Despite having a shorter Spring Break than average students, the ISU gymnastics team relished the opportunity to relax and refocus over the three days they had off last week.

With mid-season struggles on balance beam causing the Cyclones to fall in the national rankings, Spring Break couldn’t have come at a better time for the 17th-ranked ISU gymnastics team. After averaging a score of 48.910 on beam the first five meets of the season, a variety of mistakes have caused the Cyclones (10-5) to drop to a 48.469 average over the past four competitions.

“Beam is the make or break event. It’s the one that separates the great teams from the good teams,” said coach Jay Ronayne. “We have recently had a couple mistakes on beam in competition that have set us back. But, we took a little break – at the tail end of our Spring Break, we took three days off and it was something that did wonders for the team.”

Besides being freshly motivated, some relief could come in the form of senior beam specialist Ashley Alden, who is expected to return for Friday’s Senior Night competition vs. No. 16 Denver and Iowa. Once Iowa State’s top beam performer, Alden was ranked eighth in the country on beam before suffering an ankle injury earlier this season. Alden’s return is welcome among teammates.

“I think if she does come back to compete, that’s one more girl with a lot of experience, and that’s kind of what you need going into these big meets,” said fellow senior Janet Anson. “It’d be great to see her back in the lineup.”

With the return of one gymnast, however, comes the loss of another. Freshman Megan Barnes, perhaps the team’s most dynamic vaulter, is expected to sit out of Friday’s competition to rest an accumulation of minor injuries. She’s expected to return in time for Iowa State’s next meet, the Big 12 Championship, on March 31.

Beam coach TeShawne Jackson points to Barnes as one of four freshman who need step in to keep beam afloat despite the loss of Alden and sophomore beam anchor Ashley Kent, who suffered a season-ending ACL injury on Jan. 19.

“I am still very proud of this beam team because we’ve had the top two beam girls [Alden and Kent] injured, so for the freshmen to step in and do the job that I’m asking them to do . I think that they’ve been handling it pretty well,” Jackson said.

As for Senior Night festivities, Ronayne hinted at some possible surprises in store for his fourth-year gymnasts.

“We want to show our fans how much our seniors have meant to us and how much they will be missed, and we want to showcase their talents,” he said.