McLean County Times

Illinois State University is set to host its second dual meet of the season, welcoming Greenville to CEFCU Arena for a Valentine's Day event. The meet will take place on Friday during Faculty Appreciation Night, with a start time of 7 p.m. Fans are encouraged to participate in a blackout promotion by wearing black.

Head Coach Bob Conkling expressed confidence in his team, stating, "The team has been determined and focused in workouts this week and are ready for a strong performance in front of a big home crowd. We hope to see everyone at CEFCU Arena wearing black for our blackout meet and supporting this team as they look to jump in the national standings."

Illinois State currently holds the No. 38 spot nationally according to Road To Nationals rankings. The team is ranked No. 21 on floor and No. 23 on vault. In their previous competition at the Towson Quad Meet on January 8, Illinois State secured second place with a score of 194.675 despite an initial struggle on bars.

Senior Alana Laster was named MIC Gymnast of the Week following her performance at Towson, while junior Jaly Jones earned MIC Co-Newcomer of the Week honors and Reese Grolla received MIC Performance of the Week recognition.

Greenville enters the meet ranked No. 80 nationally. The Panthers recently claimed their first victory of the season against Centenary (LA) with a score of 185.650-185.200 on January 31, dominating all five event titles.

Key performances for Greenville included Amara Nelson's first-place finishes on vault (9.650) and beam (9.675), Ashlie Leage's top spot on bars (9.400), and Ellery Gilmer and Rachel Miller tying for first on floor with scores of 9.600 each.

Fans can follow live stats via Virtius and watch live video links available on GoRedbirds.com.

For updates on Illinois State gymnastics, visit GoRedbirds.com or follow them on Instagram (@redbirdgymnastics), X (@redbirdwgym), and Facebook.

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