DAVIS, Calif. – The Fighting Illini women's gymnastics team posted their second-highest road score of the season and went toe-to-toe with the Pac-12's No. 17 Washington, but ultimately fell short to the Huskies, 196.975-195.600 at Friday night's UC-Davis Quad Meet inside The Pavilion in Davis, Calif. Rounding out the field was UC-Davis (194.850) and Yale (194.725), who finished third and fourth, respectively.
"The team did a solid job on bars and beam," said head coach Nadalie Walsh. "We had a few minor errors on floor and beam, so we are all very eager to compete again on Sunday at UC-Berkeley."
The 195.600 team score is the third-best total for the Illini this season and second-best on the road. Illinois also posted 49.000+ on three events for the second-time this season. The Orange and Blue improves to 12-10 on the year after surpassing UC-Davis and Yale in the quad meet tonight.
Illinois swung strong with a 49.050 to snap a two-meet streak of subpar bars scores. Junior Lindsay Dwyer matched a career-high 9.850 on bars to lead-off the rotation. Junior Karen Howell also matched Dwyer's 9.850, while redshirt senior Mary Jane Otto recorded the first 9.900 of the day. Otto tied for third overall on the event.
After the first rotation, the Illini tied the Washington Huskies for the top spot with a 49.050. On beam, the Orange and Blue earned their fifth consecutive 49.000+ with a 49.100. Howell and sophomore Rachel Borden started of the Illini strong with a pair of 9.800s. Otto recorded an impressive 9.850, while senior Haylee Roe returned from injury to anchor the beam rotation with a 9.875. The score matches a career-high for Roe, which was last earned on January 14, 2017 in an Illinois hosted quad meet against Rutgers, EMU, and UIC.
Halfway through the meet, the Illini's 49.100 on beam gave them a slight lead over the No. 17 Huskies, 98.150-98.075. Freshman Shaylah Scott led off with a strong 9.850. After some mishaps, Howell put the Illini back on track with a solid 9.800. Sophomore Kylie Noonan posted a 9.900 on floor, marking her fifth 9.900+ on the event this season. The score placed her second-overall. Anchoring for the first time this season, sophomore Tessa Phillips closed out the third rotation to match Howell's 9.800.
With an impressive bars rotation that included five 9.900+, Washington had a slight lead over Illinois going into the final rotation, 147.650-147.150. Deductions and errors allowed the Huskies to widen the gap as Illinois closed out the evening with a 48.450 on vault. Sophomore Kasey Meeks anchored the lineup with a 9.850. The second-place finish marks her seventh top-three finish on the event this season. Otto also tied for third with a 9.825.
With a quick turnaround, the team will travel south to the Bay Area, wrapping up the postseason against host and No. 14 California, San Jose State, and Sacramento State on Sunday in Berkeley, Calif. In 2014, the Illini defeated the Bears at the Minneapolis Regional to advance to the NCAA Championships. It has also been 26 years since Illinois and California have competed against each other during the regular season.
Illinois Notes
- Illinois records 49.000+ on three events for the second time this season – 49.050 (bars), 49.100 (beam), 49.000 (floor)
- The Illini hit their fifth consecutive 49.000+ on beam with a 49.100.
- Illinois snaps a two-meet streak of subpar bars scores to record a 49.050 on the event.
- Redshirt senior Mary Jane Otto collected three top-three finishes with a runner-up finish in the all-around (39.125) and third place-finishes on vault (9.825) and bars (9.900).
- Nursing an injury for part of the season, senior Haylee Roe returns to competition and matches a career-high 9.875 on beam. The last time Roe earned this score was on January 14, 2017 in an Illinois hosted quad meet against Rutgers, EMU, and UIC.
- Junior Lindsay Dwyer matched a career-high 9.850 on bars to lead-off the rotation.
- Sophomore Kasey Meeks places second on vault with a 9.850. This marks her seventh top-three finish on the event this season.
- Sophomore Kylie Noonan's 9.900 on floor marks the fifth 9.900+ on the event this season. The score placed her second-overall.
- Sophomore Tessa Phillips rebounded from last week to anchor a solid 9.800 on floor.
Follow the Illini
Stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com for all the latest information on Fighting Illini Women's Gymnastics. Follow the Orange and Blue on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for complete coverage.Â
