Being at home isn’t much of a blessing for the Gophers, who seem to struggle with scoring there as much as or more than on the word, but they’re returning from a spectacular meet last week at Penn State in which they would have broken 197 if not for a few landing errors on floor.
Michigan State won’t be able to keep pace with Minnesota if the Gophers are in anywhere near the same shape as last week, but the Spartans are nonetheless in fine form so far in 2019. Lea Mitchell and Ella Douglas are soaring and lifting the team scores with them.
Well this is a creative lineup graphic.
The #Gophers are kicking off tonight's meet on vault! Quaglia, Sales, Sonier, Loper, Williams and Ramler will look to score for Minnesota! #SkiUMah #SocialMediaNight pic.twitter.com/nrgEjSr6B9
— Minnesota Women’s Gym (@GopherWGym) February 2, 2019
For tonight’s competition, the Spartans are starting on Bars! #GoGreen #ONE
There has been a change in the line up. Sydney Ewing will now be in the 2nd spot and Molly Hoerner-O’Malley bumped back to the 3rd spot. pic.twitter.com/aP45tzKiYV
— MSU Gymnastics (@MSUgymnastics) February 2, 2019
ROTATION 1: MINNESOTA VAULT, MICHIGAN STATE BARS
QUAGLIA – MINN: Nice full, good amplitude, hop back.
BROWN – MSU: CH + Tkachev, not enough counter… can’t catch it. Blind full double back with a baby hop. Judging conference right off the top!! Love that.
SALES – MINN: Soft on the table, okay in the air, lands with her chest down and a hop forward.
EWING – MSU: Toe on to bail, pretty toes, okay Tkachev, a bit low but she’s from WOGA what are you gonna do. Blind to half to double back with two quick steps back.
SONIER – MINN: She had a bit of a wait. Nice vault, lots of distance and twists late, big hop back but direction was good.
HOERNER-O’MALLEY – MSU: Blind to Jaeger okay, had a handstand situation, bail a bit messy, giant full double back with a step forward.
LOPER – MINN: One and a half huge with a big hop forward. Yay! Her form is spectacular.
SHIRLEY – MSU: Tkachev to overshoot, uprise, half in half out with a step forward.
WILLIAMS – MINN: Massive full, small hop back, flares like crazy. Beautiful.
MITCHELL – MSU: Toe to Maloney, bit of leg sep, toe to bail. Working hard for the hanstands, blind full double back with a little step.
RAMLER – MINN: Heard a rumor she was upgrading… YES SHE DID IT with a step forward.
LING – MSU: CH + Gienger + overshoot… according to the commentators. They never took the score graphic off so I can’t see it LOL.
Okay full for Lexi Montgomery in the exhibition for MSU. Stancik is the second exo, soft on the table and leg form on her full but got it around.
MINNESOTA 49.000 – MICHIGAN STATE 48.675
Great start by Minnesota, really excited to see Ramler’s debut. Michigan State was solid throughout, touch of form here and there.
ROTATION 2: MICHIGAN STATE VAULT, MINNESOTA BARS
Missed the first vault, it was a Yurchenko tuck full from Shirley.
QUAGLIA – MINN: Pike Jaeger to overshoot, touch of feet, blind full double back STUCK.
HENDERSHOT – MSU: Yurchenko full, kind of falls off the table, pikes it down heavily but lands it.
WILLMARTH – MINN: Shy on first handstand, huge Ray, great bail, blind full double back stuck. Amazing!
BEATTY – MSU: Probably the best full of the day. Great block, gorgeous body position, hop in place.
LOPER – MINN: Maloney to Pak, maybe a bit of leg split on the backswing, just shy on a handstand, blind full double back STUCK. That blind full was fantastic, right on the bar.
HOFELICH – MSU: Full is solid, little piked down with a step back. Lots of amplitude though.
SALES – MINN: Cast over and jumped off. LOL oops. Almost does it again, good bail, jumps off… what was that? She tried to kip out and then just didn’t. Blind to Markelov, gorgeous, double lay stuck.
DOUGLAS – MSU: Yurchenko arabian, gorgeous in the air, midsize step forward.
RAMLER – MINN: Maloney to Pak, great, van Leeuwen, she’s cleaned up her knees a lot. Toe on half in half out with a hop back.
MITCHELL – MSU: Lots of distance on her full, piked down a touch with a step back.
LU – MINN: Maloney to Pak, gorgeous, keeping the van Leeuwen out for now, making the handstands, double lay with a hop back to salute.
Betts in exhibition for MSU. Hit a Ray, bit of feet, blind full double back right on the bar. Ung in the second, blind to Jaeger nice and high, spotted on her bail.
MINNESOTA 98.200 – MICHIGAN STATE 97.475
Minnesota’s looking really good here! The Gophers won’t match the total insanity from Penn State last year but a 196 would still be a big deal. MSU is also looking great and floor is always really exciting from the Spartans so I’m looking forward to this rotation.
ROTATION 3: MINNESOTA BEAM, MICHIGAN STATE FLOOR
Missed the first routine again!! It was Ali SOnier, looked like a good hit.
BROWN – MSU: Double pike I think, switch side Popa, front full front lay , looking really good. Double back, tiny adjustment on the landing.
NYLIN – MINN: Full turn, BHS BHS LOSO great. Hitch kick switch side, one and a half with a tiny hop forward. Nice!
EWING – MSU: Front double full, beautiful dance, one and a half front lay with a bigget step out. Tour jete half wolf full, positions questionable, great Rudi, lands still twisting a touch.
LU – MINN: BHS LOSO, fantastic, cat leap switch half beat. Full turn, working really well so far, nailed the side somi, cartwheel gainer full with a baby step back. She usually doesn’t have a problem sticking, today’s been a bit odd.
RAYBON – MSU: Double front feels off, lands deep and over with a big step forward but stays inside. Switch side Popa, RO-LOSO for requirements, front lay front full and I couldn’t see the corner but she could have been very close to it.
SALES – MINN: BHS BHS LOSO hit. Cat leap switch side. She’s using Twenty One Pilots as her beam music and somehow that vibes 100% with my understanding of who she is. Full turn, gainer pike stuck.
HOFELICH – MSU: Double pike pretty, commentators are huge fans. Switch ring switch something, short of splits, double back a touch deep bit close to stuck. This rotation is going so well!
LOPER – MINN: BHS LOSO nice and easy, full turn, cat leap kickover front with a foot shift maybe. Switch straddle 1/4, a little tentative, one and a half step to salute.
DOUGLAS – MSU: Double pike, little scoot out, front lay front full felt a little underrotated but she kept it down, tour jete half split full, she’s a great dancer too. Double back, amazing.
RAMLER – MINN: Front aerial to wolf, sorry I got distracted staring at her and didn’t write stuff down, side aerial back full stuck. Commentators want a 10.
MITCHELL – MSU: Double back, maybe a bit of a scoot, combo pass really nice, huge lunge on her double pike but just throws her head back and owns it. Love it. Movement quality through the roof on most of this rotation, they’re so much fun to watch.
MKD in the exhibition for Minnesota and looking fantastic, she’s a favorite of mine. MHO for Michigan State, I loved this routine at Elevate and it’s great today too, she’s such a performer. Higgins is Minnesota’s second exo, love her sheep jump.
MINNESOTA 147.450 – MICHIGAN STATE 146.650
Everyone’s putting together amazing totals today. Minnesota cruised through beam and I’m so impressed by MSU’s performance on floor there which turned into a 49.15. MSU beam could get a bit hairy but I expect Minnesota to get a really useful score out of this.
ROTATION 4: MICHIGAN STATE BEAM, MINNESOTA FLOOR
HOYER – MSU: BHS LOSO… gets one foot down and bounces straight off. Whoopsie. Slide to split, commentators are freaking out, a hand down on a turning leap.
CUTLER – MINN: Front lay front full, Rudi with a scoot back, she’s a great performer, great double back.
MCHALE – MSU: Good to see she’s okay after she was pulled from bars for Ewing. BHS LOSO. Her teammates keep breaking the corral and I’m dying laughing. Short on her gainer full dismount with a hop but got through solid.
SONIER – MINN: Great double pike, maybe a bit short of her splits, one and a half front lay with a foot shift.
HOERNER-O’MALLEY – MSU: BHS LOSO, rhythm a little funky but clean. Switch… something with a half turn, standing LOSO, punch front full with a little hop. Nice!
NYLIN – MINN: Double pike, fabulous landing, whip one and a half punch front! That’s different, I love it. Switch side Popa looks a little underrotated, double back. She’s fantastic today.
RAYBON – MSU: Standing LOSO, swims, leg up, saves it. Immediately off on a leap. MSU counting a fall now. Side aerial swing through round off with a step back. Full turn gorgeous, getting her rhythm back, run into punch front full great.
LOPER – MINN: Punch lay punch Rudi to close. Switch ring to something, one and a half front lay, super high. Commentators are super impressed that with that much height she kept her angle for the punch, Y turn, punch Rudi to close. Fantastic landings. Good one!
MITCHELL – MSU: Split straddle quarter is gorgeous, BHS LOSO with a bit of feet and a wobble. Full turn, her presentation is just so pretty, cat leap switch side. Side aerial, arm swing to keep it on, one and a half dismount with a hop forward.
RAMLER – MINN: Jurkowska-Kowalska, double pike, big lunge but keeps her front foot down. Switch ring switch half, settling into the performance of this routine as time goes on, FHS Rudi really nice, one and a half thru double full a little deep but hops to lunge fine. Fabulous.
DOUGLAS – MSU: Double turn ahhh yes. Side aerial LOSO beautiful, side aerial back full dismount stuck. Aggressive and beautiful.
WILLIAMS – MINN: LOVE her anchoring, this was new last week and it works. Ramler is great but doesn’t need the help while Williams has been underscored her whole career. Handspring front double full, almost lifts the back foot but makes it work, we lost her leap series to the camera but I think she does a switch side Popa, one and a half front lay and actually flares the end of the twist. Love it. Rudi to close.
Weideman in the exhibition for MSU, some technical questions on her skills but getting through.
FINAL: MINNESOTA 196.725 – MICHIGAN STATE 194.450
Minnesota is on FIRE. Couldn’t be more excited for this team putting everything together. We knew the Gophers were talented enough to push 197 but we’re not used to it happening. The Spartans were let down a bit by beam but they have an X factor this year that we haven’t seen in a while. Consistency will come.
VAULT: Loper, Ramler 9.850
BARS: Ramler 9.925
BEAM: Ramler 9.950
FLOOR: Williams, Douglas 9.900
AA: Ramler 39.600
Live blog by Rebecca Scally
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