UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State Women's Gymnastics redshirt freshman Jessie Bastardi was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Tuesday for her efforts in the No. 24 Nittany Lions' meet at Rutgers on Saturday.
Bastardi earned a career-high 9.925 on beam against the Scarlet Knights. The State College native tied with junior Tess McCracken to win the event title on beam. That was Bastardi's first career event title. Bastardi and McCracken are tied for PSU's highest score on beam this season.
She was a major contributor to the Nittany Lions' 49.350 on beam. The Nittany Lions tied the eighth-best beam score in program history and its highest beam score since the Big Five meet on March 12, 2016.
Penn State posted an overall score of 195.825, its second-highest score of the year. It was PSU's top score in a Big Ten road meet since February 22, 2016 at Maryland.
Bastardi is currently averaging a 9.771 on beam, good for 15th in the Big Ten. Her score of 9.925 is tied for the fourth-best in the Big Ten this year. She also had a 9.900 on beam against Minnesota on January 26.
The Nittany Lions, led by Head Coach Sarah Brown, return to Rec Hall on Saturday to take on No. 8 Michigan at 4 p.m. Fans will receive autograph cards and stations as part of Dad & Daughter Day. There will also be a photo booth with free take home and digital photos as well as a post-meet autograph session.
Single-meet tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for youth (12 and under). Season tickets are still available for $24 for adults and $16 for youth.
