Gymnastics Travels to Toledo for B1G Fives Friday

A FULL ROTATION . . .
What you need to know about the Spartans
Michigan State travels to Toledo, Ohio for B1G Five - Elevate The Stage at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 22 at the Huntington Center. The Spartans face Iowa, Maryland, No. 15 Nebraska and No. 24 Penn State. Live stats are available on msuspartans.com and the meet will be streamed on FloGymnastics.

Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio State and Rutgers complete the action on Saturday, Feb. 23, determining seeding for the B1G Championships.

SPARTAN NOTES . . .
- Junior Gabriella Douglas set a new personal best on floor for third time this season with a 9.925 and tallied 9.775 on vault to earn first place in both events vs. Rutgers on Feb. 16.

- Freshman Sydney Ewing recorded her first career wins with personal bests on bars (9.850) and vault (9.775) vs. Rutgers on Feb. 16.

- Senior Molly Hoerner-O'Malley set a career-high 9.850 on beam to win her first event of the season vs. Rutgers on Feb. 16.

- Sophomore Lea Mitchell won her second all-around of the season with a 39.025 vs. Rutgers on Feb. 16.

- Mitchell set a new personal best (9.925) for the second time this season to tie for first on floor at Illinois on Feb. 8.

- Douglas tied for first, setting a new then-career-high on floor (9.900) and set a new season-high of 9.875 on the beam vs. No. 21 Minnesota on Feb. 2.

- Sophomore Tristan Brown set a new career-high on floor (9.825) and Ashley Beatty set a new top mark on vault (9.825) at No. 21 Minnesota on Feb. 2.

- Mitchell won the all-around vs. No. 14 Ohio State on Jan. 27, posting a season-high 39.100. She started the season placing second (38.675), third (39.025) and third (38.500) in the all-around.

- Mitchell posted a then-personal best on floor (9.900) against OSU on Jan. 27. She also tied her personal best on vault with a 9.825, on the way to tying for the meet's top honors on floor and vault.

- Hoerner O'Malley posted a personal best of 9.800 to lead the Spartans on bars against No. 14 Ohio State on Jan. 27.

- Freshman Ashley Hofelich tied her personal best on floor against No. 14 Ohio State on Jan. 27, posting a 9.825.

- Senior Roya Shirley received a season-high 9.750 on vault against No. 14 Ohio State on Jan. 27.

- Senior Jessica Ling, who has recovered from three reconstructive surguries to her ACL throughout her career, tied her personal-best and posted the Spartans top bars score of the season with a 9.875 to take second place at No. 9 Michigan on Jan. 18.

- Hofelich and fellow freshman Alaina Raybon both won events in their collegiate debuts on Jan. 5 vs. NC State. Hofelich won the vault with a score of 9.800, while Raybon took top honors on the floor with a 9.850.

SEASON HIGHS . . .
- The Spartans posted a season-high 195.525 as a team against Rutgers on Feb. 19, topping the 195 mark for the second time time this season.

- The Spartans have improved their team vault score as the season has progressed. Since posting a 48.550 against the Wolfpack on Jan. 5, MSU tallied a 48.750 at the Collegiate Challenge on Jan. 12, a 48.775 at No. 9 Michigan on Jan. 18, followed by a 48.800 vs. No. 14 Ohio State on Jan. 27 and again against No. 21 Minnesota on Feb. 2, before earning a 49.000 at Illinois on Feb. 8.

- Michigan State set a new season-high of 49.200 on floor at Illinois on Feb. 2 and again vs. Rutgers on Feb. 16, the fifth time the Spartans have tallied 49.000 or better this season. At Illinois on Feb. 2 was the first 49.200 on floor for MSU since the Big Ten Quad meet on March 15, 2014.

ROAD TO NATIONALS . . .
MSU is currently ranked No. 43 in the week seven Road to Nationals standings, moving down one spot from last week's rankings.

The Spartans are No. 20 on the floor exercise, No. 29 on vault, No. 48 on bars and No. 51 on balance beam.

SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK . . .
Junior Gabriella Douglas was named the Big Ten Conference Event Specialist of the Week after her performance Saturday, Feb. 2 at No. 21 Minnesota the league announced on Tuesday, Feb. 5.

The Toronto, Ontario native set a new career-high on the floor exercise against the Golden Gophers, earning a 9.900 to tie for first after posting two-straight weeks of 9.875 on the apparatus. It's the first-career Event Specialist of the Week honor for Douglas, and first Weekly Big Ten Honor for MSU since Shanthi Teike was named Co-Freshman of the Week on Feb. 22, 2010.

Douglas also set a new season-high on the balance beam, tallying a 9.875 to tie for third. She tied her career-high with a 9.800 on the vault, after setting a new mark twice this season.

Douglas is a two-time Big Ten Gymnast to Watch, earning the honor prior to the 2018-19 season and the 2017-18 season. She missed the entire season a year ago with a knee injury. Douglas is one of two captains for the Spartans this season, along with sophomore Lea Mitchell.

QUOTABLE WITH COACH ROWE . . .
"The B1G Five meet is going to be great this year, not only because of it falling earlier in the season, but also comparing the stats and seeds of everyone at this point. We're on the podium, which enhances the overall fan and competitor experience. We've been doing a great job of taking small steps and raising our event and meet scores little by little. The Spartans are fired up to snag one of the top 3 spots, earning a berth in the evening session of the B1G championships in March!"

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Players Mentioned

Ashley Beatty

Tristan Brown

Gabriella Douglas

Sydney Ewing

Molly Hoerner-O'Malley

Ashley Hofelich

Jessica Ling

Lea Mitchell

Alaina Raybon

Roya Shirley