Approached my crush! But was a little nervous

Hey guys, I finally talked to a girl I had been trying to meet all semester. It started off fine, she was real interested and receptive. I asked her about her studies, and she told what it was for, then we went back and forth with small talk about where we were from, and where we went to school (undergrad). The interaction was no more than 3 minutes, but I started doing more talking towards the end than her. You see I felt some difficulty finding common ground and I got a little nervous. So once I knew I was sinking I kind of ended it abruptly with me saying I was going to the gym. She closed with a cordial "see you around" but is it possible she caught onto me clamming up when it started to go south? I am now really confused as to how to feel, since I didn't get to engage like I would have wanted and may not have formed a good connection.

I'm terrified I dropped the ball on this one, and she was a beauty. Can this be salvaged or should I move on to the next one? Having to cold approach her again would be too much investment (gut instinct) and I'm not sure if there was enough from our conversation where I could get her to chase. I guess the plan at the moment is to just go about as normal and judge her reaction if I run into her. What do you think?

You didn't screw up....

Assume she likes you and is waiting for you to move things along. So what do you want do that she could join you at? "I'm headed to the bookstore/grocery store/ to run an errand/gym/walk my dog/drop off a package etc. after school/work? Wanna join me?

As for conversation topics to keep things moving, seed things for her to talk about. avoid yes or no questions...

Good deal.

What concerns me is how to keep a clear head when going into these situations. Sometimes my brain realizes I am talking to a pretty girl and my judgment becomes clouded. For example I can dive right in/approach through psyching myself up, and use this boost to get off to a good start, like I thought it started yesterday. It's after that rush kicks off, that I settle down and fall flat.

I don't doubt that most people experience this in reverse...i.e. have approach anxiety, but are good once the interaction has worked itself up a little...it's weird that it's backwards for me but I wouldn't change it. Girlschase has taught me the "rules" of game. And many of the techniques out there one can use to improve their interactions. And therefore I won't give up. I will have to do some digging for old school articles on mindsets and emotional arcs in the meantime.