When – Sunday, March 17, 2024
Where – Charles E. Smith Center | Washington, D.C.
Time – 1:00 p.m.
Team Records – Towson (19-9 Overall) (4-0 EAGL) | George Washington (16-12 Overall) (1-2 EAGL) | Penn State (12-8 Overall) (3-6 B1G) | Rutgers (10-14 Overall) (0-9 B1G)
Live Stats - SideArm
 
The Grand Finale
The Tigers' 2024 regular season officially ends on Sunday, March 17 with a quad meet hosted by George Washington against #22 Penn State and Rutgers.
 
This will be a close matchup as three of the four teams are coming off of 197 or higher performances. The Tigers and Nittany Lions both rank in the top-30 in the NCAA.
 
Ending on a High Note
The Tigers hosted their final regular season meet of the 2024 season on March 15, picking up win No. 19 after defeating George Washington and William & Mary with a new program record team score of 197.500.
 
Towson's performance was highlighted by a 49.450 on bars, which ties the program record on the event set earlier this season. The Tigers demonstrated their depth, putting up scores of 49.325 or higher on the other three events.
 
22 of the 24 scores logged by Towson gymnasts were 9.8s or higher with Isabella Minervini earning the Tigers highest score of the night of 9.975 on bars. The sophomore won the event, receiving a perfect 10.0 from one judge.
 
Towson's second 197 of the season aided the Tigers to its highest national qualifying score (NQS) in program history of 196.750. With this NQS the Black & Gold currently rank 24th in the NCAA.
 
The Tigers had quite a successful 2024 campaign at home, nearly having a perfect record after defeating seven of the eight opponents they faced in TU Arena.
 
Scouting the Revolutionaries
The Tigers saw their fair share of the Revolutionaries this season as this will be the fifth matchup for the two.
 
After falling to George Washington for the past two matchups, Towson defeated the Revolutionaries on March 15, 197.500-197.200. George Washington posted a program record at Towson's tri meet, outscoring the Tigers on vault (49.375-49.325), beam (49.375-49.325) and floor (49.400-49.500).
 
Sunday's meet will pose a challenge for the Tigers as they have not defeated GW at home since 2009.
 
George Washington ranks 17th in the NCAA on vault (49.220 NQS) and 26th on beam (49.190 NQS). In the East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL), the Revolutionaries rank second overall and first on beam. Key competitors for GW include Kendall Whitman who ranks first in EAGL and 27th in the NCAA on floor (9.915 NQS), fourth on vault (9.850), fourth on all-around (38.944 NQS) and fifth on floor (9.820 NQS). Sarah Zois, Kasey Burke, Maya Peters and Anneliese Silverman rank in the top five in the conference in their respective events.
 
Towson - George Washington By the Numbers (Since 2009)
-Series Record: 12-26
-Home Record: 10-8
-Away Record: 0-13
-Conference Record: 6-1
-Neutral Record: 2-5
-Last Matchup: March 15, 2024
-Towson: 197.500, George Washington: 197.200
 
Scouting the Nittany Lions
Towson last faced Penn State on March 1 in Happy Valley where it fell to the Nittany Lions 196.775 - 196.825. Since then, Penn State has picked up a pair of losses and a pair of wins. At an NC State quad meet on March 10 the Nittany Lions placed second behind No. 21 NC State with a 197.000, defeating Texas Woman's and Penn.
 
Penn State ranks 22 in the NCAA overall with a 196.775 NQS. By event the Nittany Lions rank 23rd on vault 33rd on bars, 22nd on beam and 29th on floor. The team ranks seventh in the Big Ten behind Towson's in-state foe Maryland.
 
The Nittany Lions have a strong beam squad, with the top five athletes on the event holding season high scores of 9.9 or higher. The team posted its highest event score of the season on March 10 on floor, logging a 49.450.
 
Amani Herring and Bella Salcedo hold the team's top floor and beam marks of 9.950. Herring also has the second best vault score of 9.900. Ava Piedrahita and Cassidy Rushlow hold the team's top vault and and bars score respectively, both posting 9.925s on the event.
 
Towson - Penn State By the Numbers (Since 2013)
-Series Record: 0-5
-Home Record: 0-0
-Away Record: 0-3
-Neutral Record: 0-2
-Last Matchup: March 1, 2024
-Towson: 196.775, Penn State: 196.825
 
Scouting the Scarlet Knights
The Tigers faced the Scarlet Knights earlier this season, narrowly defeating them 196.300-196.200 on February 11.
 
Rutgers is coming off of a tri meet victory on March 15, where it defeated University of Pennsylvania and Yale with a 196.200 backed by a season high floor performance of 49.325.
 
Emily Leese holds the team's top vault (9.9) and floor (9.925) scores while Avery Balser has a season high of 9.9 for the Scarlet Knights top bars score. Stephanie Zannella and Rachael Riley have the top beam marks of 9.900.
 
Towson - Rutgers By the Numbers (Since 2013)
-Series Record: 6-7
-Home Record: 2-2
-Away Record: 1-4
-Neutral Record: 3-1
-Last Matchup: February 11, 2024
-Towson: 196.300, Rutgers: 196.200
 
In The Rankings
-Towson finished the 2023 regular season ranked 31st, which is the fourth highest ranking in program history
-Towson is currently ranked 24th in the NCAA (via daily results on RoadToNationals). By event the Tigers are ranked 15th for vault, 20th for bars, 31st for beam and 24th for floor.
-Isabella Minervini is currently ranked sixth in the nation on bars with an NQS of 9.955, average of 9.923 and high of 9.975. Elise Tisler ranks 10th in the NCAA on vault with a 9.915 NQS, 9.875 average and 9.975 high.
-Towson is ranked first in the EAGL conference overall as well as first on vault, bars and floor. The Tigers are second on beam.
-For individual EAGL rankings Elise Tisler ranks first on vault. Minervini ranks first on bars while Grace Vaillancourt ranks third. Vaillancourt ranks second on beam and Sarah Girot ranks fourth. Tisler is third on floor while Vaillancourt and Retoshia Halsell are tied for fifth.
 
Next Time on Tiger Gymnastics
The Tigers host the East Atlantic Gymnastics League championship on Saturday, March 23 at 4 p.m. at TU Arena.