Maryland gymnastics’ beam and vault lineups relied on their second halves after starting slow. But on floor, the Terps wasted no time.
Behind signature showings on floor and vault, Maryland recorded a 195.750-194.725 win over Iowa. The victory marks its first consecutive Big Ten victory this year.
“This helps us in the Big Ten standings and where we’re looking to be for the Big Ten tournament,” coach Brett Nelligan said. “Wins in this conference are extremely hard, and we have eight teams in the top 25 in this conference.”
The first half of the Terps’ (6-5, 2-3 Big Ten) vault lineup had minor stumbles and wobbles, though avoided any major mistakes. All three gymnasts scored between 9.6 and 9.75, leaving the unit on track for a subpar performance. Then, the second half of the lineup starred.
Junior Taylor Rech stuck her landing for a season-best 9.850, sparking a string of strong finishes. Senior Rhea LeBlanc and sophomore Natalie Martin matched their season-high scores — Martin repeated her performance from last week’s meet at Washington with a 9.925.
“I’m going for a lot more height on my vault because that helps me to kinda hone in [on sticking the landing] a little bit more,” Martin said.
[After inconsistent start, Maryland gymnastics’ beam lineup has found its stride]
Maryland’s vault lineup, the team’s only event that hadn’t reached 49 through five meets, has now reached that mark in back-to-back weeks.
The Terps’ coaching staff slightly tweaked their bars lineup against Iowa (3-3, 3-3 Big Ten).
Senior Tasha Brozowski, who previously filled in for graduate student Alexa Rothenbuescher when she took a one-week break from bars, replaced senior Sierra Kondo.
Kondo had her lone major deduction of the season after suffering a fall and dropping her score to 8.5000. She was previously the Terps’ leading scorer on the event and posted a team-high event score of 9.9950 against then-No. 11 UCLA.
The bars specialist’s absence proved costly — Maryland posted a 48.750, its second-lowest bars score of the season.
Individually, senior Hailey Merchant had a bounce-back performance with a 9.8000 after scoring a mere 9.675 last week. LeBlanc and freshman Sarah Saville, the Terps’ top two bars performers, were both in line with their season averages with 9.775s.
Maryland had two lackluster scores from Rothenbuescher and freshman Rayna Engelmayer, who competed in place of injured sophomore Layla Hammer for the third straight week.
The fifth-year’s routine was going smoothly until the dismount, when Rothenbuescher lost her balance and wobbled. A sloppy landing limited an otherwise excellent routine to a 9.6000.
Like on vault, the latter half of the lineup shined.
“When Victoria hit that routine, I think it gave the whole team a lot of confidence,” Nelligan said. “And we rode that all the way to the best of the beam lineup and right into floor.”
[Alexa Rothenbuescher is back to leading Maryland gymnastics after weeks of struggles]
Senior Victoria Gatzendorfer and Martin scored 9.750 and 9.800, but the highlight of the rotation was junior Madeline Komoroski. One of the catalysts for the beam unit’s newfound consistency, Komoroski posted her second 9.900 of the year to pad her team-leading average score on beam.
After weeks of up-and-down play, the beam lineup has scored more than 48 in three straight meets.
Floor, the Terps’ final rotation, began with a burst of energy. Rech energized the lineup with her high-tempo routine and 9.850, a meet-high score in the first slot for Maryland.
“Taylor … for three years now has been leading us off so strong. She’s crucial to that floor lineup to get everything rolling,” Nelligan said. “She sets that bar super high, and everybody’s able to jump on board and follow along.”
LeBlanc and Komoroski followed with season-best scores.
The unit finished at 49.150, its best performance since its season-high on Feb. 2, to aid a narrow win for the Terps.
Maryland will look to keep rolling off two of its finest showings of the year into the Big Four Meet against No. 15 Michigan, No. 13 Minnesota and No. 21 Illinois next weekend, its first quad since a sweep at the Rutgers Quad.
