Hello everyone, and welcome to Gymnastics Insider!
Oklahoma won an eighth national championship last weekend. That in itself wasn’t surprising, but the meet was thrilling to watch, as it was a close race to the finish with runner-up LSU.
Here’s how it all went down.
Rotation one
Oklahoma was uncharacteristically shifty in their vault landings, but they still started with a good score there (49.6000), anchored by a 9.9875 from Lily Pederson.
This put them ahead of LSU by nearly a tenth. Kaliya Lincoln’s huge double layout anchored LSU on floor, which earned a 49.5125, a strong but not incredible start for them.
On beam, Florida was on somewhat of a stick streak before Alyssa Arana had an unfortunate fall in the anchor position. They had to count a 9.8000 from eMjae Frazier, who had a wobble earlier in the rotation. The 49.3875 did not bode well for the number one beam team.
Minnesota had trouble gaining momentum throughout their bars rotation, with a couple of athletes landing low. They counted a 9.9000 as their highest score and an above-average 49.2625 in the rotation.
Rotation two
Oklahoma moved on to bars, where they had a successful rotation (49.4875), featuring a pirouette plus stuck full-in from Mackenzie Estep for a 9.9375.
LSU lost some momentum on vault with shifty landings, including an under-rotated Y1.5 from Lincoln which they ended up dropping. But Kailin Chio anchored with a stuck Y1.5 that earned a 10 and kept LSU in the conversation for the top spot (49.4750). Halfway through the meet, they were behind Oklahoma by just a tenth.
For Florida, Skye Blakely had a strong floor for a 9.9125, but that was the highest score for them there (49.4500). Beam went well for Minnesota — despite a wobbly routine from Lauren Pearl, they scored higher than Florida and LSU, including two 9.9125s from Jordyn Lyden and Brooklyn Rowray (49.4500).
It was around this time that I realized three of the four teams competing were wearing backless leos. *shudders*
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Rotation three
Things shook up in the third rotation. Keira Wells fell on beam, so Oklahoma had to count a 9.7375 from Addison Fatta, who had a large step on her dismount. Ella Murphy brought them back with a gorgeous routine for a 9.9375, and the rest of the rotation went great for them (49.4375), ending with a 9.9500 from Faith Torrez.
But it wasn’t enough to stay in front of LSU, which thrived on bars (49.6125). Lexi Zeiss’ leadoff bar routine finished with a stick for a 9.9250, an excellent start that set the tone for the rest of their rotation. Chio stuck her dismount for a 9.9000, and Konnor McClain anchored with a 9.9500.
This put them in the lead by just under a tenth.
On vault, Florida struggled with landings, starting with a sizable step from Anya Pilgrim. eMjae Frazier’s DTY had just a small hop back for a 9.8750, and Selena Harris-Miranda anchored with a Y1.5 for another 9.8750. They ended the rotation in fourth, nearly half a point behind Oklahoma, with the lowest apparatus score of the meet (49.2500).
While that was happening, Minnesota killed it on floor, allowing them to pull ahead of Florida after the third rotation. Jordyn Lyden anchored with another 9.9125 to get them a 49.3875.
Rotation four
Oklahoma brought it back with an incredible floor rotation, highlighted by Estep’s 2.5 twist. Torrez sealed the deal with her beautiful double layout and a 9.9500 to take the win for Oklahoma with a 198.1625.
Here is the moment they realized they’d won:
Meanwhile, Zeiss fell on beam after waiting 30 years for Kylie Coen’s score. Amari Drayton brought LSU back on track, and McClain’s near-flawless beam brought in a 9.950, but they didn’t gain enough ground to counter Oklahoma’s 9.9 streak on floor. Chio finished off the competition by herself on beam, with just a tiny hop on the landing for a 9.9000, and they finished just .0875 behind Oklahoma.
Florida finished on bars. eMjae Frazier’s stick led them off for a 9.9125, Skye Blakely’s double front half dismount was glorious for a 9.9500, and Harris-Miranda’s beautiful lines brought in a 9.9500.
Riley McCusker unfortunately landed short on her dismount, but overall it was a great rotation for Florida, bringing them back up to third place, .4750 behind Oklahoma. Cinderella team Minnesota earned a 197.375 for fourth, after a strong vault rotation that nonetheless couldn’t keep them ahead.
The full meet is on YouTube, and Road to Nationals is here for all your scoring needs. If you want in-depth coverage of each and every routine, I highly recommend you head over to The Balance Beam Situation.
More NCAA news
- Minnesota is upset about the lack of coverage from ESPN. Apparently, only 60% of Minnesota’s routines were shown, despite split-screen technology. What gives, TV?
- Cécile Canqueteau-Landi has been named head coach at Georgia. Previously, she shared the title with Ryan Roberts, who heads to Auburn.
- Jordan Chiles said goodbye to UCLA in an emotional Instagram post.
- Jurassic Park star Samuel L Jackson attended NCAA Champs and posted about it on IG. It was super cute.
“Becoming Caitlin Clark” is out now!
Howard Megdal’s newest book is here! “Becoming Caitlin Clark: The Unknown Origin Story of a Modern Basketball Superstar” captures both the historic nature of Clark’s rise and the critical context over the previous century that helped make it possible, including interviews with Clark, Lisa Bluder (who also wrote the foreword), C. Vivian Stringer, Jan Jensen, Molly Kazmer and many others.
Elite news
The African Championships are in full swing in Cameroon. There isn’t much information online, but we know that Kaylia Nemour won the all-around, which gives her a nominative berth as an all-arounder at worlds. This included a 15.566 bars score in quals and a 14.933 on beam.
Vault and bars finals will be held tonight, and beam and floor will happen tomorrow. Follow along at the Union Africaine de Gymnastique’s Instagram.
- Three new skills were named at the Osijek World Cup.
- Simone Biles presented Nadia Comaneci with a Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award.
- Georgia Godwin’s dog got her through some tough times. His name is Remy and I’m jealous.
Finally, normally I’m not one to flat-out mock people in public, but Nastia Liukin’s Earth Day Instagram post is positively hilarious and I cannot remain silent.
For those unfamiliar — including me, who, full disclosure, just looked this up — Earth Day was added to our calendars in 1970. Its purpose is to promote conservation and, you know, save the planet.
But for Liukin, it’s an occasion for sharing a series of images of her striking poses in front of natural spaces. You do you, Nastia.
As for the rest of you, save the whales!
Five at the IX: Oklahoma Sooners
Mondays: Soccer
By: Annie Peterson, @AnnieMPeterson, AP Women’s Soccer
Tuesdays: Tennis
By: Joey Dillon, @JoeyDillon, Freelance Tennis Writer
Wednesdays: Basketball
By: Howard Megdal, @HowardMegdal, The IX Sports
Thursdays: Golf
By: Marin Dremock, @MDremock, The IX Sports
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By: @TheIceGarden, The Ice Garden
Saturdays: Gymnastics
By: Jessica Taylor Price, @jesstaylorprice, Freelance Writer