The No. 8 Gophers women’s gymnastics team took first place in the Big Five meet in a decisive victory over No. 19 Illinois (196.600), No. 26 Maryland (195.725), No. 21 Ohio State (195.275) and No. 38 Nebraska (195.200) with a score of 197.375 Friday night.
“We are so proud of the way the team fought tonight,” head coach Jenny Hansen said. “It was a breakthrough night for our bars squad. The beam team once again performed under pressure.”
The Gophers continued to build their hot streak, outscoring their Big Ten opponents in every single event of the meet.
All-around senior Lexy Ramler not only beat her week-long career-high score of 9.975 on the vault by earning a perfect 10, but she also won each event title, scored a 9.925 or higher on each event and broke her own all-time program record with a 39.850 all-around score. This is the fifth consecutive week she has won the all-around title.
Have yourself a night, @LexyRamler!
: 10.000 on vault
: 9.975 on bars
: 9.950 on beam
: 9.925 on floorShe breaks her own #Gophers all-time program record with a 39.850 all-around score! pic.twitter.com/fTgwEJaTAC
— Minnesota Women’s Gym (@GopherWGym) February 27, 2021
“Tonight is one of those speechless nights for me,” Ramler said. “Everything came together, and it’s just so amazing to continue to make history.”
Similar to last week, the Gophers responded well when mistakes were made. Junior Tiarre Sales finished with a score of 9.225 on the floor, and junior Ali Sonier had a score of 9.100 on the beam. However, their scores were dropped and did not affect the teams’ final score in either event.
“Tonight was incredibly important for our confidence going into the championship season in just a few weeks,” Hansen said.
Floor — Team Score = 49.250
Led by Ramler and other all-around senior Ona Loper, who placed second in the all-around, scoring a 39.525, the Gophers scored the highest floor team total in the meet. Ramler scored a 9.925, while Loper finished tied for second place, scoring a 9.900.
Sophomore floor specialist Mallory LeNeave earned a 9.800.
Freshmen Mya Hooten and Emily Koch also competed for the Gophers on the floor, scoring a 9.850 and 9.775, respectively.
Vault — Team Score = 49.225
Ramler achieved a perfect score of 10, the first 10 of her career on the vault. Her execution was truly impressive as she landed perfectly, not needing to gather herself with extra steps.
for @LexyRamler! pic.twitter.com/uryMOX71hW
— Minnesota Women’s Gym (@GopherWGym) February 26, 2021
“I couldn’t do it without this incredible team,” Ramler said. “They continue to push limits and build our team confidence as well as my own confidence. Each one of us is giving all our heart to truly create one heart as a team.”
Loper and Hooten continue to be consistent performers on the vault. Loper finished tied for second place, scoring a 9.875, while Hooten finished tied for fourth, scoring a 9.850.
Redshirt sophomore Maddie Quarles and sophomore Halle Remlinger also competed for the Gophers on the vault, both of them scoring a 9.750.
Bars — Team Score = 49.575 (New Program Record)
The Gophers bars team set a new all-time program record, scoring an incredible total of 49.575.
While the bars team set a new program record, Ramler tied her career high, scoring a 9.975.
Fresh off a new career high set on the bars last week versus Rutgers, senior Hannah Willmarth set a new career high for the second straight week, scoring a 9.925.
Another week = another career-high!
.@HannahWillmarth out here doing QUEEN THINGS, scoring a 9.925. pic.twitter.com/BO83NJhj7m
— Minnesota Women’s Gym (@GopherWGym) February 26, 2021
Other notables for the Gophers include Sales scoring a 9.925 and Loper scoring a 9.900, while Remlinger scored a 9.850 in her debut on the bars.
Beam — Team Score = 49.325
Veterans Ramler and redshirt senior Mary Korlin-Downs led the Gophers beam team, scoring a 9.950 and 9.900, respectively, finishing in first and second place.
Other notable performances on the beam include Sales scoring a 9.875, Loper scoring a 9.850 and junior Abbie Nylin scoring a 9.750.
What’s up next
The Gophers will look to continue to build on their three-meet win streak as they return home to Maturi Pavilion to compete against Nebraska in their final home meet of the regular season on March 5 at 2 p.m.
The meet will be broadcasted on BIG Ten Network+ (BTN+).
