No. 24 Illinois women’s gymnastics prevailed against Rutgers on Sunday with a score of 195.650-194.925 to earn its first conference win of the season, bringing its record to 6-3.
The Illini started strong on the vault but lost narrowly to the Scarlet Knights 48.875-49.025. Sophomore Arielle Ward took third on the vault for the Illini with a score of 9.825.
On the bars, Illinois notched a victory with a score of 49.200-48.200. Both senior Amelia Knight and freshman Destiny Denning tied for second place on the bars with scores of 9.875, but graduate Mia Takekawa scored 0.025 higher to come in first.
However, the Illini took an unfortunate fall on the beam, and Rutgers took over 48.825-48.450. However, senior Kaitlyn Ewald scored a 9.850 and came in third overall, and Takekawa scored a 9.875, placing second. Ewald mentioned how the coaches help them separate their performances from who they are with “I am” statements.
“I think our coaches help us talk a lot about ‘I am’ statements and really just define what we are on the inside and not what we are based on our performance,” Ewald said.
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The floor was the final event. Illinois secured its win against Rutgers, scoring 49.125-48.875 and sweeping the podium as well. Senior Allie Morgan was tied for third place with a score of 9.825 while Ward finished in second place (9.850). Graduate Mia Townes’ impressive performance earned her a score of 9.900 and a first-place finish on the floor.
Senior Abby Mueller performed in every event at the meet and walked away with an impressive score of 39.000 and the all-around championship award.
Head coach Nadalie Walsh talked about how proud she is of her team to come back after their beam performance, saying it has been a couple of years since the team has had to count a fall.
“I’m proud of them,” Walsh said. “This beam team is always fabulous, so I’m proud of them for pulling back together.”
Ewald also spoke about the team’s complete trust in one another, and regardless of whether they win or lose, they will always come together afterward.
“Whoever goes up there, we trust them 100%, and we are so proud of everyone, even if they are having a bad day,” Ewald said.
According to Walsh, Illinois’ success spans from graduates and seniors to freshmen, and talent is seen early on from the freshman on the team, which shows a good sign for the program’s future.
“I think it’s such a team effort that whether you have a lot of years of experience or you are a freshman, everyone is expected to perform what they do in the gym,” Walsh said. “I think that having the freshmen follow the seniors’ lead and start to creep up and become some of the best scores is great for our program’s future.”
Illinois women’s gymnastics will travel to East Lansing, Michigan, to compete against No. 13 Michigan State on Friday, Feb. 9, at 6 p.m.
