DeKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University women's gymnastics team wraps up its Mid-American Conference dual meet schedule when the Huskies welcome Kent State to the NIU Convocation Center Saturday. The action begins at 2 p.m. and can be seen on NIUTube (Huskies All-Access) on NIUHuskies.com.  
 
Following the meet, NIU will honor seniors Catherine Biddle (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Central HS), Lauren Gomes (Dix Hills, N.Y./Commack HS), Mia Lord (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern HS), Zoie Schroeder (Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park HS) and Gabby Welch (Greenbrier, Tenn./Aaron Academy), a group that will leave the Huskie gymnastics program better than they found it, according to head coach Sam Morreale.
 
"It's hard to continue to talk about each of these classes without saying, they came in and took the program to a new level," Morreale said. "They helped raise the expectations where maybe when they came in, we would score 193 and that was what our goal was. This year, we score 193 and we're disappointed and this class has definitely contributed to changing that mindset."
 
Three of the Huskies' 2021 seniors have been regular contributors on balance beam throughout their careers, led by Lord, the 2019 MAC Champion and two-time All-MAC selection who owns more scores of 9.900 or higher on the apparatus than any gymnast in school history.  She moved into the vault line-up last year and competes on beam, vault and floor in 2021.
 
Similarly, Schroeder is a three-year starter on balance beam who has also been one of the Huskies' top vaulters in the last two seasons, earning career high marks of 9.875 on each event. Biddle led off NIU's balance beam rotation in 2019 and 2020 and has 22 hits in 23 routines on the four-inch beam.
 
"We tease [Associate Head Coach] Nita [Teague] who is our recruiting coordinator that beam is the event she coaches and we get these freshmen that come in and excel on beam right away," Morreale said. "With this group, there was always the expectation that they would come in and develop and be contributors on multiple events, and it's a testament to all of them and their hard work for continuing to train to get into lineups and to add more events."
 
Welch has been a three-event gymnast for the Huskies on vault, bars and floor exercise beginning as a freshman in 2018. She has executed 78 routines in 40 career meets and has anchored the Huskie vault line-up.
 
"Gabby has from day one pushed every single event, wanted to be an all-arounder and could have been without the strength of our balance beam line-up," Morreale said. "She was solid enough on all four events. "
 
Gomes returned for her fifth-year after completing her comeback from injuries earlier in her career, and has had her top season while leading off the bars line-up and filling in on vault and balance beam.
  
"The entire group was a big part of our 2019 MAC Championship and put us in position to chase it last year," Morreale said. "They have put the team first, there is a desire to be really good at the sport from all of them
and their talent has enabled us to attract more talent. All five lead in their own way and it's refreshing to see their different leadership styles. They work well together, they complement each other."
 
On Saturday, the Huskies will look to top the 195 mark after scoring 194.825 and 194.800 in two of their last three meets. Morreale knows the 195 – and beyond – are within reach for his team and that a 24-for-24 (six hit routines on each of the four events) will get them there.
 
"The main thing I want to see improvement from our last outing, we're still working to get over that 195 [score]," Morreale said. "Obviously we go into meets to win, but it's about us going 24 for 24 and then seeing what happens.  We have seen everyone in the conference now – whether we won or lost, it's a tight, close competitive conference that we are very much looking forward to the championships." 
 
A limited number of family members of participating gymnasts from both NIU and Kent State will be allowed in the Convocation Center on Saturday. Admission will be via a pass list only.  The meet will be streamed live on Huskie All-Access on NIUHuskies.com. Subscriptions are available for $6.95 (24-hour pass), $10.95 (monthly recurring subscription) or $89.95 (annual). To purchase, click here.
 
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