Fantasy gym—like everything since the COVID pandemic began—is a little different this season. The official game isn’t running because Kristen and the College Fantasy Gymnastics crew welcomed a little one to their family (congrats!). However, we know many of you are playing in private leagues, or are using the brand new site Gymlytics from Twitter user GymChem, so Fantasy Central lives on!
We’re switching up the weekly cadence to match Gymlytics’: The fantasy “week” begins with Friday meets, ends with any Thursday ones and trading happens every Monday via waiver wire. However, you’ll still find us here every Tuesday talking about “next week.”
This is your one-stop-shop for all things fantasy each week. We’ll be tracking injuries, byes and double headers, and giving you tips and tricks to put forward your best possible team.
Week seven?! Sure! How? We’ve somehow rocketed to the second half of the season, and suddenly everything feels more serious. NQS kicks in on February 21. We’re talking about regional bubble teams and conference championship seeding. The carefree ways of January are behind us! For fantasy, that thankfully means most teams will stop resting gymnasts in the next few weeks, and lineups are being more or less finalized. Unfortunately, our old friend COVID is still here, so nothing is certain.
Be advised that since Monday is Presidents’ Day, and we have a number of Monday meets, as well as one on Tuesday. That means a lot of doubles this week.
COVID and Injury Updates
Confirmed COVID protocols: Alivia Ostendorf (Ball State)
Gymnasts absent from lineups: Kennedy Hambrick (Arkansas), Victoria Henry (Ball State), Katherine Levasseur (Oklahoma), Brooklyn Moors (UCLA), Marissa Nychyk (Ball State), Suki Pfister (Ball State), Linda Zivat (Iowa)
Injuries:
- Kaitlyn Higgins – removed from injury list (competition routines) –Nebraska (2/8/22)
- Martina Comin – Nebraska – ankle injury (2/8/22)
- Sophia LeBlanc – Maryland – torn Achilles (2/10/22)
- Baily Bunn – Kentucky – having an MRI (2/12/22)
- Tiarre Sales – Minnesota – removed from injury list (competition routines) (2/12/22)
- Jillian Hoffman – Utah – torn Achilles (2/12/22)
- Kelly Sulek – Ball State – ruptured Achilles (2/13/22)
- Mya Lauzon – California – boot (2/13/22)
- Kaitlyn Lindsay – Springfield – injured knee during floor routine (2/13/22)
- Alyssa Wiggins – Bridgeport – crutches (2/13/22)
Week 7 Byes and Doubles
Byes: Centenary
Doubles: Alaska, Boise State, BYU, George Washington, Illinois State, Iowa State, Lindenwood, North Carolina, Sacramento State, Stanford, Texas Woman’s, Utah, Washington, West Virginia
Deep Cuts for Deep Leagues in Week 7
Tips for players in leagues with 10-plus players, where you need to be a little more creative to fill out lineups; especially during big bye weeks.
Vault: What a week for the Redbirds! Alana Laster hit her potential on vault for a huge 9.925, and followed it up with a 9.875 on floor. Michelle Reed vaulted for the first time for Lindenwood, putting up a solid 9.800.
Bars: Towson’s Grace Vaillancourt has returned to excellence on bars, bouncing back after a slightly off double meet week. Bridgeport’s Kat Doran was back on bars this week; she’s the top bar worker in Division II.
Beam: LIU’s Cael Bixler has really gotten into a groove on beam, hitting a huge 9.875 this week. Did you catch Penn’s record day? McCaleigh Marr nailed beam for a 9.950. She has been largely consistent there all year, with just one miss so far.
Floor: Speaking of Illinois State, Jaye Mack also had a big hit, going 9.900 on floor. Continuing the MIC good vibes, SEMO’s Madison Greene hit a 9.925 on floor. She has been pretty consistently good, but that is far and away her best outing so far. The top Division III floor worker, Alexis Castellaneta, at Brockport put up a 9.900 this week.
Starts, Sits and Pickups for Week 7
Are you playing in a smaller league and still looking for advice about big names? Are you in a deep league but not sure what to do with that OU beam specialist? These tips are for you!
Vault: Florida gave us the lineups we more or less expect going forward against LSU. The last vault spot remains a bugaboo, with low numbers for each of Sloane Blakely’s outings so far. The other options are Chloi Clark and Bri Edwards, who have both performed better but not hugely so. Any of the three puts up the drop number in a given week. It would be advisable to keep all three out of this lineup if you have other options.
Bars: We need to talk about Clair Kaji. She has just been off this year, with issues on her Pak nearly every week. We hate to say it, but if you have other options, it might be time to pull her from this lineup. Keep her on beam and floor, but bars should be a wait-and-see-what-happens situation.
Beam: Denver’s lineups are still a little in flux while the Pioneers figure out the best way to proceed sans Lynnzee Brown (RIP her Achilles, still not over it). Jessica Hutchinson competed in the all-around for the second time for a huge 39.625 and a 9.950 on beam. Expect her to remain Denver’s new guidepost on all four. Haleigh Bryant skipped beam this week, giving Kai Rivers her chance to debut. Rivers hit a 9.900, and it seems likely she’ll stay in this lineup. The LSU beam team hasn’t quite settled on its six with Reagan Campbell seemingly out of the picture this year. It seems likely that if Bryant pops back into the all-around, she’ll supplant Sami Durante here rather than Rivers.
Floor: Well that UCLA meet was…weird. Pauline Tratz pulled out of floor at the last minute, giving Katie McNamara a chance to make her Bruin debut. It’s unclear what happened, but for now it seems advisable to keep Tratz in your lineup for this week. It seems likely enough that she just tweaked something or is still dealing with an early season ankle injury. Speaking of, Norah Flatley said on Twitter that she just tweaked her calf and is doing alright. Don’t be shocked if she gets a week off next week, but it’s nothing to panic about. Likewise, Milan Clausi Tweeted that she just hasn’t been cleared to return yet. It’s anyone’s guess whether she’ll be back this week. Minnesota’s Mallory Leneave found herself just in exhibition routines last week, in favor of Tiarre Sales on beam and Maddie Quarles on floor. Both have scored 9.9-plus, so Leneave is a sit-for-now. Adrienne Randall stepped into floor after Jillian Hoffman’s Achilles injury. The spot seems like it will be between Randall, Lucy Stanhope and Cristal Isa, who have all had successful outings.
Waiver Wire Wrap-up
Finally, we have a waiver wire in gymnastics! Who should you prioritize this week? Since Fantasy Central comes out on Tuesdays, keep in mind that these tips are catered toward next week.
Vault: Southern Utah’s Celine Barney has vaulted two weeks in a row now, both for 9.800s. If you need more numbers there, she’s worth a look. Heidi Hartje also vaulted for West Virginia for the first time, notching a 9.800.
Bars: Gabby Perea has finally competed counting college routines! She put up a 9.900 on bars and a 9.825 on floor. She’s likely available in your league. Grab her now! The floor slot will probably transfer back to Clausi when she’s back, but Perea outscored Maya Green’s old bars numbers, so she might keep that spot. Central Michigan freshman Lia Kmieciak (mhm, you recognize her last name for a reason) also debuted on bars for a 9.850. Oh, Georgia. Victoria Nguyen is finally competing; so far she has done bars twice and added beam this week. She seems like a new staple of the former’s lineup, though she hasn’t hit a big number yet.
Beam: Illinois’ beam lineup has been a little chaotic this year, with people popping in and out as Nadalie Walsh searches for a consistent six. McKenzie Eddy made her Illini debut on the event for a 9.800 at Michigan State. Expect her to get another go at Big Fives this week. Air Force’s Genevieve Sabado is a solid all-arounder who is especially good on beam, where she put up a 9.900 last week; she’s fairly likely to be available.
Floor: Air Force’ Cameo Stapleton has been inconsistent on floor, but she’s capable of a 9.900 with a hit. If you can absorb some off weeks, she’s worth picking up.
Notes From the Fantasy Roundtable
By all appearances, Mia Townes didn’t travel with Illinois. We’re keeping an eye on that.
READ THIS NEXT: Fantasy Central: Week 6
Article by Emily Minehart
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