Preview: No. 21 Maryland gymnastics prepares for Big Five Meet

No. 21 Maryland gymnastics (5-3, 2-3 Big 10) is coming off a tough but successful weekend at home, which featured it topping Southern Connecticut State on Friday night but falling in a close match to No. 18 Minnesota Sunday afternoon. The Terps posted a score of 196.650 in the latter meet, their second-best this season thus far. 

The Terps have their toughest test yet on Friday as part of the The Big 5 Meet in Lincoln, Nebraska. The Terps will face off against four of their Big 10 foes in No. 3 Michigan, No. 20 Iowa, No. 23 Illinois, and No. 31 Penn State.

In the latest rankings, the Terps ranked No. 20 on vault, No. 21 on beam and No. 22 on bars. In order for the Terps to have success Friday night, they’ll have to start out hot and carry intensity through all four rotations. On Sunday against Minnesota, they started out sluggish. However, over the course of the meet, Maryland slowly picked it up, which culminated in its second-best finish on beam this season with a 49.150 and an incredible score of 49.450 on floor, the program’s best score on floor since 2017.

“I’m just so proud of them…for us to finish a weekend with two meets with that kind of intensity on floor was incredible,” coach Brett Nelligan said. “I thought we came out a little cautious, and I told them we can’t do that, we’ve got to be aggressive from start to finish. So our focus this week in the gym and then heading to Big Five will be coming out aggressive from start to finish.”

Because of their performances this weekend, senior Emma Silberman and freshman Maddie Komoroski both took home Big Ten awards this week. Silberman, Maryland’s senior captain and individual scoring leader in every meet, was named Co-Big Ten Gymnast of the Week. Komoroski, a young but already impactful gymnast, was named Co-Big Ten Freshman of the Week. Komoroski has now recorded a 9.825 or better on beam in six consecutive meets, plus she recorded a career-best floor score of 9.925 in just her second time on floor. 

No. 3 Michigan (7-2, 3-1 Big Ten) is the best team the Terps have seen thus far and likely will be for the rest of the season. The Wolverines lead the nation on floor, are No. 2 on vault, No. 5 on bars and No. 13 on beam. Graduate student Natalie Wojcik is considered one of the nation’s best gymnasts, having won the AAI Award last season, given to the best senior gymnast in the country. Wojcik is coming off her 15th Big Ten Gymnast of the Week award and her second career perfect score, coming on beam against Minnesota. She is responsible for half of Michigan’s total perfect scores in program history. 

No. 20 Iowa (6-4-1, 3-1-1 Big Ten) is another impressive team competing Friday. The Hawkeyes are coming off a 196.200-195.126 victory over Rutgers last Saturday, their third win in a row. Iowa ranks No. 14 in floor, No. 17 in vault, and No. 21 on beam. Three of their gymnasts have had spectacular seasons to this point — seniors JerQuavia Henderson and Linda Zivat, and junior Adeline Kenlin. All are ranked within the Big Ten and nationally for their respective events. 

No. 23 Illinois (6-5, 2-2 Big Ten) enters off a loss against No. 13 Ohio State last time out, 196.825-196.600. In the Ohio State meet, senior Mia Townes and sophomore Ruthuja Nataraj shined, as Townes recorded a 9.925 on beam, a career-best, while Nataraj earned a 9.925 on floor, her career-best. The Fighting Illini rank No. 23 on beam and No. 25 on floor. 

The final team the Terps will face off against is No. 31 Penn State (8-5, 2-3 Big Ten). The Nittany Lions, like the Fighting Illini, enter off a loss to No. 13 Ohio State, 196.725-196.125. They finished with a season-best vault score of 49.275, where each competing gymnast either set or tied their career-best. Senior Cassidy Rushlow, an AAI Award nominee, is ranked No. 6 on bars in the Big Ten. She scored a 9.950 against the Buckeyes, making her the first gymnast in Penn State history to record three or more scores of at least 9.950 on bars in the same season. The Nittany Lions rank No. 23 on bars. 

The Terps certainly have their work cut out for them this Friday, but each week this season, have been steadily improving. Nelligan made it a point of emphasis they are solely focused on what they can control, and that their improvement has been due to the hard work each gymnast has been putting in.

“I just want people to know just how much I love this team, they’re just incredibly tough, incredibly talented,” Nelligan said. “What it is, is the work ethic…what you guys don’t see. It’s what they do in the gym day in and day out. No one trains like these kids, they’re incredible.”

The Big Five Meet will start at 8 p.m.