Conference championships are finally here! How did the season go by so fast? It’s been a crazy year in the Big Ten, and today we get one final look at the top teams before they head to regionals. This session we’ll get to see Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, and Iowa.
First up we have Michigan. The Wolverines are ranked first in the Big Ten and second in the country. Just a few weeks ago the Wolverines beat the number one ranked Oklahoma Sooners. Michigan will hope to keep that momentum going today and further into the postseason. But Michigan can’t look too far into the future, or it may be looking at a repeat of last time it faced Michigan State.
Michigan State has had a stellar season. We thought last year was outstanding, and this year has been even better! The Spartans have broken record after record this season, and they even beat their in-state rival Michigan! If Michigan State can hit its routines and catch the Wolverines off-guard, we could be looking at another potential upset.
But don’t look past Ohio State quite yet! There’s a reason that the Buckeyes are in the evening session of this meet, and it’s because they’ve also had a great season! Ohio State is ranked 15th nationally, and it’ll be hoping to secure a seeded spot in the upcoming regionals. But the Buckeyes’ highest scores have come at home. Will they be able to put up a 197 on the road before regionals start? We’ll have to see.
Finally, we have Iowa. Iowa’s hosting this meet, so it’s great that it was able to sneak into the night session! Unlike Ohio State, a lot of Iowa’s bigger scores this year have come from away meets. If Iowa can figure out how to use its home crowd to its advantage, the Hawkeyes could put up one more big score before regionals begin.
Rotation 1: Iowa VT, Michigan UB, Ohio State BB, Michigan State FX
Heiskell (UM): Nice handstand to start out. Blind into a great Jaeger. Really hitting these handstands. Pak down to low. Blind full into a stuck double tuck! Michigan couldn’t have asked for a better leadoff!
Masella (UI): Yurchenko full, nice amplitude but lands with her chest pretty low.
Nyah Smith (MSU): Wow, really high front tuck through to double tuck to start out. Nice switch side to Popa. Back 1.5 to front layout. Finishes with a solid double pike.
Wilson (UM): Nice piked Jaeger. Shootover down to low. Sticks the double layout.
Hankins (OSU): Gorgeous flic lay, just a tiny wobble but she pulls it back. Solid front toss. Nice switch leap to split quarter. Sticks the roundoff double twist!
Koulos (UM): Blind into a Jaeger. Nice shootover down to the low bar. Hits her last handstand and takes a small hop back on the double layout, maybe also some leg separation.
Castillo (UI): Yurchenko full, slightly piked and takes a small hop forward.
Harris (OSU): Super solid front aerial to back tuck. Stuck the double twist! Obviously I seemed to miss her leaps
Beaufait (MSU): Missed the first pass, but saw a nice switch ring to switch half. Back 1.5 to front layout. Finishes with a nice Rudi.
Bauman (UM): Very high Jaeger to shootover combination. Hits and holds the last handstand and nails the double front dismount! Michigan is on fire on bars!
Zuhlke (UI): Nice amplitude on her signature vault, just a small hop back.
Brooks (UM): Blind to piked Jaeger to start out. Beautiful shootover. Sticks the full twisting double layout! She hit all of those handstands really well.
Harkness (MSU): Great full in to start. Switch leap to tour jete half to wolf full. Front tuck through to a super high double tuck. She had great control and height on both of her passes.
Wojcik (UM): Super high Deltchev to shootover combination as usual. Nails the last handstand and takes a tiny hop back on the double layout.
Munoz (UI): Super high Yurchenko full! Just took a super small hop in place on the landing, but wow that was so high!
Stephen (MSU): Front tuck through to a double pike, she has to slightly hop forward. Switch half to wolf full. Gorgeous front double twist, great control!
Vetter (OSU): Solid flic lay. Nice side aerial. Switch leap straddle quarter. Finishes with a roundoff double twist, she hops back and her knees were bent.
Zivat (UI): Tsuk full, she had some leg separation and hopped back but overall it was nice!
Pritchard (OSU): Solid side aerial to start out. Flic lay series, just a tiny wobble. Switch leap to straddle quarter. Finishes with a roundoff 1.5
Nikki Smith (MSU): Gorgeous full in to start out, great height and control. Nice switch half to Popa. Back 1.5 to front layout, the 1.5 was really high. Really nice double tuck to finish.
Warga (OSU): Very nice front aerial to back handspring series. Cat leap to switch half, maybe a little shy of 180. Beautiful piked front toss, she got a lot of height. Finishes with a gainer pike and she sticks it!
Henderson (UI): Sky high Yurchenko full, great form in the air and takes a small hop at the end.
Schulte (MSU): Wow, really high full in and nails the landing! Switch half to Popa to straddle jump, she shows great flexibility in the straddle positions. Front tuck through to a double tuck to finish, great control on that landing. That was an awesome routine!
After 1: Michigan 49.725, Michigan State 49.425, Ohio State 49.15, Iowa 49.1
We saw some great gymnastics in this rotation! Michigan was focused on the details on bars and put up a huge 49.725. Michigan State and Iowa were full of amplitude on floor and vault, respectively, and Ohio State was solid on beam! It’s looking like Michigan really doesn’t want to get taken down by the Spartans again, but the Spartans came to play!
Rotation 2: Michigan State VT, Iowa UB, Michigan BB, Ohio State FX
Bauman (UM): Gorgeous flic lay series, just drops her shoulder a little bit. Cat leap to switch half. Nice straight legged side Sumi. Gainer pike dismount and takes a big step forward.
Zuhlke (UI): I missed the first release but she does a Pak with some form issues. Blind full to double back dismount.
Ny. Smith (MSU): Stuck Yurchenko full! Maybe a slight pike down but that was a great vault!
Masella (UI): Blind into a piked Jaeger. Nice shootover. Solid last handstand and sticks the double layout!
Wilson (UM): Nice flic lay series to start out. Standing switch standing switch. Double tuck dismount and steps back.
Riccardi (OSU): Super high double pike and stumbles out of bounds but stays on her feet. Tour jete half to Popa (?). Nice back 1.5 to front layout. Finishes with a double tuck with a very controlled landing.
Garcia (MSU): Very nice Yurchenko full, just hops backward.
Koulos (UM): Very solid flic lay. Gorgeous full turn. Beat jump to straddle three quarter. Super high roundoff 1.5 dismount and takes a decent sized step.
Rojas (UI): Nice Geinger. Shootover down to low. Nice last handstand and hops on her full out dismount.
Gagliardi (OSU): Starts with a Rudi to double stag jump, nice control. Switch side to Popa. Finishes with a double pike, her chest is a little low on the landing.
Schulte (MSU): Sticks the Yurchenko full! Nice form in the air too.
Brooks (UM): Super solid flic lay. Nice switch leap switch leap, great positions. Awesome front toss. Back handspring to a stuck double twist!
Harris (OSU): Super high double pike to start out, controls the landing. Nice switch side to Popa. Gorgeous front double twist, another great landing. Finishes with a front full to front layout.
Heiskell (UM): Nice cat leap to side aerial. Switch leap switch leap. Gorgeous flic lay. Finishes with a stuck roundoff 1.5! It’s a 10! Her first on beam!
Kellerman (MSU): Front handspring pike half, and she sticks it! Her chest may have been a little low, but that’s a new career high 9.925!
Edwards (OSU): Really high double pike to start out, shuffles her feet on the landing. Back 1.5 to super high front layout. Switch side to Popa. Finishes with another really high double tuck.
Kenlin (UI): Really nice Maloney to Pak combination. Blind full to a double tuck, she stuck it but her legs were really far apart.
Ni. Smith (MSU): Yurchenko 1.5 a little crooked and takes a step forward.
Wojcik (UM): Beautiful front aerial to beat jump. Nice switch leap to split jump. Solid flic flic lay. Dismounts with a roundoff 1.5 and hops back. It probably would’ve been another 10 without that hop.
Hodges (OSU): Starts with a double pike. Tour jete half Popa Popa. Nice Rudi to back layout step out.
Stephen (MSU): Super high stuck Yurchenko full!
After 2: Michigan 99.2, Michigan State 98.675, Iowa 98.4, Ohio State 98.025
This rotation started out a little shaky for Michigan, but a perfect 10 from Abby Heiskell got the Wolverines back to where it wants to be. Michigan State was nailing its landings on vault, and Iowa and Ohio State had some solid routines as well.
Rotation 3: Ohio State VT, Michigan State UB, Iowa BB, Michigan FX
Koulos (UM): Nice 2.5 to front tuck for her first pass. Switch half to wolf full. Solid double pike to finish her routine off.
Henderson (UI): Beautiful flic lay. Nice switch leap to straddle quarter. Dismounts with a double tuck and hops backward.
Schulte (MSU): Starts with a Maloney to shootover combination. Sticks the double layout!
Ebeling (UI): Solid flic lay. Front aerial, underrotates and falls. Split jump to ring jump, decent wobble at the end. Dismounts with a stuck gainer pike.
Heiskell (UM): Starts with a really high double Arabian with a small hop back. Switch half to wolf full. Last pass is a back 1.5 to front full.
Kellerman (MSU): Blind into a nice Jaeger. Nice shootover. A little short on the last handstand, takes a small hop on the blind full to double tuck.
Vetter (OSU): Yurchenko full, she flairs it out at the perfect time and sticks it!
Stephen (MSU): Nice Maloney to start. She has some great handstands. Shootover down to low. Super high full in but hops back on the landing.
Wojcik (UM): Tour jete full, great flexibility. Back 1.5 to front layout. Nice tour jete half to Popa. Finishes with a really high double pike.
Jackard (MSU): Gorgeous first handstand. Nice blind into a Jaeger. Shootover to the low bar. Blind full into a double tuck and hops back. It’s a shame she hopped back because she nailed the rest of that routine!
Malas (OSU): Yurchenko full with a small hop back.
Ni. Smith (MSU): Maloney to Pak combination, great amplitude on both. Really holds that last handstand and takes a decent sized step on the double layout. Michigan State just can’t stick on bars today.
Riccardi (OSU): Nice Yurchenko full! She may have taken a tiny hop in place but that landing was solid.
Morrison (UM): Gorgeous half in half out to open up the routine. Nice front layout to front full. Switch half to wolf full. Solid double tuck to finish.
Harkness (MSU): Really high Geiner to start out. Nice shootover too. She’s holding these handstlands. Shuffles back on the dismount.
Munoz (UI): Flic lay, she has a pretty big wobble but stays on. Finishes with a back handspring to side gainer full, looks like I came in at the end of the routine.
Brooks (UM): Solid full in to start the routine, nice height and control. Tour jete half to split full. Nice front tuck through to double tuck, again great height and control.
Kenlin (UI): Front aerial. Solid flic lay series. Switch leap, split jump, split three quarter with a small wobble. Sticks the cartwheel gainer full! She didn’t feel the pressure at all!
Harris (OSU): Yurchenko 1.5 with a hop forward.
Jennings (OSU): Wow! Really high Yurchenko full and she sticks!
Guggino (UM): Double pike to start out, she jumps to her lunge. Front layout to front full. Switch side to Popa. Last pass is a solid Rudi.
Edwards (OSU): Another really high Yurchenko full, maybe a bit of a college stick but that was an insane vault!
After 3: Michigan 148.575, Michigan State 148.025, Ohio State 147.7, Iowa 146.875
Well, it looks like Michigan State used up all of its sticks on vault! The Spartans put up some amazing bar routines but just couldn’t stick the dismounts. Iowa had a shaky beam rotation with two falls, but Adeline Kenlin anchored with a solid 9.95. Ohio State had some great vaults, including two stuck Yurchenko fulls at the end of the lineup from Sydney Jennings and Lexi Edwards.
Rotation 4: Michigan VT, Ohio State UB, Michigan State BB, Iowa FX
Pritchard (OSU): It brought me into this routine late. Bail to the low bar. Blind full to double tuck and hops forward.
Kalefe (MSU): Very nice flic flic lay series. Switch leap to tuck full. Finishes with a stuck cartwheel gainer full! What a great leadoff!
Wojcik (UM): Super high Yurchenko 1.5, just a tiny bit of foot movement on the landing.
Harris (OSU): Nice Ray. Shootover to low, a little short of handstand. Blind full to a stuck double tuck.
Harkness (MSU): Flic lay, tiny wobble at the end but covered it well. Side aerial. Oops I missed her leaps. Cat leap to side aerial to a stuck tucked 1.5
Libby (UI): Starts with a gorgeous front double twist with amazing control. Nice back 1.5 to front layout, outstanding control again. Oh no I missed her leaps too. Nice Rudi to finish, her chest was just a little low. What a great routine!
Wilson (UM): Yurchenko 1.5 and it looks like a stick? Maybe a little bit of a shuffle.
Ni. Smith (MSU): Nice flic lay. Switch leap to straddle quarter. Takes a pretty big step on the double tuck dismount.
Morrison (UM): Another great Yurchenko 1.5! Like Wilson, it was a great landing but just shuffled her feet a little bit.
Hankins (OSU): Blind into a Jaeger. Pak down to low, she had some foot separation. Sticks the double layout, just had some leg separation.
Kenlin (UI): Front double twist and she stumbles out of bounds but doesn’t fall. Switch leap to tour jete ring full. Finishes with a back 1.5 to front layout.
Schulte (MSU): Switch leap to switch half to beat jump. Solid flic lay. Switch leap to side gainer full and she sticks it.
Brooks (UM): Yurchenko 1.5, it was a little crooked and she stepped back.
Riccardi (OSU): Great first handstand. Really nice high Ray. All of these handstands are gorgeous. Super high Pak. Nice Stalder to a double tuck and hops back.
Heiskell (UM): Yurchenko 1.5 with a hop forward.
Stephen (MSU): Front aerial to two feet with a small wobble. Nice flic lay. Beat jump to straddle half. Roundoff double twist to finish it and she hops forward.
Munoz (UI): Starts with an awesome double layout! Switch half to wolf full. Front tuck through to a double tuck and took some steps on the landing.
Morgan (UM): Nice Yurchenko full, hops backward and maybe has some bent knees.
Miller (OSU): Nice Maloney to shootover combination. Hops back on the double layout.
Garcia (MSU): Very nice flic lay. Solid front aerial to split jump. Switch leap split jump, great positions. Back handspring to side gainer full dismount, pikes down just a little bit.
Henderson (UI): Really high full in with great control on the landing. Switch half to Popa to straddle jump. Front tuck through to a sky high double tuck! Great routine from Henderson as usual! The crowd is booing because she got a 9.95.
Final: Michigan 198.000, Michigan State 197.550, Ohio State 196.975, Iowa 196.125
Everyone finished strong in the last rotation! Michigan is looking really good heading into regionals, and if it can get its vault landings under control, Oklahoma may be in trouble at nationals. Michigan State proved that it’s a force to be reckoned with heading into regionals, and I can only wonder what its team score would’ve looked like with some more stuck bar landings. Ohio State had a very solid meet that should boost its confidence going into regionals. As for Iowa, the Hawkeyes had some errors on beam but came back strong on floor. The Hawkeyes will hope to leave those beam troubles behind them as the postseason continues!
Big Ten Event Champions:
Vault: Hooten, Wilson and Kellerman, 9.925
Bars: Heiskell, Brooks, Wojcik, Takekawa, Harkness and Bauman, 9.950
Beam: Heiskell, 10.000
Floor: Henderson and Hooten, 9.950
All Around: Heiskell, 39.700
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Live blog by Emily Lockard
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