The Mount: USAG Nationals

While the top DI teams in the country are focusing on resting and polishing little details in preparation for the NCAA national championships next weekend, the best programs with less than seven and a half full scholarships take center stage in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, this weekend for the USAG national championships.

With numerous USAG-eligible teams unable to compete in the 2021 season, just five teams will attend this year and thus we’ll skip the semifinal stage altogether. All five teams will compete in a single session on Saturday to crown the team and all around national champions, while the best individual routines will advance to Sunday’s event finals.

Team Final

Date: Saturday, April 10th at 3 p.m. ET

How To Watch: ESPN+

Teams: Air Force, Centenary, Lindenwood, S.E. Missouri, Texas Woman’s

Background

Defending champion Lindenwood got out to an early lead in 2021, but the Lions never got to rest on their laurels. In fact, Lindenwood briefly dropped behind SEMO in the first week of NQS rankings. Two season highs to end the regular season and then a strong performance by its three (!) qualifying vaulters at NCAA regionals should leave the Lions feeling confident.

In 2019, Lindenwood lagged for most of the final but produced a monstrous 49.500 on beam in the final rotation to walk away with a win. Every member of that beam lineup has now gradated (though two of them will be in attendance this weekend—Andavea Alexander is now an assistant coach at SEMO and Taylor Colwell is a volunteer assistant at Lindenwood)—but Lindenwood once again gets to finish the meet on its best event, which this year is vault.

So You’re Saying There’s A Chance

Only three teams in this meet stand a realistic chance of winning, but neither SEMO nor Texas Woman’s is at a drastic disadvantage. The Pioneers have had some ups and downs in 2021, but both of their 195-plus scores took place on the road and freshman Madeline Gose, who has an NQS above 9.800 on all three of her events, is a major force. SEMO has been nipping at Lindenwood’s heels all season and is the USAG team leader on beam (the only event that Lindenwood doesn’t sit in first). SEMO also has the benefit of experience: Sophomore Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso and junior Anna Kaziska hold down the Redhawks’ lineups and both are extremely consistent.

All Around

The Contenders

This is likely a two-woman race. MIC runner-up Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso has led the USAG standings for most of the year and has a substantial consistency advantage over Air Force’s Daija Stevenson. Stevenson does have a higher ceiling, though, so the meet might come down to her ability to put it together on the day. Stevenson’s best score was also her most recent, coming two weekends ago versus San Jose State.

The Dark Horses

Texas Woman’s junior Domi Bonzagni is a wildcard pick. She can be very inconsistent, especially on beam where she’s missed her last five routines in a row, but if the Pioneers elect to use her in the all around, she has the high scores to be a factor. The wildcard pick here is Centenary’s Kendall Sanders, who has finished the season in strong position.

Event Finals

Date: Sunday, April 11 at 2 p.m. ET

How To Watch: ESPN+

Vault

The Contenders

It would be a shock if anyone besides a Lindenwood gymnast to walk away with the title here, but with five Lindenwood vaulters ranked, it’s anyone’s guess which comes out on top. Aleah Leman has stuck her Yurchenko full to produce the strongest individual score of the season while Kyndall Baze and Courtney Mitchell have been very consistent as well. 

The Dark Horses

It’s hard to differentiate between a pack of similar Yurchenko fulls, but Texas Woman’s sophomore Daisy Woodring has come close enough to sticking hers once before that if she can repeat that performance, the title would likely be hers.

Bars

The Contenders

Lindenwood senior Courtney Mitchell is the obvious frontrunner on this event, while freshman Savannah Newsome has been a breakout star this year with beautiful form. (Don’t be fooled by that low average score for Newsome—it includes one fluke incomplete routine from earlier in the season.) SEMO sophomore Jolie Miller does a spectacular routine with a pike Tkachev and a Ezhova.

The Dark Horses

Texas Woman’s anchor Maddie Griffith is an underrated force on this event, as is Isabel Goyco, who pulled out a clutch career high of 9.875 at the MIC championship.

Beam

The Contenders

There are three real heavy hitters on this event. Ultra-consistent Anna Kaziska has been a frontrunner throughout her career and just delivered a great 9.875 at NCAA regionals. Air Force’s Briona Carswell has spectacular technique, and Texas Woman’s freshman Madeline Gose produced a personal-best 9.925 at the MIC championship to walk away with the title.

The Dark Horses

It’s beam, so any number of things could happen. Of the chasing group, Woodring is the most consistent while Mitchell has the benefit of experience.

Floor

The Contenders

The two great floor routines of the season belong to Kaziska and Goyco, both of whom qualified to regionals on this event and produced strong scores (9.900 and 9.850, respectively). Kaziska is the frontrunner based on scores, but Goyco might be the fan favorite simply based on the fact that she literally rick rolls fans with her music selection.

The Dark Horses

There’s a great deal of depth on this event. Baze has been very consistent in her senior season, fellow Lion Gayla Griswold has a full-in that she may or may not choose to compete and MIC Newcomer of the Year Gose reliably pulls strong scores here as well.

Click and expand the events below to find coverage links, for previews and to see if we’re live blogging and which editor is on the call.

READ THIS NEXT: Live Blog: MIC Championships

Article by Rebecca Scally

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