Ever since the 2016 gymnastics schedule was announced, a string of three road trips in a row stood out as possibly the hardest segment for Utah's fifth-ranked team.
Now that it is here, the road doesn't seem any easier. If anything, it seems it will be harder than ever for the Utes to emerge unscathed.
The Utes' rigorous path begins Saturday with a meet at No. 12 Stanford. They'll also compete at No. 15 California and No. 3 Michigan before returning home to host No. 10 Georgia in the regular-season finale on March 12.
The last time the Utes had this many road meets in a row was in 2003, when they competed at Minnesota, Utah State, Arizona and Oregon State. They won all of them except the one against the Beavers.
Utah coach Megan Marsden is making the most of a situation that would have others a little frightened.
"It's going to be a good test for our athletes," she said. "If they can deal with the travel each week and take on really good teams in this stretch on their floor, it will be good. We really don't see enough of that in the season in terms of helping us prepare for the postseason, you need a lot of road meets, so hopefully this will prepare us for the national championships."
The good news is the Utes, despite their youth, have shown they can perform very well on the road, doing so at SUU and UCLA.
The Utes beat the Thunderbirds in a rowdy atmosphere and nearly upset the Bruins with the meet coming down to the last routine.
The meet against Stanford presents its own challenges. The Utes are 0-2 in Maples Pavilion, even though they are 26-6 all-time against the Cardinal.
"I hope the girls go in with a little chip on their shoulder to show we can handle things there and beat Stanford," Marsden said. "I hope the girls are interested taking on the challenge that one of the things some of them haven't done is win there and get that done."
The Utes say they are ready for the challenge, buoyed in part by their recent success in which they have scored 197 or higher for the last three meets.
"We've got a lot of confidence," Maddy Stover said. "We enjoy being in the Huntsman Center but we have to prove ourselves on the road too."
Twitter: @lyawodraska
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Breanna Hughes competes on the vault, in gymnastics action, Utah vs. Washington, Saturday, February 13, 2016.
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Tiffani Lewis competes on the floor, in gymnastics action, Utah vs. Washington, Saturday, February 13, 2016.
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune Breanna Hughes competes on the floor for the Utes, in Gymnastics action, Utah vs. Washington, Saturday, February 13, 2016.
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