AMES, Iowa – The No. 24-ranked West Virginia University gymnastics team remains on the road this week, flying west to Ames, Iowa, for its first Big 12 Conference meet of the season against No. 12 Iowa State on Friday, Jan. 17.
 
Friday's meet is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. ET, inside the Hilton Coliseum, with links for live scores and a web stream available at WVUsports.com.
 
"It's our first Big 12 matchup of the season, and we're looking forward to doing our best gymnastics in the arena tomorrow," Mountaineer coach Jason Butts said. "The team had a great week of training, and we're excited to see what tomorrow brings."
 
"With each meet, our goal is to improve little by little, get some new faces out there and allow the girls to get competition ready," associate head coach Travis Doak said.
 
West Virginia (0-1) is 6-10-1 all-time against Iowa State (2-1). WVU faced ISU three times last season, including the 2019 Big 12 Championship. The Mountaineers scored 195.6 at last year's meet in Norman, Oklahoma, and finished one sport behind the Cyclones, who placed third with a 195.95 showing. The last time West Virginia outscored Iowa State was at the 2017 Big 12 Championship (195.575-195.5).
 
WVU returns to competition this week following a 195.75-195.325 loss at No. 17 Penn State in its season opener on Jan. 11. Despite the loss, the squad recorded its highest season-opening meet score in program history and posted a trio of first-place event finishes. The Mountaineers hit 22-for-24 routines and earned a 48.9-48.75 edge over the Nittany Lions on vault and a 48.75-48.675 win on floor.
 
Additionally, freshman Abbie Pierson, a native of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, scored 9.9 on vault and balance beam in her collegiate debut and finished first overall in both events. She also tied for sixth on floor exercise with a 9.75 total. For her efforts, she was named the WVU co-Student-Athlete of the Week on Monday.
 
Senior Chloe Cluchey also made her return on floor last Saturday, notching a 9.85 score to place first.
 
In this week's Road to Nationals Rankings, West Virginia ranks No. 20 on balance beam (48.925), No. 23 on vault (48.9), No. 24 on uneven bars (48.75) and No. 31 on floor exercise (48.75).
 
Individually, Pierson owns a pair of top-50 national rankings. She is tied at No. 4 on vault and No. 14 on balance beam. Freshman Kianna Yancey is tied at No. 27 in the uneven bars rankings after posting a 9.85 score in her collegiate debut, and Cluchey is tied at No. 49 following a team-best 9.85 showing on floor exercise.
 
Iowa State opened its 2020 season with a second place, 195.75 showing at Arizona's McKale Memorial Center, in Tucson, Arizona, on Jan. 11. The Cyclones fell to No. 13 Arizona (195.95) and defeated No. 11 West Michigan (191.8) and Rutgers (194.25).
 
The 195.75 team score was the highest week one score by an Iowa State team since 2004, as well as the highest total in head coach Jay Ronayne's 14-year tenure.
 
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUGymnastics on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.