6,813.
Almost 6,813 fans came to watch Illinois’ (4-8, 1-5) women’s gymnastics meet at State Farm Center Sunday to set a new home attendance record.
Amongst all the energy in the arena, senior Tali Joelson was the one tasked to turn it into positive momentum to start the fourth rotation. In her four years, she’s never had a meet experience like this.
“It was surreal looking up and seeing that many people,” Joelson said.
In one of the biggest home meets Illinois has ever hosted, the team fell to No. 5 UCLA (10-2, 6-0) 197.675-195.475.
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The meet started at 4 p.m., but the stands started filling up before 3 p.m., with the entire lower bowl occupied. The ambiance was loud and riveting, and the enthusiasm traveled down to the floor early on, raising the stakes for the meet.
Following a third-place finish at the Mizzou Quad, head coach Josh Nilson felt this meet was the perfect showcase for what the team has been working toward.
“What a crowd tonight!” Nilson said to Fighting Illini Athletics. “Breaking the attendance record is a huge indicator of what Champaign and the surrounding areas value. The atmosphere was absolutely electric! The team handled the crowd well and fed off of their energy.”
UCLA senior Jordan Chiles was a star throughout this meet and received the largest cheer during introductions. She switched her vault for this meet to a half-on, laid out half off, or Lopez, and still scored a 9.950, which contributed to her all-around total of 39.650.
She garnered further applause for her 9.975 floor routine, the highest score across all apparatus.
Sophomore Chloe Cho was a rock-solid competitor again for the Illini, winning the uneven bars event title with a 9.950 and finishing second in the all-around behind Chiles with a 39.550.
The community in the stands, combined with the high scores, made for a memorable meet for all parties, including athletes like Joelson.
“Floor is my favorite event, and I’ve always had a lot of fun performing,” Joelson said. “I was just grateful to be able to be there and compete in front of all our fans.”
Stars of rotation 1
The Illini didn’t have the easiest start on vault, leading off with only a 9.400 and having to count multiple 9.700 range scores. However, Cho was consistent per usual, producing a team-leading 9.800.
Sophomore Eden King made a huge upgrade in the anchor spot, debuting a Yurchenko 1 ½, joining freshman Summer Clancy as the only 10.0 start-value vaults in the Illini lineup.
King had a low landing and some form in the air, but as she gains confidence, her scoring potential will increase exponentially.
UCLA wasn’t as stellar as they wanted to be on bars, going below their season average with a 49.250. Freshman Ashlee Sullivan was the star for the Bruins in this event with a floaty toe-on plus Tkatchev plus Pak salto combination and a stuck double layout.
Stars of rotation 2
Illinois was superb on the uneven bars, sticking five out of six dismount landings and setting a season best at 49.250. Cho was on 10.0 watch again, falling just short at 9.950.
What made this event so strong was how everybody else performed; Cho being a highlight isn’t new, but sophomore Kennedy Brown scoring a career-high 9.800 as leadoff was huge. She’d previously only gone as high as 9.725 this season.
Momentum was building routine after routine, and junior Lyden Saltness scored a 9.925. She had some struggles in the past few weeks, scoring in the 9.600 range, and didn’t compete bars at all last season due to an elbow injury.
When she finally put the routine she wanted to her feet, she jumped in a circle and high-fived Nilson, who highlighted bars as the event that most came together for the Illini.
“We took a big step forward as a team, and every event had highlights and improvements, especially the uneven bars team,” Nilson said to Fighting Illini Athletics. “Tonight, they showed how hard they have worked in the gym, and everything translated to competition; they tied UCLA’s bar team.”
UCLA had another big routine from Sullivan, sticking her Yurchenko 1 ½ for the first time in college to score a career high 9.925. Fellow freshman Tiana Sumanasekera tied her career high and scored a 9.900 for the third consecutive week as leadoff before Chiles capped the rotation with a 9.950.
Stars of rotation 3
Facing some inconsistencies over the past few weeks, Illinois was hoping for a steady beam rotation. Unfortunately, the team had to count two 9.600 range scores.
Clancy was strong once again and has established a position for herself in this lineup, only scoring below 9.800 twice this season.
Cho was the highest score with a 9.875, with a medium-sized hop on landing and a posture correction during her switch leap plus switch half plus beat jump leap series as deductions.
Floor is UCLA’s event, and they made it known. Freshman Nola Matthews rejoined the lineup for the first time since week one and mesmerized the crowd with her Lady Gaga-inspired choreography, scoring another career-high for the Bruins at 9.875.
Sullivan followed up with her own pop star-influenced floor routine to music by Britney Spears and scored a career-high 9.950 after nailing her front through to double tuck final pass.
Stars of rotation 4
Illinois started with a 9.750 from Joelson on floor and built up to anchor performances from King and Cho, who went 9.800 and 9.925, respectively.
King struggled in the warmups on her 1 ½ plus front full combination but was able to adjust her timing for the pass and successfully rebound between the saltos.
Overall, there were many combination double salto passes performed for Illinois and even ‘E’-level skills, which are the highest-rated in college gymnastics. These include freshman Piper Gow’s front double full and Cho’s full twisting double back.
UCLA was steady on beam, with junior Sydney Barros, who missed all of last season with injury, scoring a solid 9.850 in the second spot.
Sumanasekera scored a superb 9.925 in the fourth spot, with gorgeous extension and the smallest slide on the landing of her tucked 1 ½ dismount.
Postseason potential?
Illinois ranked No. 46 in the country during week seven, but jumped up to No. 41 after its performance at the Mizzou Quad and at home against UCLA.
The top 36 teams advance to Regionals, with teams 28-36 competing in play-in rounds that precede official competition. Illinois is five spots out of contention now, but with a crucial quad meet Sunday and another chance to show up at home, it’s not out of the question for Illinois to make a late run.
The Big Ten championship also counts as an away meet, so if Illinois can put up a strong score there, it could be the final piece that continues Nilson’s first season at the helm.
“We will continue to build, but I am very proud of them for how they handled themselves,” Nilson said to Fighting Illini Athletics.
Up next
Illinois travels to Minnesota (6-3, 4-2) for the Big 4 Quad Meet on Sunday.
