March 7, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The 17th-ranked Penn State women's gymnastics team posted a season-high score of 196.725 to take top honors in a quad meet with No. 12 Michigan, Maryland and Bridgeport. Michigan finished second with a 196.575, Maryland took third with a 195.650 and Bridgeport finished fourth with a 193.200.
Freshman Sharaya Musser (Colorado Springs, Colo.) received the Ann Carr award for the second time this season after taking home the first all-around title of her career with a personal best score of 39.600. Senior Brandi Personett (Katy, Texas) placed second in the all-around with a 39.575 and freshman Madison Merriam (Gaithersburg, Md.) took sixth with a 39.075.
Penn State scored a 49.100 on vault, a 49.225 on the uneven bars, a season-high 49.350 on the balance beam and a 49.050 on floor.
The Nittany Lions opened the quad meet on vault where Musser scored a personal-best 9.975 for first place. It is her second individual title on the event. Personett placed second with a 9.925. The other top finishers for the Nittany Lions include senior Rosie Smith (Waterford, Pa.) in 15th with a 9.750 and Merriam and junior Danielle Hover (Hamburg, N.Y.) tied for 16th with a 9.725.
Penn State moved to bars in the second rotation with sophomore Natalie Ettl taking home the title with a 9.950 to tie her career-high. Musser tied her personal best with a 9.875 to take fourth and Personett scored a 9.825 to tie for fifth. Merriam finished seventh with 9.800 and Smith tied her season-high with a 9.775 to tie for ninth.
In the third rotation, Penn State was on beam. Musser earned her third title on beam scoring a personal-best 9.925. Personett tied for third with a 9.900, while senior Casey Rohrbaugh (Spring Grove, Pa.) and senior Allie Southard (Nanuet, N.Y.) tied for seventh with a 9.850. Merriam placed 11th with a career-high 9.825 and Hover posted a career-best 9.800 for 13th.
The Nittany Lions closed out the meet on floor with Personett taking top honors with a 9.925. Musser tied with sophomore teammate Daryl Konsevick (Rutherford, N.J.) for sixth with a 9.825. Penn State's other top finishers include, Smith in 12th with a 9.750 and Merriam in 15th with a 9.725.
What's Next?
The Nittany Lions are back in action on Friday, March 12 at No. 9 Utah. Penn State will also face nationally-ranked Southern Utah and Oregon State. Meet action is set for 7 p.m. MT.