IOWA CITY, Iowa – The 18th-ranked Iowa women’s gymnastics team continued its winning streak, defeating Rutgers, 196.200-195.125, on Saturday night in front of a crowd of 2,905 fans inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Senior JerQuavia Henderson captured the vault and floor titles to give her eight individual event titles this season. The Peoria, Illinois, native performed the first Y1.5 by a Hawkeye gymnast on vault to tie her career-high score of 9.925. She scored her second 9.925 of the day on floor to capture her fourth-floor title.
Vault
Iowa scored a 49.050 in its first event, taking the top three spots. Henderson set a new season-high and tied her career high, 9.925, to finish first place overall. Karina Muñoz scored a 9.825 to place second and both Allison Zuhlke and Linda Zivit tied for third after posting 9.775s. Kendall LaPlante finished with a 9.750, and Gianna Masella followed with a 9.725 to go into the second event with a .225 lead.
𝙎𝙐𝙍𝙋𝙍𝙄𝙎𝙀!!! @qbaby03 debuts a Yurchenko 1.5!💥 And it was a stunner.
9️⃣.9️⃣2️⃣5️⃣ to lead our Vault rotation! pic.twitter.com/4sJZ9PLLN7
— Iowa Gymnastics (@IowaGymnastics) February 18, 2023
Bars
The Hawkeyes posted a 48.675, as Marissa Rojas earned her first top-three finish of the season. The sophomore stuck her routine to score a 9.800 to tie her career high and finish second place overall. Muñoz tied for third after scoring a 9.775, and Zuhlke followed with a 9.750. Adeline Kenlin and Ella Castellano both finished with 9.675s, and LaPlante scored a 8.925.
𝙎𝙏𝙄𝘾𝙆 𝙄𝙊𝙒𝘼™️@marissacrojas | #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/TdeMUY3X5b
— Iowa Gymnastics (@IowaGymnastics) February 18, 2023
Beam
The GymHawks scored their third-highest score of the season after finishing with a 49.175. Three gymnasts scored above a 9.800 with Aubrey Nick and Kenlin tying for third place overall with 9.875s. Henderson finished with a 9.825 to tie for sixth place with Rojas. Alexa Ebeling finished with a 9.775, and Zuhlke anchored to score a 9.075 to head into the final event.
Don't say it
Don't say it
Don't say it…Beam Queen.@AdelineKenlin | #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/1uiXYCiKZH
— Iowa Gymnastics (@IowaGymnastics) February 19, 2023
Floor
Iowa, who is ranked 12th nationally on floor, finished with 49.300. Henderson scored her third 9.925 of the season to finish first place overall. For the second week in a row, freshman Hanna Castillo was runner-up after posting a 9.875. Kenlin and Zivat tied for third place, finishing with 9.850s. Muñoz finished with a 9.800, and Bailey Libby scored a 9.700 to help keep the Hawkeyes on a three-meet winning streak.
9️⃣.9️⃣2️⃣5️⃣ (for the second time this evening) for @qbaby03!🔥🔥🔥 #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/88dmh8GD40
— Iowa Gymnastics (@IowaGymnastics) February 19, 2023
Quoting Head Coach Larissa Libby
“JerQuavia has had that talent for a long time. It’s me that’s been like the chicken little. She is coming into her own this year mentally. She has specific goals, and she has to train in the morning. She leaves weights and then comes over with us at 7:30 a.m. because of her class schedule. I am so proud of her, and it certainly helps us because it’s another 10.0 score.
“I’m not sure what happened out here tonight. It was a little frustrating, and we weren’t very sharp in some places, but in other places we were really good. I feel the overall score didn’t really reflect what we did, and that goes for both teams.”
Up Next
The Hawkeyes will return to action Feb. 24, traveling to Lincoln, Nebraska, to compete in Big Five Meet. Iowa will compete in Session I with Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, and Penn State. The meet is set to start at 7 p.m. (CT) and will be aired on BTN.
