Gymnasts fall to Minnesota

Jeff Raasch

The ISU Cyclone gymnasts took a five-meet winning streak to Minnesota, but the Golden Gophers had revenge on their minds. After defeating both Minnesota and Oklahoma in a triangular meet last weekend at Ames, the Cyclones fell to the 14th-ranked Gophers 196.150-196.525 Saturday night. Iowa State, ranked 10th nationally, saw their record drop to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in the Big 12. Minnesota outscored Iowa State in every event, but needed a school record overall team score to upset the Cyclones.The Cyclones continued to show balance from top to bottom with four different gymnasts taking first-place honors. Shelly Kringen, 2000 Region 4 champion, vaulted her way to a 9.90 to win the event. The junior also tied Minnesota’s MaryAnne Kelley to take first place in the floor exercise for the fifth consecutive meet. Sissy Huey continued to dominate on the uneven bars. She put up a 9.925 in the event, matching a career high. Huey’s high score earned top honors in the event for the sixth time this season. Heading to the balance beam, the Cyclones trailed the Gophers by 0.125. Two Cyclones responded by out-shining the competition. Freshmen Chee Chee Calina and Courtney Sarrett shared first place with scores of 9.875. The score marked a career-high for both gymnasts. Jessy Smith and Huey were right behind in a four-way tie for third place. The two Cyclones each scored 9.850 to match Minnesota’s Jenny Alf and Kelley. Smith achieved a personal season high in the event. However, the Cyclones had to count a fall in the event which hurt their chances for a come back.A couple other gymnasts had a good night for Iowa State. Karen Kuplicki matched Minnesota’s Leigh Dixon and Shanyn Lancaster on the vault, taking third place with a score of 9.80. The sophomore also scored a 9.80 on vault while Lauren Goldberg posted a 9.825 on floor exercise. Both Cyclones were rewarded with fourth-place honors.Several Cyclones were among the leaders in the all-around competition. Huey finished at second place with a 39.275. Smith took third place, scoring 39.200, and Kringen came in fourth (39.125). Kringen felt that her team did not suffer a let down after last weeks big wins, but rather it was a case of Minnesota out performing the Cyclones. “We knew going into Minnesota that it’d be hard,” she said. “We had the mindset going in that we had to do better than we’d ever been to beat Minnesota at Minnesota.” Kringen also mentioned that she is also looking forward to this weekend’s meet at Gainsville, Fla.”It’s always good to show the judges [from a different part of the country] that we’re for real,” she said.