Notes: No. 17 Hawkeyes Set to Compete in Big Five Meet

THIS WEEK
The 17th-ranked University of Iowa women’s gymnastics team will travel to Toledo, Ohio, for the Big Five Meet, facing No. 1 Michigan, No. 22 Ohio State, No. 26 Illinois, and No. 39 Maryland inside the Huntington Center on Friday. The meet is set to start at 6 p.m. (CT) and will be live streamed live on FloGymnastics.

FOLLOW LIVE
• Friday’s meet will be streamed live on FloGymnastics — a paid 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 196.286. Iowa was ranked ninth following Week 1 — the second-highest ranking in program history.
• Iowa placed in the top two on floor in its victory over Rutgers, Kent State, and Ursinus with senior Lauren Guerin and junior JerQuavia Henderson both placing in the top two. The team sits at seventh nationally on floor with an average score of 49.382.
• Senior Bridget Killian scored a 9.875 on vault to take her first event title of the season, setting a new season high and tying her career high. Iowa is ranked No. 18 nationally on vault. Iowa also sits 19th in the country on beam and 34th on bars.
• JerQuavia Henderson earned her third all-around title after scoring a 39.400 against Rutgers, Kent State, and Ursinus. The junior remains undefeated in the event and is tied for No. 21 nationally.
• The Hawkeyes have earned two Big Ten weekly honors this season. Junior JerQuavia Henderson was the Specialist of the Week on Jan. 10 and 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 three gymnasts win event titles in their quad-victory against Rutgers, Kent State, and Ursinus on Feb. 11. Junior JerQuavia earned her fifth floor title and kept her undefeated record in all-around. Senior Bridget Killian earned her first vault title of the season.
• Three gymnasts tied or set new season highs on beam against Rutgers, Kent State, and Ursinus on Feb. 11. Senior Bridget Killian and junior JerQuavia Henderson both tied their season and career highs after scoring 9.875s to tie for third place. Senior Mackenzie Vance set a new season high, posting a 9.800.
• Four gymnasts either tied or set new season highs on vault against Rutgers, Kent State, and Ursinus on Feb. 11. Senior Bridget Killian set a new season high after scoring a 9.875 to take the event title. Senior Lauren Guerin scored a season high 9.850, tying for second place. Sophomore Kendall Laplante tied her season high, scoring a 9.775, and senior Alex Greenwald tied her season high with a 9.750.
• The GymHawks scored 49 or higher in three events (vault,beam,and floor) in Piscataway.
• Iowa has had nine gymnasts win event titles this season — Alex Greenwald (1), JerQuavia Henderson (8), Clair Kaji (1), Adeline Kenlin (3), Allyson Steffensmeier (2), Lauren Guerin (3), Linda Zivat (2), Marissa Rojas (1), and Bridget Killian (1).

B1G RANKINGS
Iowa sits atop the Big Ten standings with a 4-0 league record (Iowa is 9-1 overall). No. 1 Michigan follows at 3-0 (6-0 overall). Iowa has defeated Michigan State, Nebraska, Penn State, and Rutgers. The Hawkeyes and Wolverines will face off this weekend in Toledo.

LAST SEASON’S BIG 5
The Hawkeyes posted a score of 196.100 to win the Big Five Meet to clinch the Big Ten regular season title. The win was Iowa’s first ever in Ann Arbor.

COMEBACK OF THE SEASON
Iowa entered the final rotation against Penn State on Feb. 4, trailing by .600 points. The Hawkeyes rallied, scoring a program-record 49.650 on floor to improve to 3-0 in the Big Ten. Five gymnasts scored a 9.900 or higher with senior Lauren Guerin and junior JerQuavia Henderson posting a 9.975 to share the event title and tie for the highest score in program history.

FLOOR RECORDS GALORE
No. 17 Iowa broke the school floor record and had two gymnasts tie the top floor score in its 196.125-195.325 victory over No. 29 Penn State on Feb. 4.
• The previous floor record was 49.600, which was set against Minnesota/ Maryland in 2021.
• Senior Lauren Guerin posted a career-high 9.975 as the anchor to seal the comeback victory. The Texas native received one perfect 10.0 to tie for the highest score in program history.
• Junior JerQuavia Henderson posted a 9.975 for the second time in her career, tying her own school record. The Illinois native, who had a 10.0 from one judge, also posted a 9.975 last season against Maryland/Minnesota.

FLOOR QUEENS
Senior Lauren Guerin and junior JerQuavia Henderson have been consistently consistent on floor this season. The two gymnasts both rank in the top 15 in the Road to Nationals rankings with Henderson tied for No. 10 with a 9.925 average score, while Guerin is tied for 15th with a 9.921 average score.
• The pair both received one perfect 10.0 en route to 9.975 scores on floor against Penn State on Feb. 4 to tie the school record and tie for the event title.
• Guerin has scored 9.900 or higher in six of seven meets this season, including a career-best 9.975 against Penn State.
• Henderson has scored 9.900 or higher in all seven competitions, including her season-best 9.975 against the Nittany Lions.
• As a team, Iowa has scored 49.225 or higher in all seven meets this season. Guerin and Henderson have finished in the top three on floor in every meet. Iowa has won or shared the floor title in every meet this season.

AAJH
JerQuavia Henderson has won the all-around in all three competitions she has competed in this season. She had a career-high 39.475 in her all-around debut against Nebraska on Jan. 29 before scoring a 39.425 against Penn State on Feb. 4 and 39.400 against Rutgers, Kent State, and Ursinus. The junior has 12 event titles this season.
• Henderson is tied for 21st nationally in the all-around this season.
• In seven meets, Henderson has tallied 20 top-three finishes to lead the team.

B1G HONORS
• 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. It was her first career 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.

IN THE RANKINGS
Iowa is one of four Big Ten teams in the top 20 of the Road to Nationals rankings along with No. 1 Michigan, No. 6 Minnesota and No. 14 Michigan State. The Hawkeyes, who are ranked 17th, was 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
• Lauren Guerin – t1st -9.975 – Floor
• Adeline Kenlin -t1st- 9.975- Beam
• Clair Kaji – t3rd – 9.950 – Beam
• Lauren Guerin – t4th – 9.950 – Floor
• JerQuavia Henderson – 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 will travel to Minneapolis to face No. 6 Minnesota on Feb. 25. The meet is set to start at 4:30 p.m. (CT) and it will be televised on BTN.