The Nittany Lions head to the Banks to take on a Scarlet Knights squad that has been steadily improving each meet so far this season. Avery Balser’s bar set is can’t-miss, as is Emily Leese on floor. Bars has been a particular struggle through the first three weeks, but a shuffled lineup at Maryland in week three seemed to do the trick. The test will be to replicate that hit.
For Penn State, it’s been a bit of a January rollercoaster, but this squad is capable of a mid-196, a number it put up at home versus Iowa State. Freshman all-arounder Kalea McElligot is really settling in, and Gabbie Gallentine was back on bars last week after missing the first two. Both are good signs for a team that just needs to find a little consistency to make a big rankings push.
Rutgers’ best day can challenge Penn State when it’s having an off performance, so the Nittany Lions should be wary of opening the door. Remember, win-loss matters in the Big Ten for conference championship seeding.
Rotation 1: Rutgers vault, Penn State bars
Lorente-Garcia (RU): Yfull, popped up and forward with low chest on the landing, bent arms on the table. 9.7
Johanson (PSU):Toe hand, nice, hit a heel on her Tkatchev. Leg sep on the Pak, but impressive that she kept her rhythm. DLO, couldn’t see her feet on the landing, Lexy Mattern says stick. 9.5
Jones (RU): Yfull, Great block! Biggish hop back, I think one foot touched the guide lines. Yep, clearly on replay. 9.725
Johnston (PSU): Maloney to bail hand, great handstand there. Blind full touch late double tuck, cowboyed, stuck. 9.875
Scores aren’t coming in, so I’m relying on the broadcast for those for now.
Riley (RU): Yfull, leg sep in the preflight, hop back after a pike down. 9.775
McElligott (PSU): Toe hand to Maloney, leg sep, Pak, again, leg sep. Late half pirouette. Stadler to double tuck, held the stick with. 9.75, those messy legs.
Aird (RU): Yfull, twisted early on the table, step backward. 9.775
Gallentine (PSU): Toe hand to Maloney, some leg sep but not bad, Pak was nice. Great last handstand. DLO, true stick. PSU is dialing in these landings! 9.825
Dildy (RU): Yfull, good height, small hop. Twisted a touch early. 9.85
Piedrahita (PSU): Toe hand to Maloney Pak combo. Some leg sep but not huge. FTDB, just pulls her feet together on the landing, her chest was super upright. 9.9
Leese (RU): Y1.5, small hop back, slight knee form in the preflight.
Rushlow (PSU): Blind to Jaeger, just takes it out too far and falls. PSU will have to count that 9.5. Remounts. Bail, not enough momentum and hits her feet on the ground. Full-in, step back. 8.55
Hughes (RU, ex.): Yfull, tucked, medium hop back. On reply, really close to the table, almost touched her head.
Mace (PSU, ex.): Bit of a delay, taking time for the judges to sort out Rushlow’s score. Maloney, leg sep, to nearly straddled Pak. DLO, hop back and turned to salute to cover a step.
After 1: Rutgers 49.025, Penn State 48.850
Oh I see you in your Louboutins USB!
Tough start for the Nittany Lions. Really uncharactaristic from Rushlow who has been nearly perfect on bars. Rutgers looked strong on vault; hopping back on fulls in January isn’t any disaster. The Scarlet Knights just need to finesse those landings, and they’ll have a very competitive six vaults.
Rotation 2: Penn State vault, Rutgers bars
Vihrova (PSU): FHS pike, hop forward, nice in the air. 9.775
Lorente-Garcia (RU): Maloney, leg sep, to Pak, caught with closed shoulders. Short handstand. DLO, soft knees, hop forward. 9.625
Herring (PSU): Yfull, big pike down and a hop back. 9.8
Manifold (RU): Toe hand to Ray, slight arm bend on the catch, bail. Blind to Rudi, archy and leg sep, hop forward. 9.775
Johnston (PSU): Yfull, pike down, holds the stick. 9.85
Dinovi (RU): Toe hand to Maloney, leg sep. Hard fall on her Pak, just too far over the bar. She looks okay, but the wind got knocked out of her. Blind full late to double tuck, big step forward. Seems like her body just hurts. Oof. 8.9
Salcedo (PSU): Yhalf on pike, leg sep on the preflight, not huge distance.
Aird (RU): Blind to pike Jaeger. Clear hip hand to bail hand, nice. DLO, hop forward. Great routine! 9.7
McElligott (PSU): Yfull, some hip angle, raised her heels on the landing. Nope on replay that’s a full hop.
Daniels (RU): Blind full to bail hand. Tkatchev, nice. DLO, leg sep, low chest and a hop back.
Piedrahita (PSU): Yhalf on pike, small hop back. 9.9
Balser (RU): Great handstand. Blind to Jaeger, just some foot form. Pak DLO, hop forward. Gorgeous. 9.85
Rushlow (PSU, ex.): Yfull, low and a step forward, her knee might have brushed the ground. She’s just not on tonight.
Rains (RU, ex.): Nice Jaeger. Pak, leg sep and shoulder angle. Arm bend on her stalder, double tuck big step back.
After 2: Penn State 98.075, Rutgers 97.725
Penn State put up a strong rotation, minimizing landing errors, to capitalize on some mistakes from Rutgers to take the lead. Dinovi’s fall was one of the more unpleasant ones to watch, when you can just feel the wind getting knocked out of her, so hopefully she’s alright.
Rotation 3: Rutgers beam, Penn State floor
Manifold (RU): Bhs loso, tiny check with a quick recovery. Cat to side aerial, again a tiny check. Just missing that last bit of precision and finish. Jump I missed to split 3/4 was nice. Side aerial to 3/2, small adjustment on the landing. 9.8
Kramer (PSU): There’s maybe a lineup change or issue with music? SSB is at the head table talking to an official. Here we go. FHS 2/1 front tuck, low on the twist, very low on the tuck, nearly sat it but stayed on her feet. Switch to Tour jete half wolf full, nice shapes. FHS Rudi loso, much better there. 9.525
Dildy (RU): Cat to front toss bhs, clean but a little timid throughout. Cat switch side, little shy of 180. Cartwheel gainer full, holds the stick, chest a bit forward. She just took it out more than up. 9.55, a CV issue?
Johnston (PSU): In for Vihrova last-minute. Double pike, some knee form and a little movement with the front foot in the lunge. FHs Rudi, low chest but otherwise nice. Switch ring tour jete half split full, short of 180 on both of the latter two. RO 3/2 punch lay, but she tucked it. That’ll impact SV, likely. 9.625
Riley (RU): Long wait here. Wondering if Dildy’s routine is having a CV issue with the slow connections in her series. Bhs loso, solid. Side aerial. She’s missing just a little extension in the acro. Split to split 3/4, nice. Bhs 3/2, chest forward and swam her arms, can’t hold it and steps into the salute. 9.85
Piedrahita (PSU): Full-in, great landing. Switch half wolf full, dropped her chest pretty far on the wolf. Front through double tuck, another great landing. Really strong set. 9.875
Leese (RU): Front toss bhs, check in between, I’d call it a broken connection. Split to straddle 3/4, nice there. Check on her full turn. Front tuck 1/1, stuck. 9.5, they definitely took the connection.
Herring (PSU): Double Arabian, has to jump into a small lunge to stay in bounds, manages it. Switch side half to straddle, huge splits. RO 3/2 front lay, not huge amplitude on the lay but clean. 9.875
Judges are conferencing on Leese, presumably sorting out that series.
Aird (RU): Candle mount. She moves with a lot of patience. Bhs loso, nice amplitude. Switch, small check, to switch half short of 180 to split. Front gainer full, good landing. 9.8
McElligott (PSU): Double pike, not quite around, step forward. Soft knees in the air, too. Switch ring to switch to wolf full, not a good angle to see the shapes. RO 3/2 front lay, low on the lay. Double tuck, really deep in her knees, three steps back including OOB. Just some endurance issues seems like. 9.55
Another long wait for Aird’s number, and USB seems to be flipping through the COP. We can expect her to inquiry I think.
Zannella (RU): Sissonne mount, nice. Pretty scale. Split to ring, check and her front leg was low. Bhs bhs loso, no deductions there. Side aerial tuck 3/2, just hopped her feet together. 9.825
Salcedo (PSU): Double front, cowboyed and foot form but a good landing. Switch full sissonne, nice. Loso, to get her backward requirement. Front lay front full front pike, nice. 9.85
Rains (RU, ex.): Bhs loso, break at the hips and falls. Cat, barely got off the beam, front aerial and no connection there. Split to split ring, low front leg. Check on her full turn. Gainer full off the side.
Maul (PSU, ex.): Double pike, really had to pull the second salto around, but a clean landing. Tour jete half to beat jump. Hmm that’s an interesting leap combo. As I was typing that I missed a longer leap combo that started with a low front leg in a switch ring. And then I missed her last pass! Sorry, folks, it’s almost dinner time, aka time to grab a rotation break snack.
After 3: Penn State 146.850, Rutgers 146.550
Rutgers’ series got the best of them. Slow connections held an otherwise pretty nice rotation back, and allowed Penn State to keep the lead despite landing errors besmirching its floor rotation. All of the mistakes are fixable, and the Nittany Lions errors could be down to early season endurance problems.
Rotation 4: Penn State beam, Rutgers floor
Piedrahita (PSU): Bhs loso, soft knees but solid. Side aerial, clean there. Cat to switch half, check and it wasn’t 180. RO 3/2, flared it and hopped forward. 9.775
Zannella (RU): High double tuck, clean lunge out. FHS front lay front full, lacking a little amplitude there. RO whip to 2/1, hop forward. Switch ring to switch ring half, those were the nicest rings we’ve seen today. 9.85
Gibble (PSU): Bhs loso, solid but soft knees. Front aerial to split, low shoulder on both landings, good cover. Cat to switch side. Cartwheel 3/2 stick. Great set! She had some errors but really knew how to minimize her deductions. 9.8
Aird (RU): Double pike, too much juice and slides backward in her lunge. Switch half to split full, not quite 180s and imprecise rotations. Front lay front full, good there. Double tuck, much better lunge that time. 9.85
McElligott (PSU): Bhs bhs loso, solid. Her lines are excellent. Switch to split 1/4. Just really elite extension, it immediately sets her apart from the other gymnastics we’ve seen on beam. RO 3/2, hop forward. 9.875
Webster (RU): FTDB, low chest but hops into her lunge in a good recovery. Pretty clean through leaps, hard to see the shapes form the angle. Front through double tuck, good landing. 9.85
Herring (PSU): Front toss bhs, soft knees in the latter. Small full turn check in her shoulders. Side somi. Clean jumps. Tuck front 1/1, hop forward. 9.8
Dildy (RU): Front through double tuck, nice, just some foot form. Switch side half Popa, little off balance in the air but nice 180s. Double pike, just picked her front foot up and didn’t truly lunge. Shushunova to close. 9.8
Salcedo (PSU): Smile after her full turn. Bhs loso, just adjusted her front foot. Front tuck, no deductions. She’s singing to her beam music! Little bobble in her choreo, break at chest forward on her leaps. Stuck dismount. 9.85
Wood (RU): FHS Rudi to high loso, scooted her front foot bit. Tour jete half to split full tuck full, not a true tuck shape, more of a butt kick. FHS 2/1, clean landing. 9.875
Johnston (PSU): Bhs loso, clean. She’s so calm up there. Split to sheep, no movement on the landing. Steady side aerial. She is on. RO 3/2, hop forward. 9.9, just that hop!
Leese (RU): Full-in, messy legs and low chest to hop forward. Switch half Popa Shushunova, little imprecise in the rotation. Front through double tuck, moved her front foot a bit. 9.875
We’re not seeing the PSU beam exhibition on the broadcast.
FINAL: Penn State 196.075, Rutgers 195.850
A great closing rotation for Penn State. Hitting beam on the road to seal the deal? We love to see the composure after some shakiness earlier in the day. Rutgers also closed strong, with overall quite clean tumbling after a sometimes-rocky night. Plenty to work on for both teams, but way to close on a high note.
As an aside, hopefully Cassidy Rushlow is doing alright! She presumably was pulled from the second half after her bar fall and iffy vault exhibition.
VT: Leese, 9.900
UB: Piedrahita, 9.900
BB: Johnston, 9.900
FX: Wood, 9.875
AA: Piedrahita, 39.450
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Live blog by Emily Minehart
