UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 30 Penn State women's gymnastics team continues its Big Ten slate on Friday as it hosts Rutgers for a 7 p.m. meet at Rec Hall. The meet will be broadcast on BTN Plus. The Nittany Lions will hold their annual Pink Meet.
Anyone who wears pink will receive a $4 ticket. The first 250 students in attendance will receive a free Pink Meet t-shirt.
Penn State, led by Head Coach Sarah Brown, are coming off a season-best 196.275 in a win over No. 32 Iowa last Saturday. The blue and white was boosted by a 49.375 on floor, its highest score in the event since 2018.
Lauren Bridgens hit a career-high 9.950 on floor, tying the fifth-highest score in program history. She also won the all-around with a season-best 39.400, including season-highs on bars (9.875) and beam (9.825). Alissa Bonsall won the vault (9.825) and bars (9.900) titles, while Cassidy Rushlow captured the beam (9.900) title.
Rutgers, coached by Umme Salim-Beasley, competed in two meets last weekend, tallying a 192.950 against Michigan and a 193.575 at Penn.
Follow along with the action on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateWomensGymnastics) and Twitter/Instagram (@pennstatewgym).
PINK MEET
The Nittany Lions will compete in their annual Pink Meet in honor of breast cancer research and awareness. The first 250 students will receive a free Pink Meet t-shirt.
Fans who wear pink can buy a $4 ticket, half off the regular adult ticket price.
SEASON AND SINGLE-MEET TICKETS AVAILABLE
Season tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for youth (ages 12 and younger). Single-meet tickets are also available for $8 for adults and $5 for youth. For more info, please visit here, call 1-800-NITTANY weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 9 a.m-4:30 p.m.
PARKING INFO
Due to construction on the new West Campus Parking Deck, Red A lot spaces are limited. Fans are encouraged to park in the Nittany Parking Deck, which is free from 1.5 hours before the meet until 1.5 hours after the meet. For more details, please visit here.
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Rutgers is coached by Umme Salim-Beasley, in her second season. The Scarlet Knights competed in a pair of meets last week. On Friday, they tallied a 192.950 at Michigan. On Sunday, RU recorded a 193.575 in a win at Penn.
RU is currently 42nd in the RoadToNational rankings, averaging a 193.831 on the season. Rutgers ranks 35th in country on bars, averaging a 48.519, and beam, averaging a 48.638. The Scarlet Knights sit 41st in the nation on vault, averaging a 48.600, and 57th on floor, averaging a 48.075.
Freshman Hannah Joyner ranks 22nd in the nation on beam with a 9.875 average. She also leads Rutgers in all-around, averaging a 38.994, good for 49th in the country. Junior Belle Huang ranks 71st in all-around, with a 38.700 average, and has RU's top average on floor (9.819). Shannon Farrell has Rutgers' top average on bars (9.787) and Toni Williams leads RU on vault (9.738).
IOWA MEET RECAP
Penn State tallied a 196.275 in a win over Iowa (193.675) on Saturday. It was PSU's highest score this season and its highest since a 196.325 at Florida in 2019. Penn State had eight scores that tied or set career highs and 11 scores that tied or set season highs.
The Nittany Lions recorded a season-best 49.375 on floor, its highest floor score since the 2018 Big Ten Championships (49.400). Lauren Bridgens led PSU on floor with a career-high 9.950, tying the fifth-highest score in program history. It was PSU's highest floor tally since Briannah Tsang's 9.950 at the 2018 Big Ten Championships.
Bridgens earned a season-high 39.400 to capture the all-around title. Alissa Bonsall claimed the vault (9.825) and bars (9.900) titles, matching career highs on both events. Cassidy Rushlow earned her first career 9.900 on beam to win the event title.
SETTING THE BAR
The Nittany Lions have enjoyed a solid start to the season on bars, averaging a 49.075, good for 16th in the country and fifth in the Big Ten. Penn State had another strong bars performance against Iowa with a 49.175.
Penn State's 49.300 against West Virginia is the second-highest team bars score in the Big Ten this season. It was PSU's highest bars score in a home opener since 2001 and its highest bars score since a 49.350 in its quad meet last season vs. Arizona State, Cornell and Yale.
Against Iowa, Alissa Bonsall led the blue and white with a 9.900, tying a career high and winning the event title. Lauren Bridgens tied a season high with a 9.875. Tess McCracken, Cassidy Rushlow and Ava Verdeflor each tied for fourth in the meet with a 9.800.
Against Nebraska, Bonsall and Bridgens tied for the team-lead with a 9.825, good for second overall. Rushlow won the bars title in the meet against West Virginia with a 9.925, tied for the third-best bars score in the Big Ten this season. Bonsall had the Big Ten's top bars score during the first weekend of competition, with a 9.875 at the Collegiate Challenge. She was named Big Ten Event Specialist of the Week for her efforts.
NATIONALLY RANKED NITS
Along with Penn State's No. 16 ranking on bars, a few Nittany Lions are ranked among the nation's Top 75 in individual events.
Bridgens is currently 36th in the nation in all-around, averaging a 39.131. She is also 31st on floor, and seventh in the Big Ten, with a 9.881 average. The junior ranks 55th in the country on bars with a 9.844 average. Bridgens' 9.950 on floor against Iowa is tied for the sixth-highest score in the nation and the highest in the Big Ten this season.
Rushlow sits 46th in the nation on beam, averaging a 9.837. Bonsall holds 73rd in the country on bars, averaging a 9.831.
CHALLENGING SCHEDULE
No. 30 Penn State is four weeks into a challenging 2020 schedule. The Nittany Lions took on No. 21 Arizona State, No. 13 Auburn and No. 7 Denver at the Collegiate Challenge, now-No. 24 West Virginia in the home opener, No. 10 Nebraska and No. 32 Iowa.
Home meet opponents include: Rutgers, No. 34 NC State, Cornell, Towson and No. 2 Florida. On the road, PSU will battle No. 22 Illinois, No. 29 Ohio State, No. 19 Maryland, No. 8 Michigan, No. 32 Michigan State, No. 8 Minnesota and No. 14 Arkansas.
BROWN BEGINS THIRD SEASON
Head Coach Sarah Brown enters her third year leading the Nittany Lions. In 2019, Brown led PSU to a 10-9 record and a No. 24 ranking, its highest finish since 2015. Penn State placed fifth at the Big Ten Championships and third in Session I of the NCAA Regional.
The Nittany Lions went 11-8 in Brown's first season in 2018.
Ashleigh Gnat joined the PSU coaching staff in July 19 after spending two seasons as a Graduate Assistant at LSU. As an athlete, Gnat was a 17-time All-American and won the 2017 National Title on floor.
NITTANY LIONS ON NATIONAL STAGE
The Nittany Lions' home meet against No. 32 Iowa was their second straight national broadcast this season, featured on Big Ten Network. Penn State's matchup with Nebraska on ESPN2 was its first meet on a national network this season.
PENN STATE HOSTING NCAA REGIONAL
The Nittany Lions are set to host an NCAA Regional on April 2-4 in Rec Hall. Penn State last hosted an NCAA Regional in 2018.
In a new format, installed in 2019, the regional has expanded to a three-day event. Day one (Thursday, April 2) will feature a dual-meet between the two lowest ranked teams with the winner advancing to a quad meet on Friday. Day two will include two quad meets with the top two teams from each advancing to Saturday's regional final quad meet.
Freshman Cassidy Rushlow