Maryland gymnastics narrowly loses to No. 15 Ohio State, 197.575-196.475

Maryland gymnastics hit the road this weekend, taking on the No. 15 Ohio State in Columbus Sunday afternoon.

Despite another impressive performance which featured the Terps putting up a season-high number of points, they couldn’t come away with the win, losing 197.575-196.475. Today’s meet marked the second consecutive match in which the Terps set a new high this season for points in a match. Although they did not come out on top in either, they fought hard against two great teams and there are obvious signs of improvement.

The Buckeyes entered the meet fresh off a tough loss to their bitter rivals, No. 3 Michigan, 197.075-196.350. Outside of the loss, the Buckeyes had been perfect, going 7-0 in all other matches. A very talented team, including freshman Payton Harris who recorded a career-high match total of 39.250 points against Michigan, entered undefeated at home. The recipe for success was there for the Buckeyes, and they took advantage.

The Terps started the day on bars while the Buckeyes started on vault. Four gymnasts posted a score of 9.800 or above, with seniors Alexa Tsiknias (9.925) and Emma Silberman (9.900) both scoring 9.900 or above. Tsiknias’ 9.925 tied her career-high, and both scores were the highest score on bars for both gymnasts so far this season. The Buckeyes only led by .50 at the end of the first rotation, but they never looked back. On the second rotation, the teams flipped. The Terps saw Silberman, graduate student Alexsis Rubio and senior Reese McClure all finish with a score of 9.825 on vault. 

In the third rotation, the Terps took on floor while the Buckeyes took on beam. Junior Alexa Rothenbuescher was far and away the best performer for the Terps on floor, scoring 9.875, her season-high. Maryland made one last impressive push on beam to come out on top. Sophomore Josephine Kogler scored an impressive 9.900, while McClure put up a season-high on beam with 9.875. Freshman Maddie Komoroski continued to show an early impact, as she notched a 9.850. 

The veteran Silberman continued her dominant season, leading the team in points with 39.350, good for third amongst all competing gymnasts. 

The Terps will stay on the road next weekend, as they take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in Piscataway next Sunday at 1 p.m, hoping for a better result.