Jan. 26, 2004
This Week: The eighth-ranked Iowa women’s gymnastics squad will host the North Carolina Wolfpack Saturday on the main floor of the Field House at 2 p.m. The men’s gymnastics team will be competing simultaneously against Oklahoma. Admission is $3.
The Wolfpack: The North Carolina State Wolfpack are 5-4, securing wins over Brown, William & Mary, James Madison, Michigan State and Illinois-Chicago. The Wolfpack have suffered losses against Pittsburgh, West Virginia, Ohio State and Florida. Top performers for NC State include senior Leah Sabo, sophomore Kylah Bachman and freshman Rachel Katz. NC State’s high score of the season is 194.875, accomplished last weekend.
Iowa Against the Wolfpack: The Hawkeyes are 2-1 against the Wolfpack. The last meeting between the two teams was in 2001, when Iowa won the contest, 196.125-195.15.
Records Continue to Fall: The GymHawks have broken a school record in every meet this season. Last weekend, Alexis Maday broke the school bar record, scoring a 9.975. The previous record was 9.95, held by three different individuals. Additionally, Stephanie Gran tied the school record on floor, scoring a 9.975.
Noteworthy Against Michigan: The GymHawks had a team total of 196.75, the second-best score in school history. The current record is 196.8, which was accomplished last season at Illinois. Stephanie Gran led the GymHawks with a tie for first on vault, a win on floor and the all-around title. Alexis Maday tied for first on beam and won the bars. Freshman Beth Dilick finished second on bars with a 9.925. On floor, Liz Grajewski scored a 9.95 to tie for second.
In The Rankings: Iowa moves down to eighth in the GymInfo Poll. The poll has changed its format to rank teams based on average instead of high score. The GymHawks are also ranked on all four individual events. Iowa is third on floor, 11th on bars, 13th on vault and 15th on beam.
Three Individuals Ranked: The GymHawks have three individuals ranked in the latest GymInfo poll. Senior Stephanie Gran is tied for first on floor with an average of 9.962. Gran is also fifth in the all-around (39.587) and 10th on vault (9.9). Alexis Maday is tied for second on bars with an average of 9.942. Maday’s other rankings include 6th in the all-around (39.542), tied for 20th on vault (9.875) and 18th on beam (9.883). Liz Grajewski has broken into the rankings for the first time this season, tied for 14th on floor with an average of 9.908.
Quoting Coach Lorenzen: “North Carolina State is one of a very small number of programs like us who have been to the NCAA Nationals, giving them a rich tradition of success and outstanding gymnastics. Bringing a team of that caliber along with Oklahoma competing against our men’s team should make for an exciting afternoon.”