After struggling on beam despite recent triumphs in the event, the Maryland gymnastics team headed to the floor, looking to keep pace with conference foes Ohio State, Rutgers and Michigan State, who were all ahead of the Terps at the Big Ten championships.
Maryland’s 47.775 on beam Saturday was its lowest mark in the event since the first meet of the season. But the Terps followed the disappointing score with a tenacious effort in their lowest-ranked event.
A season-high 49.225 on floor, led by junior Alecia Farina’s 9.9, proved to be the highlight of a challenging meet for Maryland.
The Terps entered the Big Ten championships hoping to show off the routines that have helped the team break 196 in each of its past two meets. However, an uneven performance saw the squad post a 194.8, good enough for third place in the first session but their lowest score since the first meet of the season.
“It wasn’t our best meet,” sophomore Sabriyya Rouse said.
Maryland started off on the bars, looking to build on 49s in each of the past three meets. However, the Terps failed to break the 49 plateau on Saturday, with only two gymnasts posting 9.8s.
Sophomore Audrey Barber, recently named second team all-Big Ten, earned a season-high 9.9, pushing the Terps to a 48.95 in what has been their best event all season. She earned the all-around crown Saturday with a 39.325.
“Her release was actually unusual for her — it was a little far. She had to reach out and she caught it on her fingertips,” coach Brett Nelligan said. “But [she] stayed calm, stayed through the rest of the routine, and nailed the dismount. It was a huge routine.”
Early in the season, the Terps’ struggles on beam were evident; it would frequently garner their lowest score among the four events. But in recent weeks, they had shown growth on the apparatus, reeling off consecutive 49s in each of their last two meets.
On Saturday, though, the early-season miscues returned. Maryland was unable to overcome two falls, and no Maryland gymnast scored higher than Barber’s 9.775 as the Terps posted just a 47.775 on beam — only better than the score they earned in their first meet of the season.
“We started out a little tight. We were a little cautious, a little conservative,” Nelligan said. “We were able to survive bars, but you can’t be that tight on beam, and it really affected us.”
Nelligan’s squad found itself in last place heading into the third rotation on floor. However, with Maryland’s recent successes on the floor, the young team was determined to make up for their poor showing on beam.
“When we went over to floor, we really just focused on letting ourselves go and enjoying the rest of the meet,” Farina said. “We know that is the best way [that] we compete as a team.”
Junior Kirsten Peterman led off with a 9.8, setting the stage for yet another impressive display for the Terps, who earned a season-best 49.225. Three gymnasts posted scores of at least 9.85, headlined by Farina, who shattered her season-high with a 9.9.
“It was such an awesome feeling to be able to pull through for the team, especially at Big Ten championships,” Farina said. “It was so exciting to do the floor routine [that] I’ve been waiting to accomplish all season.”
Maryland finished on the vault, looking to impress after earning 49.125s in each of its past two meets. Sophomore Collea Burgess and freshman Alexsis Rubio added to their plethora of solid individual performances, as both gymnasts earned a 9.8.
However, the Terps were unable to eclipse their season-high showings from the past two meets, finishing with a 48.85 in the event.
Despite struggling at times on Saturday, Maryland wants use the meet as a learning experience to further prepare its young squad for the postseason.
“We learned our lesson [that] we can’t wait until halfway through the meet to be ourselves,” Nelligan said. “We got to do that right from the first routine on the first event. We got to relax and got to be aggressive.”
With their impressive performances throughout the season, the Terps have put themselves in position to earn a spot in NCAA Regionals. After Saturday’s showing, though, it remains to be seen whether the Terps will earn automatic qualification into NCAA Regionals or if they will have to enter a play-in game.
Regardless, Maryland will aim to cut out the little mistakes that reared their ugly head in Saturday’s meet.
“We know what we need to fix and we have two weeks to prepare and work hard on what we need to,” Rouse said. “We have the potential to have an awesome meet [at regionals].”
