KENT, Ohio  – Strong performances on floor exercise and vault were not enough for the Northern Illinois University gymnastics team to overcome uncharacteristic difficulties on their first two events as the Huskies scored a 193.925 to finish seventh at the Mid-American Conference Championships Saturday at the M.A.C. Center in Kent, Ohio.
 
"This is a great team, I love them to death," said NIU head coach Sam Morreale. "We came to win, we thought we had a squad that could win. I'm proud of this group, they worked hard, they gave me everything they had all year along.  We worked through injuries, had by far one of our most consistent years with scoring, we just didn't finish how we wanted to today."
 
Sophomore Emmalise Nock (Rosemount, Minn./Rosemount HS) led the way for NIU on both vault and floor exercise to tie for third and fourth, respectively, on those events. She scored a 9.900 from her anchor position on floor exercise as all five of the Huskies' counting scores on the event came in at 9.800 or higher. Senior Jacklyn Dolitsky (Commack, N.Y./Commack HS) tied her career high with a 9.850 and Isabella Sissi (Blaine, Minn./Mounds View HS) matched that score, senior Ciara Ryan (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake South HS) posted a 9.825 and Alana Anderson (Joliet, Ill./Joliet West HS) added a 9.800.  NIU's 49.225 floor total was its second highest of the season.
 
In the final rotation on vault, Nock's 9.850 marked her season high vault score with Sissi coming in at 9.800 while Kiera O'Shea (Norridge, Ill./Ridgewood HS) and Emma Brkljacic (Tampa, Fla./East Lake HS) each scored a 9.750 and Isabelle West (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North HS) posted a 9.725. The Huskies finished with a 48.875 on vault.
 
NIU's lone all-arounder, Sissi hit all four of her events for a 39.100 total to tie for sixth in the all-around competition.
 
"Floor came back and got us on track," Morreale said. "They did a great job, and I thought we vaulted very well. Those events were definitely our bright spots on the day. It was nice to see Emmalise [Nock]  get on the podium on vault."
 
NIU counted misses on each of its first two events, counting a 9.175 on uneven parallel bars and two scores below 9.200 on balance beam after three gymnasts fell off the beam, something that had not happened in any meet this season.
 
"We did not have the start we wanted, by no means was that what we expected from today," Morreale said. "The team showed a lot of poise and commitment [on the final two events]. Credit to the leaders that brought us back."
 
All-MAC gymnasts Alyssa Al-Ashari (Lansing, Mich./Grand Ledge HS) and Natalie Hamp (Ionia, Mich./Ionia HS) , along with Sissi, helped get the Huskies back on track.  Sissi scored a 9.725 on both events, while Al-Ashari tallied a pair of 9.825s. Hamp scored a 9.875 from her anchor position on bars, good for a tie for eighth place and fellow senior Brookelyn Sears (Centerville, Ohio/Centerville HS) contributed a 9.800.
 
Earlier in the day on Saturday, Hamp and Al-Ashari were named to the 2023 All-MAC Gymnastics team with Hamp earning first team honors and Al-Ashari selected to the second team. (See the release here.)  They are two of several gymnastics with a chance to earn bids as individuals to NCAA Regionals. Regional selections will be announced on Monday at 11 a.m. CT on NCAA.com.
 
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