THIS WEEK
The 17th-ranked University of Iowa women’s gymnastics team returns to Iowa City, hosting No. 43 Nebraska in its 90’s night themed meet on Saturday at 5 p.m. (CT) inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.Admission is $10 for adults and youth are free.Tickets can be purchased at hawkeyesports.com.
FOLLOW LIVE
• Saturday’s meet will be streamed live on BTN+ – a paid subscription service.
• Fans can follow along via live results at hawkeyesports.com or via Twitter (@IowaGymnastics).
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
• The Hawkeyes are ranked 17th in the Road to Nationals rankings with an average score of 196.125. Iowa was ranked ninth following Week 1 — the second-highest ranking in program history.
• Iowa posted a season-high, 196.475, in its road win at Michigan State on Jan. 22.
• Freshman Marissa Rojas scored a 9.925 on her balance beam debut to take the event title — the first of her career — against Michigan State. The score tied for eighth-best in school history. Rojas is tied for seventh nationally on the event.
• The Hawkeyes posted a season-high score of 48.900 on bars in their first-place finish against Michigan State on Jan. 22. Iowa is ranked No. 34 nationally on bars.
• Iowa posted a score of 49.200 on beam in its victory at Michigan State, which is just shy of the season-high 49.275. Iowa moved up two spots to No. 8 nationally on beam.
• Iowa sits eighth in the country on floor and 31st on bars
• The Hawkeyes have earned two Big Ten weekly honors this season. Junior JerQuavia Henderson was the Specialist of the Week on Jan. 10 and freshman Marissa Rojas garnered Freshman of the Week honors on Jan. 25.
• Iowa was selected to finish third in the Big Ten Preseason Poll in a vote of the league’s 10 head coaches (behind Michigan and Minnesota). Henderson and sophomore Adeline Kenlin were tabbed as Big Ten Gymnasts to Watch.
• Iowa returns 15 letter winners in 2022, including three All-Americans and four All-Big Ten selections. Iowa boasts a roster with seven seniors and 11 upperclassmen.
NOTABLES
• The Hawkeyes had seven top-three finishes and 10 gymnasts set season-highs in their victory at No. 15 Michigan State on Jan. 22.
• Senior Lauren Guerin won the floor title and tied her career-high for the eighth time after scoring a 9.950. It is tied for the fourth-best floor score in school history. The Austin, Texas, native is tied for No. 19 nationally in the event.
• Two gymnasts placed in the top three on vault – junior JerQuavia Henderson earned a runner-up finish with a score of 9.850 and Guerin tied her season-high with a score of 9.825 to finish third.
• Iowa had three gymnasts place in the top three on beam – freshman Marissa Rojas scored a career-high 9.925 to take the event title, while senior Bridget Killian set a career-high and tied with senior Clair Kaji for third place with a score of 9.875.
• The GymHawks scored 49 or higher in three of the four events (beam, vault, and floor) at Michigan State.
• Kaji is tied for 14th nationally with an average score of 9.900 on beam, while Henderson is ranked 15th on floor and 21st on vault. Guerin is tied for 19th on floor.
• Iowa has had seven gymnasts win event titles this season — Alex Greenwald (1), JerQuavia Henderson (4), Clair Kaji (1), Adeline Kenlin (3), Allyson Steffensmeier (1), Lauren Guerin (2), and Marissa Rojas (1)
FLOOR QUEENS
Senior Lauren Guerin and junior JerQuavia Henderson have been consistently consistent on floor during the first four weeks of the season.
• Guerin posted a season-high 9.950 on floor in Iowa’s road meet at No. 15 Michigan State on Jan. 22. It was the third time in four meets that Guerin has scored 9.900 or higher.
• Henderson has scored 9.900 or higher in all four competitions, including a season-best 9.925 in the season-opening win over Eastern Michigan on Jan. 8.
ROJAS EARNS B1G HONOR
Freshman Marissa Rojas earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors on Jan. 25 after winning her first career event title in the road win at Michigan State. The Michigan native posted an anchor score of 9.925 to take the title and she also made her floor debut, scoring a 9.800.
HENDERSON IN RANKINGS
Junior JerQuavia Henderson is ranked in the top 25 nationally on floor and vault. The Peoria, Illinois, native is ranked 21st on vault with an average score of 9.875 and 25th on floor with a 9.906.
ZIVAT STEPS IN
Michigan State transfer Linda Zivat posted a pair of top five finishes in her third meet of the season. The Illinois native tied her career-high of 9.875 on floor to tie for fifth place and she tied for fourth on vault with a 9.800.
• Zivat posted a pair of career-bests in Iowa’s road meet in Minneapolis. She tied for fifth on vault with a 9.850 and also tied for fifth on floor with a 9.875 on Jan. 17.
HENDERSON B1G SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK
For the first time in her career, junior Jerquavia Henderson was named Big Ten Specialist of the Week on Jan. 10 after scoring a 9.925 on vault and floor in the Hawkeyes’ win over Eastern Michigan.
• Henderson tied a career high 9.925 en route to her vault title. The junior has tied this score three times, placing ninth in program history.
IN THE RANKINGS
Iowa is one of four Big Ten teams in the top 20 of the Road to Nationals poll along with No. 1 Michigan, No. 7 Minnesota and No. 15 Michigan State. The Hawkeyes, who are ranked 17th, was previously ninth following Week 1, which was the second-highest ranking in program history.
BIG TEN CHAMPIONS
The Hawkeyes clinched their first Big Ten Conference championship, claiming the 2021 regular season title, when they won the Big Five Meet in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Feb. 27. Iowa finished the Big Ten regular season with an 8-0 record.
• Lauren Guerin and JerQuavia Henderson earned a share of the Big Ten floor titles during the 2021 Big Ten Championships. They were the third and fourth floor champions in school history and the first since 2004.
KENLIN: 2021 B1G FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Sophomore Adeline Kenlin earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors in 2021, becoming the fourth Hawkeye in school history to earn the conference’s top freshman honor and the first in 20 years.
• Kenlin earned the distinction after winning five event titles during the regular season. The Iowa City native tied the school record on beam, posting a 9.975 score on March 14 at Nebraska. Kenlin earned four Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors.
HENDERSON — CGA COMEBACK GYMNAST OF THE YEAR
Junior JerQuavia Henderson was selected as College Gym News Comeback Gymnast of the Year in 2021. The Peoria, Illinois, native missed the 2020 season after rupturing her Achilles before returning to earn All-America honors in 2021.
• Henderson also earned a share of the Big Ten floor title with a 9.950 and she tied for first on floor at NCAA Regionals with a 9.925. She also was a second-team WCGA All-America honoree on floor after posting a 9.944 national qualifying score during the regular season.
• The first-team All-Big Ten selection tied the Iowa school record during a tri-meet against Minnesota and Maryland on Feb. 13 with a score of 9.975. She received a 10.00 from one judge to tie the record last set in 2004.
IN THE RECORD BOOKS
Seven Hawkeyes are in the Iowa record books for the 2022 season. They are as follows:
• JerQuavia Henderson – t1st – 9.975 – Floor
• Adeline Kenlin -t1st- 9.975- Beam
• Clair Kaji – t3rd – 9.950 – Beam
• Lauren Guerin – t4th – 9.950 – Floor
• Allyson Steffensmeier – t6th – 9.925 – Uneven Bars
• Clair Kaji – t6th – 9.925 – Uneven Bars
• JerQuavia Henderson – t6th – 9.925 – Uneven Bars
• Marissa Rojas – t8 – 9.925 – Beam
• Lauren Guerin – t9th – 9.925 – Vault
• JerQuavia Henderson -t9th- 9.925- vault
• Lauren Guerin – t12- 9.925 – Floor
• Clair Kaji – t12 – 9.925 – Floor
• Alex Greenwald – t12 – 9.925 – Floor
• Alex Greenwald – t15 – 9.900 – Uneven Bars
• Adeline Kenlin – t15th – 9.900 – Uneven Bars
• Adeline Kenlin – t17 – 39.500 – All-Around
KAJI X 6
Senior Clair Kaji returns for her sixth season with the Gymhawks after earning first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2021. It was Kaji’s third All-Big Ten recognition as she was the first Hawkeye since Houry Gebeshian to earn three All-Big Ten honors. Kaji is the ninth Iowa gymnast to earn multiple first-team honors.
HAYDEN JOINS IOWA COACHING STAFF
Quest Hayden is in his first season as an assistant coach, joining the Hawkeyes following stints at North Carolina, Michigan and Penn State. Hadyen was a member of the United States’ 2013 Junior National Team and he competed collegiately at Penn State from 2015-18.
20 & COUNTING
Head coach Larissa Libby has led the GymHawks to 20 straight NCAA Regional appearances (either as a team or individually). The 2022 season is Libby’s 18th as Iowa’s head coach and 21st overall with the program. She is a three-time Big Ten Coach of the Year.
FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
For a behind the scenes look at the program, follow the GymHawks via social media at Facebook/IowaGymnastics, Twitter/@IowaGymnastics, and Instagram (@IowaGymnastics).
UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes close out its home slate, hosting Penn State on Feb. 4 inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The team will honor its senior class during the meet.