University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Illinois
Minnesota Falls to Illinois
2/4/2017 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
No. 23 Minnesota dropped a meet to No. 21 Illinois, 196.025-193.375, at Huff Hall Gymnasium on Saturday evening. The Big Ten Conference loss is the first for Minnesota since the 2015 season.
"It wasn't the meet we were hoping for," head coach Jenny Hansen said. "We wanted to build off our incredible meet last weekend, but unfortunately we weren't able to replicate our success on the road."
By event, the team scored a 48.600 on vault, a 47.550 on uneven bars, a 48.150 on beam, and a 49.075.
Freshman Paige Williams was named co-event champion on vault after scoring a 9.825. Abby DeMuse followed closely with a 9.800 for third place. Ciara Gardner rounded out the top-three performers for the Gophers with a 9.725 for sixth.
On uneven bars, rookie Ivy Lu tallied a personal record of 9.875 to tie for gold. Bailie Holst scored a 9.850 to tie for third place. Hannah Hitchcock was Minnesota's next best competitor with a 9.675 for eighth overall.
Teammates Rachel Cutler and Ciara Gardner tied for fourth on beam after each scored a 9.825. Kaitlin Rahon earned a 9.775 to claim seventh place.
Gardner and Bailey Abernathy led the maroon and gold on floor, each scoring a 9.850, to tie for silver. Williams was close to follow with a 9.825 in a tie for fourth.
In the all-around competition, Gardner placed third with a 38.100 and Holst finished fourth with a score of 36.825.
"The highlights of the meet were our two wins from freshmen Ivy Lu and Paige Williams," Hansen said. "They both had great performances and we are really proud of them."
Next Up
The Gophers will return back to the Sports Pavilion to face Nebraska. The meet is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 11 at 3:00 p.m. and will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
Players Mentioned
