No. 19 Missouri gymnastics finished in second place, sandwiched between No. 25 Iowa State and Iowa, in its meet in Ames, Iowa, on Friday night. The hosting Cyclones were the victors by more than half a point on the team’s senior night.
Missouri started off slowly on the beam but rebounded with a strong team performance on the floor, where five of the six Tigers posted scores of at least 9.800 en route to a team score of 49.200.
The Tigers started off slowly on vault too, as only sophomore Aspen Tucker scored higher than a 9.800, but junior Madeleine Huber capped off the night with a team-high 9.925 on the bars.
The result of the up-and-down performances was a second-placed finish for the Tigers. They finished half a point ahead of the Hawkeyes but also half a point behind the Cyclones.
Despite the team’s inconsistencies, Mizzou ended up with two individual victories — Huber’s 9.925 on the bars and junior Britney Ward’s 9.875 on the beam — which will help the team carry confidence that could last into its meet next week and into the Southeastern Conference championships later this month.
Another major positive takeaway from Friday’s meet was that redshirt sophomore Morgan Porter competed in all four events for the first time since injuring her achilles last season. Not only did Porter participate in each event, but this was by far her best performance this season, as she ended the night with three scores of at least 9.800. Missouri will hope that this form continues for Porter and that the former SEC Freshman of the Year can work her way back to the top of the sport in time for the postseason.
The Tigers return to Columbia for their senior night in the State of Missouri Meet March 16 against Lindenwood and Southeast Missouri State. The meet is scheduled to start at 6:45 p.m.
_Edited by Joe Noser | jnoser@themaneater.com_