Washington heads to Southern Utah today for its last road meet until the Pac-12 Championship. The Huskies come in with a fair amount of momentum—the last three weeks have all produced top-four scores for their season—and will be looking to drop a low 196 off their RQS with a strong showing. For Washington, the biggest difference between mediocre and great days is vault landings, so watch for those in the second rotation. Ending on beam suits the Huskies fine, and watching them build off the crowd energy that comes from home floor can be a great show.
Southern Utah’s talent is evident—it scored a 196.800 earlier in the season with a few tenths more to realistically add – but it has struggled with consistency, particularly on beam where it’s been common to count multiple falls. On the bright side, with four more meets to count in RQS, it’s well placed to make a rankings charge with a few strong weeks. Today, a score over 195.200 will boost its total, which should be easily doable. Watch for a strong floor rotation to close the meet – it’s frequently SUU’s best piece.
Pre-meet notes:
The SUU intro sequence is INTENSE. There was a light show and then the mascot did some dancing. At 12:11 they’re just now bringing them out.
In Washington tentative lineups the vault order has been shuffled a bit, including moving Copiak later in the lineup. Nelson still listed for floor.
SUU is wearing warm ups that say “No More” on the front and “Stand Up” on the back in teal, as well as teal ribbons. That’s intensely awesome.
Before the commentators turned their mics on you could hear the female commentator explaining gymnastics to the male commentator. “So, is an Olympic bar routine like way longer than a college one?”
Morgan Alfaro is unfortunately injured. Loomis will replace her on vault. Kamryn Bayer is also coming back in on beam – she’ a very reliable beam specialist but has been out this year.
A McBride just went down in vault warmup, holding her knee and stayed down. They think it’s Megan.
ROTATION 1
We'll start today on bars! Here's our lineup for rotation one. #GymDawgs #GRIT pic.twitter.com/SLK6sAcPFl
— Washington Gymnastics (@UWGymnastics) March 3, 2018
MA. MCBRIDE – SUU: Usual great FTY, flared with a step back.
NELSON – UW: Blind change to Jaeger, high but a little close. Pretty Pak, tiniest leg flicker in blind full to double back.
JORGENSEN – SUU: Beautiful high full, same step back as Madison.
ROBERSON – UW: Pike Jaeger to overshoot as clean as I’ve ever seen it, tiny bit shy on a handstand on HB, double lay huge with a college stick.
JOZWIAKOWSKI – SUU: Tsuk tuck full, STUCK. This vault has gone high recently despite being a 9.9 start. And it goes perfect 9.9 wow!
WASHINGTON – UW: Great full turn to Gienger, very slight arch on bail, stick on close double back.
GONZALEZ – SUU: Another Tsuk tuck full with a pace back.
COPIAK – UW: Church to overshoot with great touch, tiny arch on a handstand on HB, full out dismount and fights for a stick, just about holds it with a lean.
LOOMIS – SUU: Clean y layout with a step back. When you lose a third of your vault lineup life isn’t too fun, unfortunately.
RILEY – UW: Toe on to Maloney to bail, amazing. Double layout and another stick. 5/5 so far!
BURLESON – UW: Somehow my stream skipped and all I saw was double back with a pace back.
SUU scratched Jiang Braley in the sixth – a good conservative call since she didn’t get to warm up.
UW 49.375 – SUU 48.925
SUU had a difficult time there with two injuries affecting the lineup, but Jozwiakowski had an outstanding showing there. The good news for the Thunderbirds is that other lineups will be minimally expected. Kudos to Madison McBride for her resilience after watching her sister get injured too.
Outstanding from Washington including a career high 9.925 for Riley!
ROTATION 2 – UW VAULT, SUU BARS
RILEY – UW: Y1/2 with a pace forward.
SUU: Blind change to Jaeger, full turn to double back with a baby hop.
ROY – UW: Tsuk 1/2, leans forward but holds the stick!
MA. MCBRIDE – SUU: Nice Jaeger, a bit wonky on bail, FTDLO with a step back.
HOFFA – UW: Y full, beautiful in the air but lands staggered with a bit of a rebound.
HOWLETT – SUU: Outstanding height on Tkachev, misses a handstand, stuck tuck full in.
ROBERSON – UW: Massive with a step back.
YEE – SUU: Pike Jaeger to overshoot, misses a handstand, double layout stuck.
COPIAK – UW: Great direction with a little hop back. One of her better ones.
GONZALEZ – SUU: Blind change a little archy, good Jaeger. Double layout with a big step back.
BURLESON – UW: Beautiful and airy with a step back.
JORGENSEN – SUU: Gienger with messy legs on catch, might have caught her foot on the mat?, full turn to double back stuck.
WASHINGTON 98.35 – SUU 98.2
SUU made up some margin there – bars judges definitely in a much better mood than vault judges today. Beam is definitely its concern event, while Washington has vault out of the way with fairly minimal damage done and is still in the 197 hunt.
ROTATION 3: UW FLOOR, SUU BEAM
LADIEU – SUU: Flic loso nice and steady, switch to split 1/2 series. Switch side a bit off momentum but makes it work. Full turn with a baby check, side aerial back full with a step back.
NELSON – UW: Great landing on double back, performance quality is improving steadily, front lay front full with a hop to lunge, great. Switch ring thru tour jete 1/1 with great positions. Double pike with another hop to lunge. Good one!
BAYER – SUU: Round off – LOSO, a bit of legs. Full turn is pretty, punch front deep with a step. Hitch kick switch side
ROBERSON – UW: Front 2/1, hops to lunge, one of her better landings. That’s a tough one to control for pretty much anyone. Rudi-LOSO gets a bit close to the line but controlled. Switch ring to wolf 1/1, I love her corner choreo before her last pass – gives her time to breathe but works with the music. Scoot back out of her double back.
PACKHAM – SUU: Split – split 3/4 is great, flic loso and jumps off. Full turn to stag jump, those are pretty rare and I love. Front aerial front full with a step.
SCHAEFER – UW: Double pike, bit of a hop back. Front lay front full stag jump, always love the backspin. Double back a bit short with a step forward.
GONZALEZ – SUU: Split – straddle 1/4, flic loso is beautiful. Weird switch side with a tiny lean back. Cat leap front aerial with a little check again, but staying on is the important part here. Punch front full with a stick.
HOFFA – UW: Double pike, quick step into lunge but that’s been worse. She should be doing a full in there, just a bit too much power in the first pass but they’re being conservative about her knee. Great landings on the other two and her leaps are gorgeous, good one!
Also spotted UW alumna Janae Janik, who is a team photographer this year.
JORGENSEN – SUU: Switch-split is solid, great punch front. Deep on double back with a step back.
WASHINGTON – UW: Double back, she only uses like half the length of the diagonal. Switch side to Popa is beautiful as usual, dances out of front pass. Good closing double pike!
NIPP – SUU: Front aerial, way off line, leg up and falls. Leap series is pretty. Flic loso solid, nice dismount.
Unfortunately now have to count a fall, but just one – it’s been worse.
BURLESON – UW: Double pike, nearly sticks, lunges forwards after a few seconds. 1.5 thru double full, great. Does the first two passes basically back to back so she can have a long dance segment in the middle, nice controlled lunge out of 2.5 twist.
WASHINGTON 147.7 – SUU 146.85
As expected, Washington pulled away with a strong floor rotation and now needs only 49.3 on beam to go 197. SUU can register a strong 196 despite counting a fall.
ROTATION 4: UW BEAM, SUU FLOOR
ROSE – UW: Jump split exactly like in the header pic!! Front aerial – bhs, Y turn to switch to split is fabulous. Cat leap side aerial, side aerial tuck full stuck. Absolutely nailed. 9.9!
GONZALEZ – SUU: Kicks out of double back, front lay front full with a big step forward.
More fun Washington facts: matching its season high (197.025) today bumps it up to #9 in live rankings
WASHINGTON – UW: Flic loso with a step back, works through it. Side aerial is great, pretty switch side, two straddle splits for the leap series. nice full turn, and the stream skipped so we don’t get to see her dismount. 9.85 is a season high!
JOZWIAKOWSKI – SUU: Rudi-LOSO is lovely, creepy music and great performance despite being the adorable tiny one. 2.5 twist with a lunge out, there are legit four photographers sitting on the vault runway shooting her.
COPIAK – UW: Full turn is pretty, flic loso great with just the tiniest shift on her front leg. Switch 1/2 to beat, no question on the connection there. Baby check on a side aerial, 3/2 twist with college stick.
JORGENSEN – SUU: Great first pass, lands staggered on front lay front full. Double back with a fairly big lunge, good one!
Two more 9.85s for Washington and it will have a season high and the provisional #9 ranking.
GOINGS – UW: Triple series, beautiful. Beat to straddle 1/4 is great, flings leg out a little early on full turn. Gainer LOSO with a lean back check, side aerial back full with a hop.
Whenever Goings has an off routine her next one is amazing because she is quite a serious perfectionist and it makes her absolutely FURIOUS to have a check.
MA. MCBRIDE – SUU: So impressed by her composure with Megan injured at the start of the meet, so steady. Bit of legs in some of the tumbling but really good routine.
ROBERSON – UW: Leap series super solid as usual, LOSO-LOSO with a baby check. Continually obsessed with how aggressive she is on beam, cartwheel gainer full stuck.
This is hilarious, neither team is having its best day and the scores aren’t really reflecting it at all.
LOOMIS – SUU: Creepy cool amazing choreo, kind of didn’t watch her tumbling because I was obsessed with the dance. Closing double back messy and a bit underrotated.
BURLESON – UW: Side aerial into switch, slow connection because she was off line but made it work. And mistakes don’t matter today so whatever. Straddle to straddle 1/4, side aerial back full stuck.
NIPP – SUU: Double pike s good, gorgeous leap series. Almost stuck double back, has to take a little step forward. I think this is her collegiate floor debut? Front full front pike is nice. That was super, super good for a first routine.
FINAL: WASHINGTON 197.075 – SUU 196.075
Well that was fun.
Both teams should be really pleased with the scores they walked away with – SUU will jump about five places in RQS and Washington will settle into the 9 spot just under Kentucky in live rankings, leapfrogging Arkansas and Oregon State.
Washington got a season high with bizarrely not one of its best performances of the season? I’d say it was overall a worse meet than last week, which was a low-mid 196. SUU definitely benefited too – it was just a loose day overall. Except for Hailey Burleson, who they apparently hated. A bit bizarre, but still overall a good day, and being able to score like this with errors will be a big confidence builder for both teams!
TITLES
Vault: Jozwiakowski 9.9
Bars: Riley, Yee 9.925
Beam: Rose, Roberson 9.9
Floor: Washington 9.9
AA: Jorgensen 39.375
Live blog by Rebecca Scally
