Women's Gymnastics | March 2

RALEIGH, N.C. – Northern Illinois University sophomore Kiera O'Shea scored a 9.900 to win the vault title, helping lead the Huskies to its fourth 195-plus score of the season Saturday in Raleigh, North Carolina at the Quad Meet hosted by N.C. State.

"There were a lot of very good vaulters at today's meet so [for Kiera to win the event] was great," said NIU head coach Sam Morreale. "She has been working hard on that vault and understands it well. She's setting herself up really well here for this end run, especially on vault,"

NIU's 195.200 was good for a third-place finish as the Huskies finished ahead of Temple, which tallied a final total of 194.425. Host and No. 21 ranked N.C. State won the meet with a 197.000 while Iowa State was second at 196.700.

"It was a pretty good outing," Morreale said. "I thought we gave away a little bit of stuff on some landings. So we maybe weren't as sharp or crisp as we've been over the last few weeks, but still pretty happy
with the outcome."

Senior Alyssa Al-Ashari (Lansing, Mich./Grand Ledge) scored a 9.850 on both uneven parallel bars and balance beam to lead the Huskies in both events.

The Huskies opened the meet on balance beam and posted a team score of 48.700. In addition to Al-Ashari's 9.850, good for a tie for fourth, senior Olivia Lynd (Westchester, Ohio/Ursuline) and all-arounder Isabella Sissi (Blaine, Minn/Mounds View) received scores of 9.750.

Junior Emmalise Nock (Rosemount, Minn./Rosemount) paced the Huskies on floor exercise with a 9.875 to take fifth place, with Sissi adding a 9.850 as NIU totaled a 49.100 for its highest event score of the meet.

Freshman Dawsyn Sallee (Versailles, Ky./Woodford County HS) scored a 9.775 to back up O'Shea's season high 9.900 on vault. NIU scored a 48.875 on vault to move ahead of Temple. Sissi's 9.750 on vault helped her earn a 39.050 all-around score as she surpassed the 39.000 mark for the sixth time this season.

The Huskies closed out the meet on bars, where Al-Ashari's 9.850 tied for fifth.   

The Huskies will be back in action at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 10 as NIU hosts Ball State in the NIU Convocation Center on Senior Day. Attendance to all NIU gymnastics meets is free of charge.

-- NIU --