Maldonado, Ros Vaquer Earn Big 12 Weekly Honors

AMES, Iowa – Two Cyclones received Big 12 weekly gymnastics awards for the second time this season. After matching the school record 9.950 on bars, ISU junior Natalia Ros Vaquer was named Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week, while Andrea Maldonado is the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week.

Ros Vaquer earned the first Big 12 weekly award of her career. Against No. 2 Florida and then-No. 4 Denver, her school record 9.950 on bars won her a share of the event title. This season, she is one of 25 collegiate gymnasts to record a score at or above 9.950 on bars. With her 9.950, Ros Vaquer secured the Cyclones' best team score on bars since 2007 with a 49.375.

The junior joined the bars team for the final four meets of 2019, earning scores between 9.850 and 9.900 in each meet. After starting 2020 with back-to-back 9.850s, Ros Vaquer tallied two-straight 9.925s prior to a 9.650 at Texas Woman's. She rebounded well from Texas Woman's with her 9.950 in the next meet.

Maldonado claims her second Big 12 weekly award of the season with the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week designation. She earned Big 12 Event Specialist of the Week honors earlier this season. Maldonado scored her second 9.950 on floor in the previous meet against No. 2 Florida and No. 4 Denver, while debuting on vault with a 9.850. Her second 9.950 of the year on floor made her the first Cyclone since Erin Dethloff in 2004 to post multiple 9.950s or better on floor in the same season.

The No. 18 Cyclone gymnastics team next competes with No. 9 LSU, No. 19 Missouri and Lindenwood at the GymQuarters Invitational in St. Charles, Missouri. The meet will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday at The Family Arena.