By Jess Stephans
When Priessman announced she was coming to LSU, many people were most excited to see her on floor, as her crazy power and fun personality seemed perfect for a killer NCAA routine. Unfortunately, Priessman sometimes seems to be made of glass and injuries kept her off the event the majority of the year.
Mercedes Sanchez Beam
We got to see snippets of her routine on Snapchat throughout the preseason and regular season, but with UCLA’s abundance of beam stars, that lineup was extremely hard to crack. Her gorgeous routine showed off Sanchez’s flexibility and has a incredibly cool mount that we’re kind of obsessed with. Here’s to hoping we see it squeeze into a lineup spot in 2018.
Jasmine Arnold Floor
Arnold, a junior at UGA, has come close to making the lineup but never quite made it to competition. When we saw her perform her 2017 routine at the annual Sneak Peek, we immediately wished it would see the light of day during the season. Her fun dancing combined with power and flexibility make the routine a joy to watch. Hopefully with Courtney Kupets as coach next year, as well as two lineup spots to fill due to departed seniors, we will finally get to see Arnold’s floor make the lineup.
McKenzie Wofford Beam
Wofford was one of the best bar workers in the country, but she also has a pretty fabulous beam routine. If she wasn’t on a team like Oklahoma with a ridiculously talented beam lineup, she probably would not only have a lineup spot but be one of its higher scores. She had a triple series and gorgeous lines, and it’s a shame we didn’t get to see it more often.
Alex McMurtry Floor
This one might be a confusing addition to the list because most gym fans have watched McMurtry’s floor at least a few times if for no other reason than to marvel at the glory of her triple twist. But in reality, her back only allowed her to do floor a few times throughout the 2017 season. By the time nationals came along, we got to see the routine at last, giving us something to look forward to in 2018.
Kyla Ross Floor
Going into the 2017 season, the gymternet was quite excited to see Ross with a Miss Val-choreographed routine. However, due to a lingering injury and bout of inconsistency, we only really got to see her on floor a few times. But when we did, it was an absolute treat. Unlike in elite, Ross really brought out her sass and pulled off a killer NCAA floor routine when she ultimately got the opportunity to compete.
Angi Cipra Floor
We were so excited going into the 2017 season to see one last Cipra floor routine. She is a crazy-powerful tumbler and an amazing dancer (she was “discovered” by Cirque du Soleil’s Le Reve at the Pac-12 Championship!). And after learning the intention for her senior year was for her to perform each of her four college routines throughout the season before having the fans vote on the one she would perform at nationals… We were sad that an untimely ankle injury kept that from being possible.