The USAG Dismount: Week 4

The Big Storyline: SEMO narrowly edged Texas Woman’s in Cape Girardeau, powered by a great all around meet for Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso in which the freshman picked up three event titles. Freshman Lydia Webb scored a 9.800 in her debut as a Redhawk in the anchor position on floor. Redhawk star Anna Kaziska was notably absent.

Implications: A higher score later in the weekend would mean that Texas Woman’s remains securely above SEMO in the rankings. Solorzano-Caruso remains a top-50 national all arounder and the No. 1 all around gymnast in USAG standings.

Records: Stuyniski’s meet-winning beam score is a career high, and Goyco’s 9.900 on floor matches her career high.

Recap

The Big Storyline: California debuted with a solid performance, hitting 24-for-24 routines. The Golden Bears, however, lacked some training, as they struggled with polish and endurance here and there. Air Force had a bad meet, putting up only five scores on floor despite a fall and continuing to struggle on bars. Tyler Davis’ absence was very much felt.

Implications: California starts its 2021 campaign ranked No. 19 while Air Force sits at No. 49, only ahead of Bowling Green, which did not compete full lineups this week.

Controversies: The judges seemed to struggle with California’s start values on floor. A few routines had only two tumbling passes, making leap and jump rotation key for earning a 10.0 start value.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 47 Air Force at California

Why You Should Clear Space on Your DVR: This may not be the most competitive meet, but all eyes will be on California in its season opener as expectations are high for the Golden Bears this year. A highly anticipated freshman class joins a large and experienced roster of returnees that will look to start the 2021 campaign off strong at home. Air Force will be hoping to put up a competitive score after stumbling in its first two meets of the season.

You Can Fast Forward, but not Through This: Make sure you don’t miss the debuts of California freshmen Andrea Li and Gabby Perea. Both have the potential to contend for best freshman in the country, and the Golden Bears have the benefit of having them both on their team in addition to senior all arounder Kyana George. Falcons sophomore Briona Carswell has been a bright spot on beam, having scored in the 9.8s twice, the only Air Force gymnast to score that high this season.

Recap

The Big Storyline: Both MIC rivals made massive improvements to their team totals from the last few weeks, but Lindenwood came out on top with a program-best home opening score. Texas Woman’s senior Paige Stuyniski competed on floor for the first time since her freshman year ACL tear.

Implications: Despite graduating half their routines in 2020, the Lions reasserted themselves as the best team in the MIC and in USAG.

Records: Lindenwood posted its best home opening score in program history. Texas Woman’s gymnasts set nine event career highs.