Huskers Hit the Road to Take On Hawkeyes

Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-0, 3-0 Big Ten)
vs. Iowa Hawkeyes (4-3, 3-0 Big Ten)

Saturday, February 6, 11 a.m. CT – Iowa City, Iowa (Carver-Hawkeye Arena)
TV: Big Ten Network (Play-by-Play Announcer: Bernie Guenther; Analyst: Sharaya Musser)

Huskers Hit the Road to Take On Hawkeyes
The 14th-ranked Nebraska women’s gymnastics team looks to continue its impressive start to the season as the Cornhuskers travel to Iowa City, Iowa for a Big Ten matchup with Iowa on Saturday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The meet is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. CT and will be televised live on Big Ten Network.

The Huskers (5-0, 3-0 Big Ten) earned their first win over a top five team since 2012 and their first win over a top three team since 2009 when they defeated third-ranked Michigan last Friday at the Devaney Center by a score of 196.775-196.550. Grace Williams, a sophomore from Linden, Mich., finished second in the all-around after she posted a career-best 39.500. Williams won her fourth balance beam title in as many meets this season, hitting a 9.95, the Huskers’ first beam score of 9.95 or above this season. Williams also tied a career high with a 9.90 on uneven bars against the Wolverines.

NU also received strong routines last Friday from junior Jennie Laeng, who picked up a pair of individual titles against Michigan and was named Big Ten Event Specialist of the Week on Feb. 1. Laeng won her third uneven bars title of the season, scoring a 9.925, the Huskers’ highest score on bars this season. Laeng also won her second vault title of the season with a score of 9.85. As a team, the Huskers posted their highest scores of the season on bars (49.200) and floor (49.300) as well as a season-high team score of 196.775 against Michigan.

The Huskers’ victory over the Wolverines was their first over a top five team since Feb. 3, 2012, when Nebraska defeated No. 5 Oklahoma by a score of 196.750-196.475. The win was the program’s first over a top three opponent since Feb. 22, 2009, when the Huskers took down No. 3 UCLA at the Masters Classic.

Saturday’s matchup will be the 26th all-time meeting between the two programs, with NU holding a 22-3 edge. The Huskers won both matchups between the teams a season ago, recording a 197.325-195.175 victory in the regular season in Lincoln and a 196.875-196.500 victory at the Big Ten Championships. Nebraska’s team score of 197.325 against the Hawkeyes in the regular season was its season high last year.

Iowa (4-3, 3-0 Big Ten) opened the season by finishing third at the Cancun Classic with Michigan and Arkansas, but has since posted victories over Northern Illinois, Michigan State, Ohio State and Maryland. Iowa’s lone loss since the season-opener came against Denver on Jan. 18. The Hawkeyes are currently ranked No. 27 in the nation and are led by junior Mollie Drenth, who is 36th in the nation with an average of 39.096 in the all-around.

The Huskers will begin the meet on uneven bars before rotating to vault, floor exercise and balance beam. The meet will be televised on live on BTN with Bernie Guenther and Sharaya Musser on the call. The meet will also be streamed on BTN2go.com. Live scoring will be available for the meet at Hawkeyesports.com.

Notes to Know

Scouting Iowa
Iowa is currently 4-3 on the season and ranked 27th in the nation with an average score of 194.875. The Hawkeyes opened the season with a third-place finish at the Cancun Classic with Michigan and Arkansas, but have since won four of their five meets. Iowa is 3-0 in Big Ten action with wins over Michigan State, Ohio State and Maryland. The Hawkeyes defeated Northern Illinois and lost to Denver in non-conference competition. Iowa earned its season-high team score of 196.375 two weeks ago against Ohio State. Iowa is ranked 22nd in the country on both vault and floor with averages of 48.779 and 48.942, respectively. The Hawkeyes rank tied for 24th on bars (48.767) and 38th on beam (48.388). Mollie Drenth leads the Hawkeyes on vault with an average of 9.758 and beam with an average of 9.773. Angel Metcalf paces Iowa on bars with an average of 9.808, while Alie Glover leads on floor with an average of 9.821. Iowa was picked 29th in the NACGC/W Preseason Coaches Poll and was picked to finish seventh in the Big Ten by the conference’s coaches. The Hawkeyes went 14-17 last season and finished fifth at the Big Ten Championships with a score of 196.500. Iowa is led by 12th-year head coach Larissa Libby, a 1996 graduate of LSU.

Huskers Up To 14th
2016 Road to Nationals rankings will be determined by season average until February 21st. On February 22nd, the rankings will transition to RQS (regional qualifying score). Nebraska’s average of 195.700 is good for 14th in the country the week of Feb. 1, up three spots from an average of 195.342 and a No. 17 ranking last week. The score is second-highest in the Big Ten, and third-highest in the South Central region. The top three spots in the country remain unchanged from last week, as Florida holds on to the top spot in the nation for a third consecutive week with a 197.438 average, while Oklahoma (197.185) and Michigan (196.860) remain close behind. Alabama is up one spot to fourth with a 196.855 average, while UCLA fell one place to fifth with a 196.758 average.

Huskers Strong on Beam
Nebraska ranks 10th in the nation on balance beam with an average of 48.975 following a strong score of 49.250 against Michigan. Grace Williams hit a 9.95 on beam against the Wolverines and now ranks fifth in the nation with an average of 9.90. Danielle Breen scored a career-high 9.90 on beam last Friday and has moved into the top 25 on the apparatus as well. The Huskers scored their season high of 49.350 on Jan. 16 against Penn State.

Williams Shines Against Wolverines
Michigan native Grace Williams put together one of her most complete performances of the season last week against Michigan, scoring a career-high 39.500 in the all-around. She also set a career high with a 9.95 on beam en route to her fourth beam title in four meets this season. Her 9.95 was the Huskers’ highest beam score of the season and first score of 9.95 or above on beam since April 19, 2014, when Emily Wong hit a 9.95 at the NCAA Super Six. Williams is now ranked fifth in the nation on the apparatus with an average of 9.90. She also picked up her second bars title of the season, tying her career high with a 9.90 against Michigan. Williams was also strong on floor exercise, tying her season high with a 9.875 last Friday.

Laeng Earns Big Ten Honor
Junior Jennie Laeng was named Big Ten Event Specialist of the Week on Monday after winning vault and bars titles against Michigan. Laeng set season highs on both events, scoring a 9.925 on bars, the highest bars score by a Husker this season, and a 9.85 on vault. The vault title was her second of the season (at Arizona State), while the bars title was her third (at Arizona State, at Penn State). The honor was the second weekly honor of the season for Laeng, as she was named Big Ten Co-Gymnast of the Week on Jan. 11 after her performance at Arizona State in which she won the all-around title and won or shared titles on each event. The honor is the third of the season for Nebraska, as Hollie Blanske was named Big Ten Gymnast of the Week on Jan. 25.

Orel Impressive In First All-Around Performance
Freshman Catelyn Orel had her strongest performance of the season last week against Michigan, hitting career highs in each event in addition to scoring a strong 39.250 in the first all-around performance of her career. Orel hit a 9.80 on vault, followed by a 9.825 on bars and a 9.75 in the first beam routine of her career. She finished the night with a 9.875 on floor.

Season Highs Against Michigan
Nebraska’s win against third-ranked Michigan was its first win over a top-five team since Feb. 3, 2012, when the Huskers defeated No. 5 Oklahoma by a score of 196.750-196.475. It was Nebraska’s first win over a top-three opponent since Feb. 22, 2009, when the Huskers took down No. 3 UCLA at the Masters Classic. The Huskers also set a season high with a team score of 196.775, as well as season-high scores of 49.200 on bars and 49.300 on balance beam.

Big Ten Championships Ticket Information
The University of Nebraska Athletic Ticket Office has begun to sell tickets for the 2016 Big Ten Championships, hosted by Nebraska on March 19. General admission tickets for an all-day, two-session pass are $7 for adults and $5 for youth, seniors and UNL students. Children six years and younger are allowed free admission. For more information, go to huskers.com/tickets.

Looking Ahead
The Huskers will return home to take on Big Ten foe Minnesota next Friday, Feb. 12 at the Devaney Center in Lincoln. The meet is a part of the annual Tumble N’ Rumble, as the 11th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team will take on Northwestern simultaneously at the Devaney Center. The event is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. CT. The gymnastics meet is set to be live-streamed on HuskersNSide Premium, while the wrestling dual will be televised live on Big Ten Network. Minnesota is currently 4-0 on the season and 3-0 in Big Ten competition with wins over Maryland, Michigan State and Ohio State. The Golden Gophers opened their season with a victory in a dual meet against Iowa State. Minnesota is ranked 18th in the nation with an average of 195.469. The Gophers are led by senior Lindsay Mable, the 2015 Big Ten Gymnast of the Year. Mable averages 39.088 in the all-around, tied for 37th in the nation. She ranks seventh in the nation on beam with an average of 9.881. Mable also leads the team with an average of 9.819 on vault. Junior Bailie Holst is 14th in the nation with an average of 9.869 on bars. Mable and Abby DeMuse are tied for the team lead with averages of 9.80 on floor exercise. Minnesota takes on Illinois in Big Ten competition this Saturday in Minneapolis.