Gymnastics Looking To Make A Splash Saturday at MACs

MUNCIE, Ind. - - Months of practice and preparation comes down to one meet, as the Ball State gymnastics program sets its sights on Saturday's Mid-American Conference Championships hosted by Eastern Michigan at 2 p.m. inside the Gervin GameAbove Center.

HOW TO FOLLOW SATURDAY: Championship Central | ESPN3 | Live Results

The Cardinals will be looking to claim just the second MAC Championship in program history, with BSU's first and only crown coming in 2002.

BSU enters the meet with the potential to score big, having already surpassed the 196.000 mark for the first time in program history this season, with a program record score of 196.325 in the Feb. 20 dual meet versus Eastern Michigan.

Throw together Ball State's best individual event scores of the season and the team has the ability to score a 196.800-or-higher: 49.150 on Vault (Jan. 30), 49.100 on Bars (Feb. 20), 49.150 on Beam (Jan. 30) and 49.400 on Floor (Feb. 20).

IN THE RTN TEAM RANKINGS:

Ball State enters the MAC Championships ranked 48th nationally in the fourth week of the NQS scores … BSU's Team NQS stands at 195.410 following last Friday's score of 193.925 at Central Michigan.
Around The MAC: Western Michigan leads the MAC and is ranked 36th nationally with a 196.150 NQS, followed by Kent State (38th at 196.055), Central Michigan (40th at 195.915), Northern Illinois (47th at 195.475), BSU, Eastern Michigan (52nd at 194.695) and Bowling Green (56th at 194.245)
What is NQS: Qualification for regional competition is based on a team's and an all-around competitor's six best regular-season-meet scores, of which three must be away. To obtain the national qualifying score (NQS), the high score is eliminated, and the remaining five scores are averaged.

IN THE RTN EVENT RANKINGS:

VAULT: The Cardinals enter the weekend ranked 34th nationally with a NQS vault score of 49.040 … Ball State has registered six of the top 23 vault scores in program history so far this season, with its season-best 49.150 mark in the home tri-meet sweep of Central Michigan and Illinois State on Jan. 30 ranking second all-time.
BARS: The Cardinals enter the weekend ranked 51st nationally with a NQS bars score of 48.750 … BSU tied the eighth-best team bars score in program history with a 49.100 in the program record setting win over Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20).
BEAM: The Cardinals enter the weekend ranked 45th nationally with a NQS beam score of 48.835 … Ball State recorded a program record beam score of 49.150 in the home tri-meet sweep of Central Michigan and Illinois State on Jan. 30 and have set three of the top 16 marks on the all-time list so far this season.
FLOOR: The Cardinals enter the weekend ranked 50th nationally with a NQS floor score of 48.945 … BSU's season-best floor mark of 49.400 in the program record setting win over Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20) is tied as the second-best mark on BSU's all-time list.

SPEAKING OF THE RECORD BOOKS:

For the first time in program history, the Ball State gymnastics team broke the 196.000 plateau, with a program record team score of 196.325 in the Feb. 20 victory over Eastern Michigan … For the record, BSU counted a 48.875 on vault, a 49.100 on bars, a 48.950 on beam, and a 49.400 on floor.
The Cardinals have tallied three of the top eight scores in program history so far this season … BSU's 195.850 in the Jan. 30 tri-meet is now tied as the third best in program history, while its 195.675 at Western Michigan (Jan. 16) is the eighth best.
Those three performances are not the only time BSU has flirted with a program record under ninth-year head coach Joanna Saleem … In fact, the top 14 team scores in program history have come under Saleem's guidance.

HITTING THE TEAM EVENT MARK:

The Cardinals tallied a program record 49.150 beam score in the Jan. 30 tri-meet, counting routines of 9.900 from freshman Grace Sumner, 9.850 from senior Lauren Volpe, 9.825 from sophomore Hannah Ruthberg, 9.800 from junior Alivia Ostendorf and a 9.775 from senior Sandra Elsadek.
Ball State also turned in the second-best vault score in program history on Jan. 30, registering an identical mark of 49.150 … Sophomore Suki Pfister led the way with a 9.925, followed by 9.825s from senior Stefanie Schweikert and Elsadek, a 9.800 from sophomore Victoria Henry, and 9.775s from Ostendorf and Ruthberg.
BSU's 49.400 floor score in the Feb. 20 dual win over Eastern Michigan is also the second-best score in program history … Junior Megan Teter led the way with a 9.925, while junior Taylor Waldo, sophomore Hannah Ruthberg, and freshman Eric Cooper all counted 9.875s … Rounding out the score was senior Sandra Elsadek with a 9.850.
Of the four event records, the Cardinals have broken three of them under Saleem's guidance … In addition to the Jan. 30, 2022, beam record, Ball State topped the floor mark with a 49.500 versus Western Michigan on March 5, 2017, and shattered the vault record three times, most recently with a 49.175 versus Western Michigan on Feb. 3, 2019.
BSU also came tantalizingly close to the bars record, with the second-best mark in program history at 49.250 last season at Central Michigan (March 13) … The bars record is currently 49.275 set on March 9, 2001, at Illinois-Chicago.

VAULTING NEAR PERFECTION

Sophomore Suki Pfister became just the fifth gymnast in program history to register a score of 9.950-or-higher last Friday at Central Michigan (March 11) with her 9.950 vault … It is the best vault in the MAC this season and ties as the third-best vault in program history … It's also BSU's 11th routine of 9.950-or-higher all-time.
Pfister tied the sixth-best vault performance in program history with her score of 9.925 in the Jan. 30 tri-meet sweep.
Pfister also landed a 9.900 vault in the Jan. 23 dual meet versus Kent State and in the Feb. 4 meet at No. 20 Utah State, making her the first MAC student-athlete to post multiple marks of 9.900-or-better on vault this season.
Powered by her four high scores, Pfister enters the MAC Championships ranked first in the league and 25th nationally with an NQS vault score of 9.895 … Of her 11 vault routines this season, 10 have been 9.800-or-better.
Pfister is a two-time MAC Specialist of the Week this season (Feb. 2 & March 15), and was named First Team All-MAC for her effort this year.

HENRY SCORING STRONG TOO:

Sophomore Victoria Henry is right behind on the vault NQS, ranking sixth in the MAC and tied for 106th nationally with a 9.840 average.
Henry is tied for second on the squad with 13 scores of 9.800-or-higher so far this season.
She has landed eight of those mark on vault, including a season-best 9.875 versus Kent State (Jan. 23) which ties as the 15th-best vault score in program history.
Henry scored a career-best 9.825 on floor and a season-best 9.800 on beam at Western Michigan (Jan. 16).

VOLPE SOLID ON BEAM

Senior Lauren Volpe enters the weekend ranked fifth in the MAC with a NQS beam score of 9.845 … She landed a career-best routine of 9.875 at Western Michigan (Jan. 16) and has hit for 9.825-or-higher in six of her 12 routines this season.
Volpe's career-best beam score of 9.875 ties as the 12th-best score in program history.
Volpe was named the MAC Specialist of the Week on Jan. 18 after her performance at Western Michigan.

RUTHBERG MAKING MOVES ALL-AROUND:

Sophomore Hannah Ruthberg has competed in the all-around in a team-leading nine meets so far this season, including turning in a career-best 39.325 at West Virginia (March 6)
Ruthberg's point breakdown at WVU included a career-high tying 9.900 on floor, a career-high tying 9.850 on beam, a 9.825 on vault and a 9.750 on bars.
After the performance at West Virginia, Ruthberg owns five of the top 18 all-around scores in program history, with four of the marks coming this season … Her 39.275 at Western Michigan (Jan. 16) is fifth all-time, her 39.200 in the program record setting dual win over EMU (Feb. 20) is 11th, and her 39.175 at Utah State with Southern Utah (Feb. 4) is 12^th.
In addition, Ruthberg's 9.900 on floor at West Virginia is tied as the 19th-best routine in program history … The effort helped her move to 15th in the MAC with a NQS of 9.815 which leads the squad.
Ruthberg paces the team with 16 routines of 9.800-or-higher, including 10 of her last 20 event scores.
Ruthberg was named MAC Scholar Athlete of the Week on March 9 for her performance at West Virginia.

WALDO GOES ALL-AROUND:

Junior Taylor Waldo turned in the meet of her career versus Bowling Green (Feb. 13), competing in the all-around for the first time with the Cardinals, scoring a 38.050.
With the Cardinals short-handed on the day, she competed on vault (9.575) and bars (8.875) for the first time in her collegiate career … She also tied her career-best mark with a 9.850 on beam and finished with a 9.750 on floor.
Waldo took it up another notch at West Virginia (March 6), putting together a career-best beam routine of 9.900 … It's tied as the second-best beam routine in program history and earned her the event win at WVU
Waldo also enters the MAC Championships ranked second on the squad and eighth in the MAC with a 9.830 NQS on beam
Waldo was named the MAC Specialist of the Week on March 8 after her performance at West Virginia.

SUMNER JUST SHY OF PROGRAM BEAM MARK:

Grace Sumner has had a highly impressive freshman campaign, and Jan. 30's home tri-meet was no different as she turned in a 9.900 to lead Ball State's record-setting performance on beam … The effort ties as both the second-best mark in program history and the six-best score on beam in the MAC so far this season.
So far in her debut season, Sumner has landed 13 routines of 9.700-or-better with eight coming on beam and five on bars.
She registered a career-best bars score of 9.775 in versus Bowling Green (Feb. 13).

COOPER ALSO MAKING A MARK

Freshman Erica Cooper made her competition debut in the Jan. 28 quad-meet at Eastern Michigan, leading the team with a 9.800 on floor.
She turned in an even better performance in the Jan. 30 home tri-meet, scoring 9.850.
Cooper added a career-best 9.875 on floor in the home win over Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20), help BSU tie the second-highest floor score in program history.
She enters the MAC Championships leading the Cardinals and ranking 14th in the MAC with a NQS of 9.830.

TETER LEADING THE WAY:

Junior Megan Teter is the top Ball State gymnast on bars, ranking 10th in the MAC with a NQS of 9.810.
Teter has landed five bars routines of 9.800-or-better, including a season-best 9.850 mark in the record setting win over Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20) and again at West Virginia (March 6).
Teter has also been strong on floor, turning in her best routine of the year in the Feb. 20 meet against the Eagles, with her 9.925 tying for seventh in program history … It's also the third-best floor score in the MAC so far this season
Overall, Teter has five marks of 9.800-or-better on floor this season.
For her efforts in the gym, classroom, and community, Teter was named a Ball State University Top 100 Student.

ELSEDEK ENJOYING STRONG SENIOR YEAR:

Senior Sandra Elsadek has saved her best for last, registering career-high routines in three of the four individual events, as well as the all-around so far this season.
She started with a career-high 9.825 on vault at Western Michigan (Jan. 16), which she later tied in the Jan. 30 home tri-meet.
She registered a career-best bars score of 9.825 versus Bowling Green (Feb. 13).
Her best performance of the year came in the record setting win over Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20), when she celebrated senior day with a career-best 39.000 in the all-around … The effort included a season-high 9.850 on floor and a career-high tying 9.825 on bars.
She added a career-best on beam at West Virginia (March 6), scoring a 9.800.

IN THE EVENT WIN COLUMN:

The Cardinals have claimed 24 event victories so far this season, including all four individual events and the all-around at West Virginia (March 6).
Sophomore Suki Pfister leads the way with eight, tying for top honors on vault at Western Michigan (Jan. 16) before winning it outright in seven of the last nine meets.
Junior Megan Teter is second on the squad with five event wins, three coming on bars (Jan. 23, Jan. 30 & March 6) and two on floor (Feb. 13 & Feb. 20).
Junior Taylor Waldo has four wins on the year, claiming the beam title versus Kent State (Jan. 23), against Bowling Green (Feb. 13), versus Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20) and at West Virginia (March 6).
Sophomore Hannah Ruthberg also has four event wins, tying for the top spot on bars versus Bowling Green (Feb. 13), winning floor at West Virginia (March 6), and claiming the all-around titles versus Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20) and at WVU.
Senior Sandra Elsadek earned a pair of event wins versus Bowling Green (Feb. 13), tying for first on both bars and floor.
Senior Lauren Volpe owns a pair of wins on beam, claiming the titles at Western Michigan (Jan. 16) and tying for the top spot versus Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20).
Sophomore Victoria Henry has earned the vault title twice, tying for the top spot at Eastern Michigan (Jan. 16) and claiming the title against Eastern Michigan (Feb. 20).
Freshman Grace Sumner also owns an event win, with her title on beam in the Jan. 30 tri-meet.

SCORING 9.800-OR-BETTER:

Ball State has chalked up 88 routines of 9.800-or-better so far this season, led by 16 from sophomore Hannah Ruthberg and nine by sophomore Victoria Henry.
Of those 80 routines, 28 have come on vault … BSU has also hit the mark 24 times on floor, 20 times on beam, and 16 times on bars so far this season.
Of those 88 routines, eight have been 9.900-or-better … Sophomore Suki Pfister has the best overall score with her 9.950 on vault (March 11) … Pfister owns a 9.925 on vault (Jan. 30), while junior Megan Teter scored a 9.925 on floor (Feb. 20) … Pfister has also hit 9.900 twice on vault (Jan. 23 & Feb. 2), freshman Grace Sumner logged a 9.900 on beam (Jan. 30), junior Taylor Waldo earned a 9.900 on beam (March 6), and sophomore Hannah Ruthberg was credited with a 9.900 on floor (March 6).
Overall, the Cardinals hit routines of 9.800-or-better 97 times last season … BSU's floor team led the way at 32 marks at the threshold, followed by bars (28), vault (21) and beam (16) … In addition, Ball State's gymnasts hit 10 routines of 9.900-or-better last season.

Gymnastics Looking To Make A Splash Saturday at MACs

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Erica Cooper

Sandra Elsadek

Victoria Henry

Alivia Ostendorf

Suki Pfister

Hannah Ruthberg

Stefanie Schweikert

Grace Sumner

Megan Teter

Lauren Volpe

Taylor Waldo

Gymnastics Looking To Make A Splash Saturday at MACs

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Erica Cooper

Sandra Elsadek

Victoria Henry

Alivia Ostendorf

Suki Pfister

Hannah Ruthberg

Stefanie Schweikert

Grace Sumner

Megan Teter

Lauren Volpe

Taylor Waldo

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