The first trip to Morgantown, W.Va., was not all bad for Iowa State. Despite the loss, the Cyclones posted many season- or career-high routines on Feb. 10.

The ISU gymnastics team (2-5, 0-2 Big 12) fell to West Virginia (5-4, 1-1) 196.150 to 194.825.

“Our team overall made a lot of improvements. We’re sticking a lot more landings [and] hitting a lot more handstands,” said junior Henrietta Green. “I think as the weeks go by, we’re getting a lot more consistent.”

Iowa State has improved its overall team score at every meet this season, and the meet against West Virginia was no different. In addition to the team score, the Cyclones posted a season-high score of 48.625 on vault and 48.875 on the balance beam.

“I’m pleased with the effort they put in. I mean, they are fighters. They try to put everything out there,” said ISU gymnastics coach Jay Ronayne. “I’m happy that our team score is improving every meet and I want to continue that trend — hopefully by bigger leaps and bounds soon.”

Three Cyclones competed as all-around gymnasts for Iowa State. Green scored her career-high all-around score of 39.0 and a career-high floor exercise score of 9.850.

All-around gymnast Michelle Shealy received the highest event score by a Cyclone this season. She came in first on the balance beam with a score of 9.875.

Senior Elizabeth Stranahan scored a 39.05, a season-high for any Cyclone, during her first all-around performance. She also scored career-highs on the vault and the balance beam.

“I think we’re really proud of some of the things that we are seeing happen, especially climbing every week in our scores,” Stranahan said. “That is certainly helping confidence [and] certainly helping rankings. We definitely want to see those scores continue to improve.”

The final Cyclone to post a career-best score was junior Milan Ivory. She scored a 9.8 on the balance beam.

Although Iowa State received many season- and career-high scores, the meets this weekend have taken a toll on the Cyclones.

“This weekend and the next few coming up are especially busy, because we’ve had two meets in the same weekend — and not just at home, but also traveling to other places,” Stranahan said. “We have to be on top of nutrition and getting enough sleep.”