The University of Iowa women’s gymnastics team, ranked 20th nationally, secured a 197.075-196.525 win over No. 19 Penn State in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes set a new program record on bars with a score of 49.450 and matched the third highest overall team score in their history. On floor, they achieved a 49.475, tying for the sixth best in program records.
Iowa claimed event victories on floor (49.475), bars (49.450), and vault (49.075). Senior JerQuavia Henderson posted her season best and junior Alyse Karenbauer recorded a career high as both shared first place on floor with scores of 9.925 each. Freshman Daisy Bowles won the bars title with a career-high 9.950, while freshman Sophie Schriever set her personal best at 9.875 to win vault. Sophomore Aurélie Tran scored a career-high all-around total of 39.550 to finish first overall.
The meet began with Iowa scoring 49.075 on vault, led by Schriever’s 9.875 performance and supported by Tran’s second-place tie at 9.850 and Stella DePaola’s debut score of 9.800.
On bars, Bowles’ score tied for second in Iowa’s individual school record books, followed by Tran matching her season best at 9.925 and Gianna Masella achieving a career-high at 9.900 for third place.
During the beam rotation, Tran contributed a score of 9.875 for second overall as the Hawkeyes extended their lead heading into the final rotation.
Closing out on floor, Karenbauer and Henderson led with scores of 9.925 each while Tran matched her career high at 9.900 for third place.
Head coach Jen Llewellyn said: “It was a gritty performance across all four events today. Vault provided a solid start, and bars was electric as all six athletes performed well to break the program record.” She added: “That has been a goal since we arrived, and I am thrilled to see the team’s hard work reflected in the scores.” Llewellyn also noted: “On beam, we fought through some tightness to stay consistent and earn a decent score,” continuing that “We had several lineup changes on floor, but the transition was seamless.” She concluded: “No matter who is in the top six, they are ready to execute and get the scores we need.”
Next week, Iowa will compete in Los Angeles at Pauley Pavilion against UCLA, Ohio State, and Maryland during the Big Four Meet.
