After a 3-2 start this season, the ISU gymnastics team hit the road for four meets. Two meets into this foursome of road meets, the No. 8 Cyclones are now 3-4 and left searching for answers.

On Feb. 15, the Cyclones came face to face with archrivals Nebraska, bent on getting revenge for a Jan. 14 defeat in Ames. It would take a perfect effort to beat Nebraska.

Unfortunately, the perfection came on Nebraska’s side. Nebraska won the meet, 196.60 to 192.25.

Senior Heather Brink scored the first-ever 10.0 for the Cornhuskers on the vault en route to first-place finishes on every event but the balance beam.

Brink’s score was the first 10 for a member of the women’s team and only the second since Chris Riegel of the men’s team did it at the 1984 NCAA Championships.

“It was real exciting,” Brink said. “I thought I had a really good first vault. [Nebraska coach] Dan [Kendig] wasn’t going to let me go for it, but I wanted a chance. It is an honor. I really didn’t think I could get a 10 at home because the judging is a little tougher. I don’t think it has hit me yet.”

Iowa State did win one event, as Kelli More took first with a 9.875 on balance beam. However, the team still counted a pair of falls on both uneven bars and balance beam in the loss.

The only other top three finishes for the Cyclones were from Betsy Hamm, who tied with three Cornhuskers for third in the uneven bars with a 9.825. She also took third in the all-around with a 38.250.

On Feb. 20, Iowa State traveled to Oklahoma to face off with the Sooners. Oklahoma took first with a 196.500, Iowa State took second with a 195.600 and Centenary took third with a 188.750.

Amber McCracken of Oklahoma placed first in the all-around with a 39.550, first on the floor exercise with a 9.925 and tied for first on the vault with a 9.9.

However, Iowa State did set two new school records, scoring a team score of 49.325 on the vault and 49.325 on the uneven bars.

Yet again it was Hamm to the rescue. She took second in the all-around with a career-high (also the second-best all-around score in school history) of 39.500.

Hamm also tied for second on the floor exercise with a 9.9 and tied for third on the balance beam with sophomore teammate Dena Albacker at 9.850. In addition, Hamm scored fourth and fifth place on the uneven bars and vault, respectively.

Sophomore Shelly Kringen and freshman Karen Kuplicki tied for first on the vault with McCracken, each scoring a 9.9.

Kelli More won her sixth balance beam title of the season with a 9.925, and sophomore Sissy Huey competed for the first time since suffering a foot injury on Jan. 28. She could only compete on the uneven bars and tied for seventh in that event.

The gods of good scheduling were not shining down on the Cyclones when their 2000 season schedule was finalized.

After starting the season with a meet at Missouri, the Cyclones returned home for four straight meets against Nebraska, Brigham Young University, Minnesota and Iowa.

Four straight road meets at Nebraska, Oklahoma, Florida and Iowa make up the middle part of the season before the Cyclones return home March 7 against Missouri.

Then it’s back on the road at Minnesota March 11 and home again for the Big 12 Championship on March 18. Got all that?

Before the season began, Pyle was very blunt in her view of the schedule: It’s terrible.

“From one respect it’s good. We’re home, the girls get comfortable so that’s good, and going on the road will be easier,” Pyle said.

“From a qualifying standpoint, it’s tough because you have to count so many home scores and away scores, and as the season goes on, you tend to get better, and most of our meets are at the end of the season. So in terms of qualifying scores, it hurts us a bit.”

Senior Sarah Sanderson took the opposite viewpoint before the season and said she liked the schedule.

“I think it’s a good schedule because we’ll be getting the high scores and then we’ll challenge ourselves on the road,” Sanderson said. “Then we come back for another home meet and then we have Big 12’s [at home], which I think is great.”

After the meet, the team sits at 3-4 overall (1-3 in the Big 12). Next up is a quadrangular meet at Florida on Friday, Feb. 25 against Florida, Louisiana St. and North Carolina St.