Celine Paulus broke her personal all-around record Friday night with a score of 39.150 in the ISU gymnastics team’s home debut, a 195.775-193.925 loss to top-ranked Nebraska.

The senior from Yorba Linda, Calif., scored a team-high in bars (9.825), beam (9.800) and floor (9.850).

“Our last meet was not our best,” Paulus said. “Today was a lot better. Being consistent in the last meet and this meet shows the younger people on our team that it’s possible to get those higher scores.”

The ISU senior class has Paulus, Michelle Browning and Shea Anderson leading the way for the Cyclones (0-2, 0-1 Big 12).

“Celine Paulus’ all-around performance, I think that was pretty noteworthy,” said coach Jay Ronayne. “I think this is setting the tone for what kind of season she is going to have. [I] expect a lot from her.”

Paulus struggled early in the meet during the vault competition, with a team-low 9.675. However, the scores in her next three events helped contribute to her record-breaking night in all-around competition.

“It starts in practice and leads to confidence in the gym,” Paulus said after the meet. “[Going out on a high note] is really important.”

The senior has much to look forward to this only being the Iowa State’s second meet of the season.

“I don’t want to have any regrets. Last year wasn’t my best year,” Paulus said. “That was my motivation for this year. I don’t want to leave knowing I could’ve done better.”

This Friday should tell a lot about where the Cyclones are heading as they face off against the Hawkeyes at Hilton Coliseum.

Freshman shows strengths in home debut

Iowa State’s only freshman, Caitlin Brown, performed in three of four events in Iowa State’s loss to Nebraska (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten) on Friday night. 

The freshman did well in the floor exercise and beam routine with scores of 9.750 and 9.775. Brown, along with Browning, scored a team-high of 9.750 on the vault.

“I don’t really look at it as putting her in three events,” Ronayne said. “It just shook out that way. I knew she should be in on vault, and the beam is her best event. [Putting her on floor] was kind of an experiment.”

The Apple Valley, Minn., native excited the crowd with her performances and should continue to grow as the season moves forward. 

“I really love the crowd,” Brown said. “This [meet] was definitely more fun and more high energy, and it really helped a lot. There’s a little bit of pressure being the only freshman and doing three events.”