The next meet for the Kent State gymnastics team will be a “home” quad meet, but it will not be at the location the team is used to performing at.

This weekend’s meet will be held at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland as the team hosts Brigham Young, George Washington and Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

Head coach Brice Biggin said the meet was originally scheduled to be on campus, but with Kent State hosting the National Championships in April at the Wolstein Center, they felt they needed a “dry-run” to see how everything will go.

“We are just running it through the Wolstein Center so their people can get an idea of what will happen,” Biggin said. “They are bringing in the national scorers and it gives us a great opportunity to see the venue, be able to compete there and if there are any logistical problems, we can fix them.”

Biggin also stated that the team will treat this meet just like any other, and all the girls will compete in their usual events barring any injury setbacks. He is expecting to use the strongest lineup because all the teams have good programs and it will be tough.

For two Kent State seniors, it will be a homecoming.

Christine Abou-Mitri and Christina Lenny are natives of Broadview Heights, which is a close suburb of Cleveland. Both girls said they are excited to have family and friends see them compete, especially since some haven’t had an opportunity to ever see a college meet before.

Lenny said the venue is also a positive in terms of the team preparing for a run at going to nationals.

“We can get mentally prepared with the setting and the lighting and what the equipment will be like so it’s like an extra bonus for us,” Lenny said.

The Golden Flashes (2-0) will look to keep its undefeated streak alive. Biggin said Abou-Mitri and Lenny have a great opportunity to perform well since this meet and nationals will be in their backyard.

“Freshman Marie Case has also come on the scene strong by winning her first all-around last week against Maryland and coming in second overall behind teammate Christina Lenny in her second meet,” Biggin said.

Both Abou-Mitri and Lenny hope the fans will make the trip to support them so it truly feels like a home meet.

“Its a big meet with four teams so we want our fans there with us to watch us dominate,” Abou-Mitri said.

The Flashes will host the quad meet Friday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m.

Contact Tyler Goddard at [email protected].