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IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa women’s gymnastics team makes its 2020 home debut against Air Force and Ball State on Jan. 11 at 4 p.m. (CT) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The competition is dedicated as a Pink Meet (Breast Cancer Awareness). Fans are encouraged to wear pink in support of those who have had and are battling cancer.
WATCH/FOLLOW LIVE
- Live stats throughout the season can be found on the women’s gymnastics schedule page on hawkeyesports.com
- A live stream will be available on BTN+. A subscription is required.
- Follow along with updates from@iowagymnasticson Twitter.
SEASON TICKETS
- Season tickets are available at hawkeyesports.com/tickets, by calling 1-800-IA-HAWKS, or at the UI Athletics Ticket Office at the north entrance of Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
- Season tickets are $30 and all seating is general admission. Youth ages 18 and under and UI students receive free admission to all regular season home meets.
SCOUTING AIR FORCE
- The Falcons finished the 2019 season ranked No. 53 in the country.
- Last season, the Falcons recorded a team score, 195.725, to win first-ever MPSF Championship title.
- Air Force set season-high scores on the bars and floor exercise, posting 49.000 in each event.
- Nationally, Air Force is ranked No. 47 for vault, No. 45 on beam, and No. 53 on bars.
- The Falcons are led by head coach Andi Dolinsky-Webb, her first season as head coach for the Falcons.
SCOUTING BALL STATE
- The Cardinals finished the 2019 season ranked No. 45, according to Road to Nationals.
- The Cardinals tallied ten wins and three gymnasts competed at an NCAA Regional in 2019.
- Ball State captured three wins over North Carolina, Michigan State, and Rutgers with a young team (six freshmen and sophomores) competing regularly.
- The Cardinals are led by head coach Joanna Saleem, entering her seventh season at Ball State.
GYMHAWK 2019 HIGHLIGHTS
- Larissa Libby concluded her 15th season as head coach at Iowa and her 19th year overall.
- Iowa returns first team All-Big Ten honoree, Clair Kaji for her senior season, along with second team All-Big Ten honoree, sophomore Lauren Guerin.
- The Hawkeyes wrapped up their 2019 season at the NCAA Corvallis Regional with a score of 194.775, placing fourth in session two, but did not advance to the Regional final.
- Iowa scored a season high 196.450 at Elevate the Stage/Big Five Meet on Feb. 22, 2019.
- The GymHawks scored 195.400 versus Illinois on Feb. 16, scoring a 49.200 on bars and a season high of 49.400 on floor.
- At the Big Ten Championships, the GymHawks finished sixth with a team score of 196.075.
- Iowa finished the season ranked No. 31 overall in the final Road to Nationals Poll.
FRESH SIX
- The GymHawks add six freshmen to the 2020 season: Ariana Agrapides, Dani Castillo, JerQuavia Henderson, Ellie Rogers, Madelyn Solomon, and Allyson Steffensmeier.
- Agrapides is from Bayville, NJ and trained at Premier Gymnastics. She finished her high school career as 2019 State vault, floor, and all-around champion.
- Castillo is a Miami, Florida, native who competed at American Twister’s under coaches Gary Anderson and Christy Ramírez. She won the Region 8 all-around Championships (38.375) and was the state runner up during the 2019 season.
- Henderson comes from Peoria, Illinois, and trained at Gym Corner. In 2019, Henderson placed third in all-around at level 6/9/10 State Championship and was named Peoria Journal Star’s 2018 Central Illinois Best of Preps: Gymnast of the Year.
- Rogers — a native of Spotsylvania, Virginia — trained at Paragon Gymnastics. She was a regionals qualifier sophomore-senior year.
- Solomon comes from Waterloo, Iowa where she was trained by Kevin Crowley. Solomon was awarded United States Marines Distinguished Female Athletic Excellence Award in 2019.
- Steffensmeier — a native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa — rounds out the newcomers. She qualified for Junior Nationals three out of four years. In 2019, Steffensmeier claimed first place at Regionals in all-around with a score of 37.259.
UP NEXT
- The GymHawks travel to College Park, Maryland to take on the Terrapins on January 19, 2020 at 11 a.m. (CT)
- Live results will be available at hawkeyesports.com/wgymlive.
