UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 25 Penn State women's gymnastics team is set for its final home meet of the 2020 regular season as it hosts No. 2 Florida on Saturday. The meet is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. at Rec Hall, with a live stream on BTN Plus.
The Nittany Lions, led by Head Coach Sarah Brown, will celebrate senior day as it honors Erynne Allen, Tess McCracken and Kristen Politz.
Penn State is coming off a season-best 196.575 in a sweep of its quad meet against No. 27 NC State, Cornell and Towson. Lauren Bridgens won the all-around with a season-high 39.475. She also captured the bars title (9.925) and tied Cassidy Rushlow for the vault title (9.850). Melissa Astarita claimed the floor title with a career-best 9.925.
No. 2 Florida, coached by Jenny Rowland, tallied a 197.800 in a win over No. 10 Georgia on Friday night.
Follow along with the action on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateWomensGymnastics) and Twitter/Instagram (@pennstatewgym).
SENIOR NIGHT
The Nittany Lions are set to honor its three seniors, Erynne Allen, Tess McCracken and Kristen Politz, after the meet. The three seniors have combined to compete in 100 meets at Penn State. All three have excelled in the classroom as WCGA scholar-athletes. McCracken is one of 32 nominees for the AAI Award this season. Allen and McCracken are serving as team captains 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.
NCAA Regional tickets are now available. Fans can purchase All-Session Tickets, good for all three days, are $32 for adults, $20 for youth (ages 12 or younger) and $20 for students. Tickets are available at either of the two remaining home meets. Tickets can also be purchased by calling 1-800-NITTANY, visiting the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office or visiting here. For more info on the regional, visit here.
SINGLE-MEET TICKETS AVAILABLE
Single-meet tickets are 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 GATORS
Florida, coached by Jenny Rowland in her fifth season, is ranked No. 2 in the RoadToNationals rankings, with a 197.747 average and a 197.880 National Qualifying Score (NQS). Last Friday, the Gators earned a 197.800-196.500 victory over No. 10 Georgia.
Sophomore Trinity Thomas claimed the all-around (39.825), vault (9.950), bars (9.975) and floor (9.950) titles. Junior Alyssa Baumann won the beam title with a 9.975. The Gators swept the first three finishers on bars and the top four places on beam.
Florida leads the nation with a 49.610 NQS on beam. The Gators also rank second on floor with a 49.515 NQS, third on vault with a 49.370 NQS and fifth on bars with a 49.390 NQS.
Thomas tops the nation with a 39.750 NQS in all-around and a 9.960 NQS on floor. She also ranks second on beam (9.965), fifth on bars (9.935) and 12th on vault (9.895). Baumann sits No. 5 in the country on floor (9.930 NQS) and 12th on beam (9.920). Rachel Gowey ranks eighth on beam (9.930), while Payton Richards holds 18th on vault (9.885) and Savannah Schoenherr sits 18th on bars (9.890).
QUAD MEET RECAP
Penn State recorded a season-high 196.575 to sweep its Quad Meet last Saturday. The Nittany Lions topped No. 27 NC State (195.850), Towson (193.750) and Cornell (190.750). The Nittany Lions earned their highest score since a 196.775 against Minnesota on January 26, 2019. Penn State secured a 49.000 or above on each event for the first time since that meet.
Penn State recorded a 49.050 on vault, their second 49 or above this season. The Nittany Lions collected a 49.150 on bars, PSU's fifth 49 or above. PSU matched a season-high with a 49.175 on beam, its third 49 or above, and notched a 49.200 on floor, its fourth 49 or above.
Lauren Bridgens won the all-around title, earning a season-best 39.475. She tied a season-high 9.925 to claim the bars title. Bridgens also tied Rushlow for the vault title with a 9.850. Kourtney Chinnery placed third on vault with a 9.825. Melissa Astarita captured the floor title with a career-high 9.925. Bridgens finished third with a 9.850. Tess McCracken had PSU's highest score on beam, with a season-best 9.900, while Jessie Bastardi recorded a season-high 9.875.
BRIDGENS LEADING ON FLOOR
The Nittany Lions have seen significant improvement through the season on floor, led by Lauren Bridgens. PSU has four scores above a 49.000 this season. The junior won four straight floor titles, beginnning at Nebraska with a 9.925. She set a career high against Iowa (9.950), won against Rutgers (9.875) and claimed the title at Illinois (9.850).
Bridgens currently ranks 45th in the nation and ninth in the Big Ten with a 9.880 national qualifying score (NQS). She also ranks 22nd nationally in all-around (39.250).
Penn State increased its floor score through each of the first three meets before a season-high 49.375 against Iowa, the Nittany Lions' best floor performance since the 2018 Big Ten Championships.
SETTING THE BAR
The Nittany Lions have enjoyed a solid start to the season on bars, with a 49.130 NQS, good for 17th in the country. Penn State has five scores above a 49.150 this season, including a 49.300 against West Virginia, a 49.275 against Rutgers, a 49.250 at the Big Five Meet and a 49.150 in its Quad Meet. PSU earned the top six places in the meet against Rutgers.
Bridgens ranks 39th in the nation and sixth in the Big Ten on bars, with a 9.865 NQS. She has PSU's highest bars score in six meets and has three event titles. Alissa Bonsall has PSU's highest score in four meets, including two event titles, ranking 63rd in the country with a 9.845 NQS.
FANTASTIC FRESHMAN
Cassidy Rushlow has already made a strong impact as a freshman. She has led PSU on beam six times, three times on vault, twice on bars and twice in all-around.
In the quad meet, Rushlow tied Bridgens for the vault title, with a 9.850. She also finished second on bars with a 9.850. Rushlow had a career-high 39.300 in all-around at the Big Five Meet, earned PSU's highest score on beam (9.875) and tied for the team-high on vault with a career-high 9.900.
The Massachusetts native has two event titles on vault and one event title each on bars, beam and all-around. She sits 31st in the nation and 10th in the Big Ten with a 39.130 NQS in all-around. She holds 53rd in the country on beam with a 9.855 NQS.
CHALLENGING SCHEDULE
No. 25 Penn State is in the final weeks of a challenging 2020 schedule. The Nittany Lions already took on No. 21 Arizona State, No. 13 Auburn and No. 7 Denver at the Collegiate Challenge, West Virginia, No. 10 Nebraska, No. 32 Iowa, Rutgers, No. 25 Illinois, No. 26 Ohio State, No. 24 Maryland, No. 9 Michigan, No. 31 Michigan State, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 27 NC State, Cornell and Towson.
The Nittany Lions will finish the season against No. 2 Florida at home and No. 17 Arkansas on the road.
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.
Senior Tess McCracken