Central Michigan at Iowa State

Recap

The Big Storyline: Central Michigan didn’t let beam troubles get in its way of an upset, ultimately taking the meet by eight tenths after Iowa State was forced to count a near season low on bars. 

Implications: While Central Michigan will stay ranked fourth in the MAC, its average now pushes above 195. With all three home meets now finished, it’ll look to continue its momentum from this meet to gather dependable road scores through the back half of the season. Iowa State will continue on its quest to put together a second complete meet, having only once this year registered all four events over 48.500.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 44 Central Michigan at No.41 Iowa State

Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: Iowa State brings the Beauty and the Beast meet to Hilton Coliseum this weekend. This out-of-conference meet may be one of the closest of the weekend, with the teams only separated by three places in the national rankings. Where it gets interesting is the variety in strengths—Iowa State has trended stronger on vault and beam this season while Central Michigan comes in as the favorite on bars and floor.  

Need More Proof? Besides the possibility of watching gymnastics with a little wrestling sprinkled in, there are some individual athletes who will be looking for a big performance. Hannah Demers is coming off a near career high all-around score, with a 39.525 from last week’s Senior Night. Central Michigan also has a host of floor depth this season, with specialists Taylor Pitchell, Ashley Veglucci, and Elizabeth Buttle all eclipsing 9.900 in 2023. Iowa State also has specialists that will be looking to make a splash at home. Maddie Diab has been exceptional on floor this season, averaging 9.895, and bars/floor specialist Laura Cooke is averaging 9.800-plus on both of her events.