The Iowa State women’s gymnastics team recorded the highest finish ever by a team making its inaugural appearance in the Missouri Cat Classic since 1981.

A crowd of over 6,000 gathered in Columbia to watch the 18th annual Cat Classic on Friday and Saturday.

Sophomore Kelly Cherwien took first place on the vault with a score of 9.7. Freshman teammate Angela Umbaugh tied for third in the same event with a score of 9.625. ISU scored a 47.950 to capture the team title on the vault.

Cyclone senior Kayo Merritt captured top honors on the beam with a score of 9.825. ISU also finished third on the beam with a score of 9.675 courtesy of freshman Jessica Smith.

In Saturday evening’s individual championships, Cherwien once again walked away with a first place finish on the vault.

The Cyclones finished behind third-ranked Penn State and ahead of Pittsburgh and Missouri.

Other Cyclones competing in the Classic were sophomore Sarah Stayberg, junior Michelle Hladky, senior Heidi Kirt and sophomore Kelli More.

Hladky finished in the uneven bars competition.

“I was really happy with my bar performance,” she said. “I hit one of the best routines I have ever done.”

Team-wise, she said the Cyclones did well, and their strengths during the weekend contest were on the beam and vault. They made some mistakes, but they were ones that could be easily corrected, she said.

“There’s plenty of room to pick it up,” Hladky said. “I know it’s going to get better. Right now, we all have a positive outlook.”

The women return home this weekend to compete against Missouri on Friday.

Hladky said the home crowd is a spirit booster and working on the familiar ISU equipment also proves to be an advantage.

“Home meets are definitely exciting [with] plenty of people in there and a crowd that we know who is cheering for us,” she said. “It is a whole lot easier than going away.”

The contest will be held at Hilton and gets under way at 7 p.m.