The Big Four Meet put Maryland gymnastics under the brightest lights of the year. The Terps faced three ranked Big Ten opponents and conference tournament stakes Saturday at Xfinity Center.
Maryland secured a third-place finish behind No. 13 Minnesota and No. 15 Michigan, and a win over No. 24 Illinois in its final conference meet of the season. The Terps posted their best meet score of the year with a 196.125 and strengthened their position among the middle four teams in the Big Ten.
“We get to pick up another Big Ten win, a top-25 win,” coach Brett Nelligan said. “We have to see what [teams in] the other sessions do, but hopefully this is enough to get us into that second session at Big Ten Championships.”
Just as they did against Washington — the meet that kickstarted the vault unit’s midseason surge — a pair of newcomers at the top of the lineup came out hot.
Sophomore Logan Buckmon and freshman Rayna Engelmayer started the meet by sticking their landings. Buckmon recorded a 9.800, her second time this season scoring 9.8 or more, and Engelmayer posted a career-high 9.850.
Unlike the meet in Washington, the middle of the lineup didn’t slow down.
[Maryland gymnastics builds confidence ahead of final Big Ten meet]
Fifth-year Alexa Rothenbuescher notched a season-best 9.825, and Taylor Rech followed suit with a season-high 9.875.
Rhea LeBlanc turned in the team’s only sub-9.800 score, but Natalie Martin quickly answered and allowed the team to drop it. The three-event sophomore came through in the pressure-heavy sixth spot and scored a 9.900, her third straight meet with at least that score.
“[Martin] is clutch, but I think you gotta earn being clutch. And that’s what Natalie does every day in the gym,” Nelligan said. “That clutch gene, she built it in herself.”
Maryland (8-7, 4-5 Big Ten) finished with a season-best 49.250 on vault, placing it in a solid second place after one rotation.
The vault lineup wasn’t the only unit with sticky feet at the Big Four Meet.
Bars featured smooth landings from all six gymnasts and four season-highs. Freshman Sarah Saville’s 9.850 was her second-best this season and Hailey Merchant matched her season-high at 9.875.
Senior Tasha Brozowski filled in for Sierra Kondo, one of Maryland’s best on bars, for a second consecutive week. In only her third meet of the year — and the most high-stakes one this season — Brozowski posted a 9.850, her first time scoring more than 9.800.
“Just coming out that first time being back [in the bars lineup] like a couple weeks ago, I just needed that,” Brozowski said. “Just a little bit of confidence in myself.”
[Maryland gymnastics’ vault unit broke out in the past 2 weeks after a modest start]
The Terps secured their most complete rotation of the year behind six scores of more than 9.800, totaling 49.275, their second season-high event score of the night.
Maryland totaled 48.400 on beam, a regression from its previous three meets. It was the Terps’ first significant miscue in their lowest-ranked event at 49th nationally.
That score also dropped the team to third in the event after three rotations, though they maintained a healthy lead over Illinois.
Rech didn’t provide her usual spark from the first slot on floor, posting a 9.675. The rest of the lineup found a groove, however — five straight scores of at least 9.800 followed, securing the team’s second-best floor performance of the year at 49.200.
“When the scores are tight, you start to get on defense and you start to be cautious,” Nelligan said. “I wanted them to be aggressive on floor. More aggressive, not cautious. Let’s go out and finish this night to the best of our ability.”
With a third-place finish and a conference win, the Terps are one step closer to the middle session of the conference tournaments. Maryland travels to Philadelphia to take on Temple next Wednesday.
