NORMAL, Ill. – After the first duel win of the season against Southeast Missouri last weekend, the Illinois State gymnastics team will host Northern Illinois at 7 p.m. inside Horton Field House on Friday, January 24.
Thoughts from Coach Conkling:
"We are happy to have another home meet and to be competing against NIU on Friday. NIU is always a strong opponent and it should be a close competition. We have focused on details and eliminating deductions within our routines this week in practice and we are excited to debut our improved routines Friday at Horton Field House."
Against Northern Illinois:
Every year the four Illinois gymnastics teams get together to compete in the Illinois Classic quad-meet … the last two years NIU has finished third with ISU finishing in fourth … this Friday will be the Redbirds and Huskies first meeting of the season, with a second meet scheduled on March 6 in Dekalb, Illinois.
Redbird News and Notes:
Last week against SEMO sophomore Sofia Iribarren competed strong on bars and scored a 9.800 to win the event … Iribarren posted a 9.575 on vault to give her a second-place finish in that competition as well … senior Gabrielle Cooke won the vault competition with a 9.700 and posted a 9.675 on bars to give her a second-place finish … she also competed on beam for the first time this season and recorded a score of 9.600 to place fourth … junior Cameron Topp took the event win on floor with a season-high score of 9.825.
About the Huskies:
The Huskies are coached by Sam Morreale, who is in his eighth as head coach for NIU … the Huskies have competed in two meets so far and are 1-1 overall … in the last meet, the Huskies won all four event and the all-around during their loss against Western Michigan … freshman Brookelyn Sears won the all-around with the highest score a freshman has posted since 2008 … sophomore Morgan Hooper posted a 9.825 on bars to win the event … junior Mia Lord won beam with a 9.850 … sophomore Tara Kofmehl posted a 9.875 on floor and a 9.750 to win the two events.Â
Meet Details:
Fans follow along with live stats at GoRedbirds.com or watch routines on the Illinois State Gymnastics Facebook page.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App:Â Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
