The Iowa women’s gymnastics team traveled to Ames on Feb. 18 to challenge rival Iowa State and fell to the Cyclones, 196.350 to 195.85.

The GymHawks registered their second highest team score of the season, only topped by their performance against Denver on Feb. 11.

Despite losing every event but vault, the Hawkeyes were satisfied with their performance because they did not have any counting falls, head coach Larissa Libby said in a release.

After struggling on beam for the first half of the season, Iowa managed to set a season-high with a beam score of 49.075. Seniors Rebecca Simbhudas (9.9) and Arielle Sucich (9.875) and junior Annie Szatkowski (9.8) scored career bests on the apparatus.

Simbhudas also won her third straight all-around title with a score of 39.475. Junior Jessa Hansen placed third in the event with a score of 39.025, making this her fourth-consecutive top-three all-around finish.

“Coming back with a really strong event on beam is hard to do,” Libby said. “It just goes to show the character of the girls on this team.”

Although the GymHawks lost this weekend for the first of two meets in the Hy-Vee Cy-Hawk series, they will have another chance against the Cyclones at 7 p.m. Friday in the Field House.

— by Molly Irene Olmstead