Six Huskers Earn All-Big Ten Honors

Nebraska gymnasts Taylor Houchin, Jennie Laeng and Ashley Lambert were named first-team All-Big Ten, while Danielle Breen, Sienna Crouse and Megan Schweihofer earned second-team honors, as the Big Ten announced its all-conference teams on Monday.

The All-Big Ten teams were determined using Regional Qualifying Scores (RQS) from RoadToNationals.com. The top 15 individuals are taken from each event and the all-around, and the highest score is assigned 15 points, with the next-highest score assigned 14 points and on down the line to one point for the 15th-highest score. Ties are given equal scores, and ties for 15th-best score are also included. The 2017 All-Big Ten teams include 16 members on the first team, and 18 members on the second team due to ties.

Nebraska's six total honorees are tied with regular-season co-champion Michigan for the most in the conference, while the three Huskers on the second-team are tied with Iowa for the most on the list.

Houchin, a freshman from Republic, Mo., has emerged as one of Nebraska's top all-arounders in her first season as a Husker. Her vault RQS of 9.870 leads the Huskers and is tied for third in the Big Ten. She has been named Big Ten Freshman of the Week three times this season, and she was named Big Ten Gymnast of the Week on Feb. 27 after she won the all-around title with a Nebraska freshman record 39.650 at the Masters Classic. She has won eight event titles this season, including a pair of all-around victories.

Laeng, a West Middlesex, Pa., native, has been one of Nebraska's most consistent performers this season. The senior has competed in the all-around in seven of Nebraska's nine meets this year, claiming four all-around titles to highlight a total of seven event titles this season. Her all-around RQS of 39.290 leads the Huskers and ranks third in the conference. She was named Big Ten Gymnast of the Week on Monday following her all-around title with a career-high 39.400 to lead the Big Red to a first-place finish at the B1G Five meet. Laeng also earned All-Big Ten honors last season, as she was named to the second-team.

Lambert, a senior from Newport News, Va., has been one of NU's strongest performers on vault, bars and floor this season, hitting marks of 9.90 or above on each. Her floor RQS of 9.890 ranks fifth in the conference and leads the Huskers. Lambert, a second-team All-American in 2015, has earned nine event titles on the season, including an all-around title with a 39.200 in her only all-around performance of the season at Rutgers on Jan. 21. She earned Big Ten Event Specialist-of-the-Week honors on both Feb. 6 and Feb. 13. Lambert also won All-Big Ten honors in 2015, picking up second-team recognition as a sophomore.

Breen earns second-team All-Big Ten honors for the second-consecutive year, as her beam RQS of 9.865 leads the Huskers and ranks tied for seventh in the Big Ten. The Ames, Iowa, native has won two event titles this season, both on beam, and posted a career-high-tying 9.925 on podium at the GymQuarters Invitational on Feb. 17.

Crouse, a sophomore from Fargo, N.D., has posted career highs on all four events this season, as she earns the first All-Big Ten recognition of her career. She leads the Huskers with a bars RQS of 9.890, which ranks tied for third in the Big Ten. Crouse has won seven event titles this season, including four bars titles and one all-around crown, which she earned with a score of 39.350 in her first-career all-around performance in Nebraska's season opener against Penn State.

Schweihofer has been a consistent force in Nebraska's lineups as a sophomore, hitting marks of 9.90 or above on all four events. The China, Mich., native has picked up four event titles this season, and her bars RQS of 9.860 ranks second on the team and 10th in the Big Ten. The second-team honor marks Schweihofer's first All-Big Ten recognition.

The Big Ten also announced the schedule and rotations for the 2017 Big Ten Championships, which will take place Saturday in Piscataway, N.J. Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota and Rutgers will compete in the afternoon session at 11 a.m. (CT), while the evening session will feature Nebraska, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State, beginning at 4 p.m. (CT). Nebraska will begin on beam, before rotating to a bye, floor, vault, bye and finishing on bars. The meet is set to be televised on Big Ten Network and streamed on BTN2Go. For more information about the Big Ten Championships, visit the Championship Central page.

BIG TEN WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE AND ROTATIONS

Afternoon Session – 11 a.m. (CT)
Maryland – Vault
Michigan State - Bars
Minnesota – Beam
Rutgers – Floor

Evening Session – 4 p.m. (CT)
Illinois – Bye 2
Iowa – Floor
Michigan – Bye 1
Nebraska – Beam
Ohio State – Vault
Penn State - Bars

FIRST-TEAM ALL-BIG TEN
Mary Jane Horth, ILL
Lizzy LeDuc, ILL
Mollie Drenth, IOWA
Angel Metcalf, IOWA
Nicole Artz, MICH
Talia Chiarelli, MICH
Olivia Karas, MICH
Emma McLean, MICH
Paige Zaziski, MICH
Bailie Holst, MINN
Taylor Houchin, NEB
Jennie Laeng, NEB
Ashley Lambert, NEB
Alexis Mattern, OSU
Sabrina Garcia, PSU
Briannah Tsang, PSU 

SECOND-TEAM ALL-BIG TEN
Bridget Hodan, ILL
Brielle Nguyen, ILL
Clair Kaji, IOWA
Lanie Snyder, IOWA
Melissa Zurawski, IOWA
Emily Brauckmiller, MD
Lauren Marinez, MICH
Nicola Deans, MSU
Kira Frederick, MSU
Bailey Abernathy, MINN
Ciara Gardner, MINN
Danielle Breen, NEB
Sienna Crouse, NEB
Megan Schweihofer, NEB
Kaitlyn Hofland, OSU
Nicole Medvitz, PSU
Kristen Politz, PSU
Libby Groden, RU