Photo courtesy of Dylan Davies/Maryland Terrapins
The Terps took on the Cornhuskers in Nebraska’s first home meet of the season, with both teams neck and neck throughout the competition. In the end, Nebraska secured the win with a final score of 196.325 to Maryland’s 195.950. Having lost to Maryland last season, Nebraska came ready to compete.
Maryland began its first rotation on uneven bars. Freshman Sarah Saville stuck a perfect landing as her teammates cheered her on, leading the Terps with a score of 9.850. Following her was senior Sierra Kondo, who had the highest score of the event for the Terps with a 9.875. Kondo had set her career high of 9.950 on uneven bars last Saturday against UCLA.
Graduate student Alexa Rothenbuescher had a little trouble on uneven bars, taking a fall but senior Rhea LeBlanc brought the Terps back with a stuck landing and a score of 9.775. Helping to maintain their momentum and ending the event with a total of 48.925.
In the second rotation on vault, with Maryland holding a slight lead over Nebraska, Rothenbuescher made a comeback with a score of 9.725. Her score followed that of teammates LeBlanc, who scored 9.750, and sophomore Natalie Martin, who earned a 9.800 with strong execution in the air, helping the Terps on vault.
In the third rotation, the Terps competed on floor, where they are ranked 19th in the country. They started a little shaky but settled in by the end, with Rothenbuescher earning a team-high score of 9.850 in the event.
Nebraska took the lead going into the final rotation with a total score of 147.000, while the Terps scored 146.625. Although the Terps performed well on beam and Rothenbuescher led with a 9.900, it was not enough to hold off the Cornhuskers in the fourth rotation.
Following two dual meet losses for the Terps, they will be hopefully looking to get a win on the road on Feb. 2 against Rutgers at 1 p.m.
