Illinois women’s gymnastics prepares to compete twice this weekend: first on the road and then at home. On Friday, Illinois will be competing in Columbus, Ohio, against No. 15 Ohio State, Kent State and Bowling Green. This will be the second time this season the Illini have faced the Buckeyes after losing 197.100-196.175 in late January. On Sunday, Illinois will be back at Huff Hall to compete against Bowling Green for a second time.
This weekend’s pair of meets come after the Illini tied their season-high score of 196.850 at the Big Five meet, which was laden with impressive scores and wins. Freshman Lyden Saltness was one of many Illini who set their personal bests, earning an impressive 9.975 on her bar routine. Saltness noted that not only does this near-perfect score serve as an indication of all of her hard work paying off but as a payoff of the team’s hard work as well.
“It just makes me feel that the goals I have individually and the team are going to happen,” Saltness said. “All the years of hard work that I’ve put into it are finally paying off and coming together.”
Looking ahead to this weekend, Saltness talked about the training that a double-meet weekend entails. The Illini had a double-meet weekend two weekends ago, and they set season-highs at both stops (196.550, 196.850). Since then, the Illini have tied their season-high and are looking to bolster it even further.
“Just knowing that it’s all in your mind and that you do the skills every day,” Saltness said. “We’ve really been focusing on all of the little details in the gym.”
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As for Friday’s meet, Saltness said there are advantages to competing against several schools at once — namely that even if they don’t finish first, the Illini can still walk away with a few wins.
“I think it’s an advantage,” Saltness said. “We know that there’s multiple teams there, and even if we lose against one or two, it’s still a win for us.”
The Illini have been on an upward trend with their scores lately. Their last three meets have all been their season-highs: 196.550 at the 2024 GymQuarters Invitational, 196.850 against Minnesota and 196.850 again at the Big Five Meet. This bodes well for the Illini, who are moving up in the rankings with their National Qualifying Score.
“It’s been great for our NQS and it feels great getting rewarded for what we know we can do,” Saltness said. “We can keep going up from here.”
Illinois women’s gymnastics will be competing at Columbus, Ohio, on Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT. Illinois will take on No. 15 Ohio State, Kent State and Bowling Green. The Illini will be back at home two days later on Sunday for a rematch with Bowling Green at 2 p.m.
