at 9.850.
• Gianna Ortiz upped her career-best on beam with a 9.875.
• Hannah Joyner's 9.825 vault is a season-high on the apparatus.
• Freshman Valentina Lorente-Garcia set a new personal standard on bars with a 9.700.
• Maya Jones career-high 9.800 on vault.

A treat to watch Hannah Joyner's second-career 9.9 on bars🤩#ouRyear /// #GoRU! pic.twitter.com/jlwFoMQA2P

— Rutgers Gymnastics (@RUGymnastics) January 21, 2023

TOP INDIVIDUAL PERFORMERS
Vault: Emily Leese, 9.850 (2nd)
Bars:  Hannah Joyner, 9.900 (1st)
Beam: Hannah Joyner, 9.925 (1st)
Floor:  Hannah Joyner & Emily Leese, 9.875
All-Around: Hannah Joyner, 39.525
 
UP NEXT
The Scarlet Knights have two road dates coming up at Oregon State (Jan. 27) and Penn State (Jan. 30).
 
 
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