The Penn State women's gymnastics team was busy this past week. After a loss to Nebraska on March 3, it was back to University Park to practice for Saturday night's tri-meet against Rhode Island and No. 21 Maryland.

That practice paid off for the No. 20 Nittany Lions who won the meet with a score of 195.800 to Maryland's 194.075 and Rhode Island's 191.500. The win was Penn State's best score of the season.

Katie Rowland also had her best score of the season in the all-around competition posting a 39.725. Her score beat the school record, which she had broken two times last season as well. Rowland scored a 9.95 on beam and vault, 9.925 on floor and a 9.900 on bars to lead to her record-setting night.

"It was very positive for her (Rowland) and her teammates," Penn State coach Steve Shephard said.

Junior Lisa Campagnolo echoed Shephard's comments saying that team effort like what was shown during Saturday's meet really helps all the gymnasts in their individual routines.

Before this weekend Rowland was the No. 3 all-around gymnast in the nation. Her performance Saturday will undoubtedly only add to that success.

Fellow Penn State gymnast Katie McAvoy was right there with Rowland finishing second in the all-around with a score of 38.950 and finishing second behind Rowland on both the vault (9.900) and beam (9.925). Despite the win, Shephard was frustrated with some small mistakes the team made.

"It's a little frustrating for us as a coaching staff to see how good they do in practice," Shephard said.

Shephard also pointed out the positives of the meet. Julie Stoloski recorded personal bests on both beam and floor. Stoloski, along with a few other Lions, are back in the lineup after suffering from various injuries at the beginning of the season and this has the coaching staff, as well as the gymnasts, happy.

Although the Lions did not have the same luck against the Cornhuskers last weekend, their performance was nothing to be ashamed of. The Lions still scored one of their higher team scores of the season. Penn State finished behind Nebraska with a score of 195.475 to 196.575. Rowland finished second for the Lions in the all-around with a score of 39.450, in addition to finishing tied for first on beam with a 9.900 and third on vault with a 9.875.

McAvoy's 9.925 first place finish on floor also helped the Lions to a new season high on the event with a 49.200.

McAvoy's contributions to the team didn't stop there however. She also placed first on the bars with a 9.900.

The Lions have one meet left before they compete in the Big Ten Championships in Columbus, Ohio, on March 23. Next Saturday Penn State will compete in its final regular home meet of the season against West Virginia.

"Our practice has been very focused. We are demanding of the athletes in terms of standards," Shephard said about preparing for next weekend's meet.