DeKALB, Ill. – Northern Illinois University senior gymnast Anna Martucci has earned the season's first Mid-American Conference Specialist of the Week honor, the league office announced Tuesday. 
 
Martucci picked up the sixth MAC Specialist of the Week Award of her career after scoring a 9.800 on floor exercise to tie for second place at the Alabama Quad Meet in Tuscaloosa Friday night. 
 
Her score was one of just two scores of 9.800 or higher in the meet recorded by a gymnast on one of the three visiting teams; she and teammate Morgan Hooper (balance beam) were the only gymnasts from Temple, Southeast Missouri or NIU to place in the top two on any event.
 
As a junior in 2018, Martucci was named to first team All-MAC and MAC Specialist of the Year after earning the Specialist of the Week honor five times, including after scoring a career high 9.975 on floor versus Western Michigan. Her 9.975 was the highest individual score by an NIU gymnast on any event in two decades.
 
Martucci and her Huskie teammates took second place in the Quad Meet at Alabama as NIU totaled a score of 193.325 to defeat both Temple and Southeast Missouri, while falling to sixth-ranked Alabama.
 
The Huskies, who were selected as the Mid-American Conference preseason favorites by league coaches, return to action Sunday in a dual meet at Western Michigan. NIU opens its home season on Friday, January 18 at 6 p.m. when the Huskies take on Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan in a triangular meet at the NIU Convocation Center.  All NIU home regular season gymnastics meets are free to the public.   
 
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