After competing in four meets over a span of three weeks, the Cyclones will have their first weekend off since the start of 2014.

Over that span, the Cyclones have accumulated a 1-4 overall record. Their sole victory came in a tri-meet against Illinois State on Jan. 10. Iowa State finished second overall in that meet, however, to then-No. 7 Michigan.

In fact, the Cyclones’ four losses have all come against opponents who were nationally ranked at the time: No. 15 Penn State, No. 7 Michigan, No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 16 Oregon State. After a stretch of tough competition to open the season, junior Caitlin Brown thinks the team’s bye week came at the right time.

“We’re into competitions now and you start to get a little tired at this point and now there’s some school work to do,” Brown said. “Now we can give our bodies a second to recover and come back full force. It’s nice to just have a little time to catch up on things.”

While the Cyclones think the break is well-timed, the score sheet suggests it might not even be necessary.

In their most recent meet against Oregon State in Corvallis, Ore., Iowa State tied a season-high team score on vault with a mark of 48.450, set a season-high team score on bars with 48.850 points and tallied a season-high overall team score by recording 194.750 points.

However, ISU head coach Jay Ronayne insisted that this point in the season is ideal for a break from competition.

“This bye [week] is by design,” Ronayne said. “This is the time of year when we need to have a little break to regroup and consider altering some routines or get some rest for some gymnasts. We know it’s that time of year, so this really is perfect for us.”

Rest isn’t needed for every gymnast on the team, though. Senior Megan McDonald, who has competed on vault and bars in every meet this season, said that her off week will focus on tying up some loose ends in her routines.

“For me personally, my vault landing needs to improve,” McDonald said. “I’ll probably work harder this week since I have more time to focus on those little things. It’s going to be less recovery and more detail work.”

The opportunity to put a second meet in the win column is not far off for the ISU gymnastics team. In the meantime, however, each Cyclone gymnast is going to utilize the season’s only bye week in a way that best suits them.

“There are always things that need work or things here and there that you want to give more attention to,” Brown said. “[At Oregon State] I didn’t stick my landings so this week I’m going to come back out and get those, but that’s just for me. We’re all working on those little things that’ll take us to the next level.”