UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's gymnastics team (8-4, 2-2 Big Ten) began its two-meet home stretch on a high note with a strong finish to take down Nebraska (3-5, 0-4 Big Ten) 196.350-196.325 on Friday night in Rec Hall. The win marks the Nittany Lions' first regular season victory against Nebraska since the 2006 season.
"I thought our performance was really gritty," said head coach Sarah Brown. "I didn't feel like there was one event where we didn't have any bumps or bobbles, but we just kept fighting. The score is great, and it does feel extra special to get a win, especially for our home fans. They come out a lot and they know their girls work hard. To get a conference win like that, it means a lot and it shows the direction our program is going."
The Ann Carr Award was given to freshman Amani Herring for her clutch floor performance, where she scored a career-best 9.925 as the anchor to Penn State's lineup, giving the Nittany Lions the victory in the final scoring routine of the night.
While Herring earned the hardware, senior Cassidy Rushlow earned the highest score of the night. Her nearly impeccable 9.975 bars routine is now tied for the second-highest score on the apparatus in school history. It also marks the first time the Nittany Lions have earned a score higher than 9.95 since Rushlow's former teammate Lauren Bridgens' perfect 10.0 on bars on March 9, 2018.
As a team, Penn State set or tied seven career-best marks and added two season-best scores in a fantastic performance to stay a perfect 5-0 inside Rec Hall this season.
ROTATION RECAP
Penn State began the evening on vault, finishing with a 48.975. Jessica Johanson and Ava Piedrahita led the lions in the event, both earning 9.825s on the apparatus. Maddie Johnston tied her season best for the third time this season with a 9.800.
In the second rotation of the night, Rushlow turned in one of the best bars routines in Penn State history. Her 9.975 tied the second-best bars score ever at Penn State, set a new career high, and earned the event win in the process. Johnston followed right behind with Penn State's second 9.900 of the night, earning a career best mark. Penn State wrapped up with a team score of 49.225, which is the Nittany Lions' second-highest score on the apparatus this season.
Next up for Penn State was beam, where Johnston tied her second career best of the night with another 9.900. Freshman Haleigh Gibble set a new career best with a score of 9.875 and Isabella Salcedo tallied a 9.825 to wrap up the third event of the evening. The Nittany Lions set a new season-best in the event with a 49.175.
Penn State kept up the momentum and the career-best-setting trend on the floor for their final rotation. Rushlow set a new season high with a 9.800. In a similar fashion, Johnston tied yet another career best with a 9.775 performance. In the last routine of the night, when Penn State needed a 9.000 to tie Nebraska at 196.325, Herring went to work and set a 9.925 career best on floor to lift the lions to a Big Ten victory. The extra 0.025 points were all the Nittany Lions needed to take home the win.
Johnston's career-best 39.375, including two 9.9s, earned her the all-around win. Piedrahita competed in the all-around for the seventh time this season and earned a 39.175 across all four events against the Cornhuskers.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Sarah Brown
WHAT'S NEXT
Penn State will compete in its second-straight home meet next Friday, Feb. 17 against Ohio State. The meet will serve as Penn State's THON night, and will begin at 6 p.m.
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Follow along with the team on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateWomensGymnastics) and Twitter/Instagram (@pennstatewgym).
