The Mount: Week 2

Recap

The Big Storyline: Kentucky’s annual Excite Night in Rupp Arena originally lived up to its name with the Tigers and the Wildcats within a half point of each other after the second rotation. LSU improved its bar total from last week by almost half a point and Kentucky was able to increase its numbers on vault and bars. In the second half of the meet, though, Kiya Johnson’s later-confirmed Achilles injury on floor, and Bryce Wilson’s scary fall on beam, stifled LSU’s momentum and the Wildcats were able to move past to come out on top.

Implications: Johnson’s injury will cause Jay Clark to make some strategic lineup decisions for the Tigers moving forward. The Wildcats will move up to the top half of the SEC rankings and into the top 10 nationally.

Records: Friday’s win was only the 10th time in series history that the Wildcats beat the Tigers. 

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 10 LSU at No. 12 Kentucky

Why You Should Clear Space on Your DVR: When Kentucky made its way to Baton Rouge last season, it scraped out a win by half a tenth after a controversial decision to allow Josie Angeny to redo her beam routine after an equipment malfunction. If the results of the first week are anything to go off of, this matchup may end up being similarly close. LSU is on a revenge tour after finishing in the bottom half at SECs and not qualifying for nationals, and this meet against Kentucky is the first step in re-establishing conference dominance. 

You Can Fast Forward, but not Through This: LSU will be relying on the talents of up to four all-arounders—Kiya Johnson, Aleah Finnegan, Alyona Shchennikova and Haleigh Bryant—to make up the bulk of its lineups. Bryant and Johnson are arguably the NCAA’s biggest one-two punch on vault and will be ones to watch thanks to their outstanding difficulty and—especially in Bryant’s case—execution on all four events. Finnegan will also enter the meet in an eight-way tie for first on floor after Week 1. Kentucky has a superstar all-arounder of its own in Raena Worley, who ended the 2022 regular season ranked fourth in the nation.

Recap

The Big Storyline: Both teams were able to improve over their respective first meet scores. Georgia stunned on bars, putting up a 49.475, headlined by 9.900-plus scores from Katie Finnegan, Haley De Jong, and JaFree Scott. Missouri, however, came away with the win after a stellar floor rotation. 

Implications: Georgia’s 196.475 will keep it soundly above Arkansas in the SEC rankings going into its home opener against Fisk, Ohio State, and Rutgers. Missouri’s score will put the Tigers in fighting distance of the top half of the SEC rankings, with its average being just half a tenth behind Alabama. 

Records: 196.975 is Missouri’s highest home opening score ever. 49.475 is Georgia’s highest bars score since the 2019 Athens regional. 

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 20 Georgia at No. 14 Missouri

Why You Should Clear Space on Your DVR: In many ways, Georgia and Missouri have been on opposite SEC trajectories over the past decade. While Georgia is the traditional powerhouse, it’s Missouri that will come into this meet as the favorite after a breakout 2022 season. Last year, the Tigers were able to best the Gymdogs by just over six tenths, but with a fully redesigned Georgia roster, this could end up as one of the closest SEC duals of the season. 

You Can Fast Forward, but not Through This: Missouri scored a program record 49.525 on beam in its season debut against Illinois, highlighted by 9.95s from national runner-up Sienna Schreiber and Helen Hu. For Georgia, all eyes will be on the star-studded freshman class, with JaFree Scott and Naya Howard being two of the Gymdogs’ top scorers during the Super 16 meet. Howard, Schreiber and Georgia senior Haley De Jong all had mistakes in their inaugural all-around performances of the season, but if they hit, it should be an incredibly close four-event battle. 

Recap

The Big Storyline: Denver and Michigan are looking like it’s the middle of the season already. Both the Pioneers and the Wolverines improved on their team scores from Week 1. Fisk had a tougher meet, but most of its major errors, like falls on floor and counting a 5.400 on bars, are entirely fixable, as long as there is more bars depth than the five that performed here. 

Implications: Michigan’s 198.125 should help the Wolverines stay at the top of the Big Ten, and Denver’s 197.200 will keep it at second in the Big 12. Rosie Casali’s 9.975 on vault is also big for Denver. Casali competed a Yurchenko one and a half for the first time at Michigan, so Denver’s vault lineup could be trending up.

Records: Michigan scored above 198 in the Crisler Center for the first time in program history, and Denver set a new program record on vault with a 49.550.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 9 Denver and No. 49 Fisk at No. 4 Michigan

Why You Should Cancel Plans for It: This meet features three exciting teams! Denver and Michigan are both ranked in the top 10, and Fisk will be competing in its second meet in program history. If Denver really hits, it has the potential to upset Michigan. Tune in to see if the Pioneers can pull it off. 

What We’re Watching: Our eyes will be glued to the beam. Denver is currently tied for first place on the event after scoring a 49.425 at its first meet. As for Michigan and Fisk, they will be looking to improve on some subpar beam performances from last week. Michigan had to count a number of 9.700s, and Fisk had some form issues that kept it from posting a higher opening-week total. 

What Else to Know Before Tuning in: This meet is Michigan’s home opener, so you can expect to see the team feeding off of the crowd’s energy, especially with the jam-packed floor lineup. As for Fisk, this is its second road meet in a row, so the Bulldogs might have to fight through some travel fatigue.

Recap

The Big Storyline: Despite a lackluster vault rotation, Florida was able to build on its first meet performance, highlighted by a duo of 10s from sophomore Leanne Wong en route to a ginormous all-around score. Auburn performed well but couldn’t best its score from the Super 16 meet, in part due a less-than-her-best (though still amazing) all-around performance by Sunisa Lee. 

Implications: Florida will stay ranked second in the nation and first in the SEC going into Week 3. Auburn will remain comfortably in second in the SEC rankings but will drop out of the top five in the country. 

Records: Fifth-year Trinity Thomas scored her fifth perfect 10 in a row on floor, dating back to the 2022 season. 

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 5 Auburn at No. 2 Florida

Why You Should Cancel Plans for It: It may only be Week 2, but this is poised to be one of the most exciting and competitive meets of the entire season. Last year’s match-up ended in a tie at 198.575, and both teams are coming in hot after posting respective program-record opening meet scores in Week 1. Even if the team competition somehow doesn’t live up to the hype, it’ll be worth tuning in for what is likely to be one of the last opportunities to see Trinity Thomas and Sunisa Lee go head-to-head.

What We’re Watching: Thomas and Lee currently share the top spot on the national beam rankings after scoring the first two perfect 10s of the season, and we can’t think of a better way to break the tie than this dual.

What Else to Know Before Tuning in: It’s been nearly two decades since Auburn beat Florida outright and nearly three since it’s done it on the road. The Tigers will need to press their advantage on vault if they hope to upset the Gators on their home turf.

Recap

The Big Storyline: Lindenwood came away with the three-tenth win after Illinois State was forced to count two falls on bars. Lindenwood was able to hold off a charging Red Bird’s floor lineup with a strong beam lineup of its own. 

Implications: This will increase the Lion’s confidence heading into the rest of the season, leading this conference matchup from start to finish. The number of stuck dismounts really impressed for the second week of competition. Illinois State will want to improve on its bar rotation in the coming weeks. However, its beam and floor rotations were a highlight.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 40 Lindenwood at No. 41 Illinois State

Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: Lindenwood and Illinois State are constantly at a battle at the top of the MIC rankings throughout the regular season. While 2022 was more Illinois State-dominant, the Red Birds ultimately fell to third, just behind the Lions, at the conference championship. If Week 1 is any indication, 2023 is going to be another competitive year between these two teams. 

Need More Proof? Illinois State and Lindenwood each have competitors that have competed at the highest stage, NCAA nationals. Gayla Griswold’s Yurchenko one and a half has scored as high as 9.975. Angelica Labat is a solid all-around competitor, but particularly stands out on vault and bars. Her amplitude on her release moves is next level. Jaye Mack became the second individual national qualifier for Illinois State on floor last season. She combines fun dance and a sky-high full-twisting double pike to keep the crowd engaged.

Recap

The Big Storyline: Alabama put up a respectable, if not particularly outstanding, number in its first away meet of the season. The Crimson Tide struggled to break the 9.900 barrier, with only Luisa Blanco’s bar routine reaching the threshold. What could have been a big score and an important win for Arkansas was dashed by a three-fall bar rotation, which relegated the Razorbacks to a 195.525.

Implications: Alabama will stay afloat in the top half of the SEC. The Crimson Tide will, however, drop out of the top 10 in the national rankings. Similarly, Arkansas will drop out of the top 20.

Records: 47.750 is Arkansas’ fourth lowest bars score in program history.

Recap

The Big Storyline: The Utes impressed on the road, nearing 198.000 in a reasonably scored meet. Kara Eaker scored a deserved 10.000 on beam for a pristine routine. Southern Utah posted a solid 196, and for the third time this season, hit its remaining beam routines after an early lineup fall. Utah State impressed, scoring 195.800 and indicating that the Kristin White era in Logan is off to a great start. After losing so many crucial routines this offseason, Utah State showed no worse for wear. In particular, beam was lovely for the Aggies. Last but certainly not least, BYU improved from its Week 1 total by over a point. However, the 195.175 the Cougars notched is still not a score that BYU will want to keep around come NQS time. On a bright note, Allix Mason debuted a Yurchenko one and a half that should help BYU’s vault lineup as the season progresses.

Implications: For the MRGC, this meet reestablished that reigning conference champs, Utah State, are still a force despite the new coaching staff and massive roster turnover. While many were ready to chalk 2023 up as a rebuilding year for the Aggies, their performance on Friday indicated that this is not the case. Furthermore, this solid 196.175 bodes well for Southern Utah, a team that historically struggles to get usable away scores. For reference, this score would have counted in the team’s NQS last year. Achieving this in Week 2 bodes well for Southern Utah’s seeding aspirations.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 6 Utah, No. 22 Southern Utah, No. 39 BYU, and Utah State

Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: The Best of Utah meet offers a look at three MRGC teams, the conference with the most parity in college gymnastics, as well as perennial national title challenger Utah. The Utes impressed in their season opener, and freshman Makenna Smith emerged as a star. Competing in two meets already, Southern Utah has shown grit. The Thunderbirds hit beam under pressure, recovering from early rotation beam falls on their way to two wins. While BYU had a first meet it would like to forget, this podium meet will be a great opportunity for BYU to get its season moving in the right direction. Utah State will open its season here, offering a first look at the Kristin White era for the Aggies. While White has shown her recruiting chops, it’ll be interesting to see how the Aggies compete after an offseason with lots of turnover. 

Need More Proof? Southern Utah fifth-year Karley McClain posted a massive 39.425 in the all-around on Monday, which should heat up the four-event battle between her and the likes of Utah’s Grace McCallum. Furthermore, after not competing since 2019, BYU senior Rebekah Ripley made her return to competition with this entertaining Barbie Girl-themed floor routine. As a bonus, this meet is being streamed on BYUtv, a free streaming service that has historically had great gymnastics coverage. Just make an account, sign in and you’ll be all set to watch.

Records: Towson opened its season with its highest away season opener in school history, while Rutgers set  a program best home opening score. UW-Oshkosh’s team total was the second best all time, and its floor total of 48.675 was a new program best.

*Note: Road to Nationals link is inaccurate. Awaiting meet score sheet.

Recap

The Big Storyline: With San Jose State ahead halfway through after the Cardinal were flat on vault and counted a fall on bars, Stanford mounted a comeback in the second half of the meet to win its home opener. Jada Mazury’s two event titles paced the Spartans, but her efforts were tied by Cardinal freshman Anna Roberts, who has a trio of 9.9s to her name between vault and floor already this season.

Implications: Despite coming from behind to win, the Cardinal scored on par with its Week 1 total and will only fall slightly in the rankings. San Jose State, a regionals bubble team last year, will debut in the postseason picture after a strong season opener.

Records: This is only the second time the Spartans have broken 195 in their season opener and recorded their second highest season-opening score ever—trailing 2022’s 195.950.

Preview

Current Rankings: San Jose State at No. 18 Stanford

Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: San Jose State’s opening meet against Stanford is a rematch of last season’s regional play-in where the Spartans’ historic season came to an end as a result of a multi-fall beam performance. This Bay Area matchup should be an exciting look at two teams on the rise, as Stanford looks to build on its impressive regional performance that saw the Cardinal advance all the way to the regional final. Stanford’s home opener should be a good one, and San Jose State will have to come out swinging if it wants to keep up with the Cardinal, who posted a solid 196.175 last weekend.

Need More Proof? Stanford senior Chloe Widner posted a career high in the all-around with an impressive 39.525 last weekend. Look for her to lead the Cardinal, along with freshmen Taralyn Nguyen and Anna Roberts, who shine on vault and floor. For the Spartans, watch out for grad transfer Ariana Castrence on vault and beam, along with the return of Emma Milne’s stunning bars and beam work. Freshman Mikaela Pitts also has the potential to contribute a front handspring pike half for San Jose State.

Recap

The Big Storyline: Standout performances from Jordan Chiles and Selena Harris propelled UCLA to a sweep of the afternoon session of the Wasatch Classic while cruising to one of the top scores of the 2023 season. The Bruins have yet to count a fall in 2023 and did not have a single fall en route to victory. Washington outdid its opening week score by over a point, led by a big 9.900 on floor from Lana Navarro as the Huskies upset the higher ranked Gophers—who’s best outing came from none other than Mya Hooten on floor with a 9.925. Boise State had a rough season debut, breaking 49 only on beam.

Implications: UCLA shoots up to No. 4 in the country and is now the highest ranked Pac-12 team. Washington and Minnesota should move up slightly while Boise State will make its debut it in the mid-30s.

Records: The Bruins totaled their highest team scores on the road since the 2019 season.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 6 UCLA, No. 19 Minnesota, No. 25 Washington and Boise State in West Valley City, Utah

Why You Should Cancel Plans for It: After the Super 16 quad meets headlined Week 1, the Wasatch Classic highlights Week 2, with the Pac-12, Big Ten and MRGC all represented in the afternoon session. The Bruins will be the favorite after their impressive opening performance that saw them exceed expectations, and after doing the same, the Gophers will surely put up a fight. The Huskies started their season much stronger than years past and will look to capitalize on the momentum while it is the Broncos’ first opportunity of the season to show where the team stands.

What We’re Watching: Former top recruit Selena Harris excelled in her NCAA debut, hanging with the likes of Jordan Chiles in the all-around and posting the highest four-event total of any freshman in the first weekend. Hallie Remlinger stole the show on floor from star Mya Hooten in Minnesota’s opener, so look for a big total from the Gophers on that event. Washington got standout performances from Skylar Killough-Wilhelm and Amara Cunningham and will need both to lead the Huskies to make waves in this meet. Emily Lopez will be the face of a Boise State team with plenty of turnover this past offseason yet still plenty of potential as well.

Iowa State, Northern Illinois, Simpson and UW-Eau Claire

Session One 

Session Two

Recap

The Big Storyline: California’s dominant victory in the evening session of the Wasatch Classic proved it’s Week 1 jump up the rankings was no fluke as it scored another mid-197 score behind an impressive 39.675 from emerging superstar Andi Li. She was beaten out in the all-around standings by Oregon State’s Jade Carey, who helped the Beavers rebound from an off first meet. The Beavers edged out the Hawkeyes, who improved upon their opening performance with Adeline Kenlin and JerQuavia Henderson looking and scoring more like themselves.

Implications: California will fall below Utah and UCLA in the Pac-12 standings, but it is very close between all three schools. Oregon State showed its recent tendency of having three very strong rotations and then a weak bars rotation. That was the case here and is something the Beavers will be looking to improve upon. Iowa gained some tenths from its Week 1 score. Pittsburgh had a rough meet after counting multiple falls and will be looking to bounce back next week. The Panthers’ biggest need this year was consistency from the underclassmen, and that is something the team will have to continue to work toward as it tries to make regionals.

Records: California recorded the third highest vault score in program history, which led it to its ninth highest team score

Controversies: Carey scored two 10.0s in the meet, and both had a noticeable landing deduction, which has spurred discussion among fans.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 3 California, No. 16 Iowa, No. 20 Pittsburgh and No. 26 Oregon State in West Valley City, Utah

Why You Should Cancel Plans for It: California’s surge to the top three after the opening weekend was impressive, and in another competitive quad meet it will have a chance to prove it wasn’t a fluke. The Golden Bears will face the Hawkeyes for the second meet in a row after new faces made impactful debuts. Pittsburgh and Oregon State both had surprising performances in Week 1, with the Panthers hoping to repeat theirs and the Beavers needing to bounce back.

What We’re Watching: Vault was a struggle for the Golden Bears in 2022 but started this season with some great Yurchenko one and a halfs from Nevaeh DeSouza and Mya Lauzon in addition to a double from eMjae Frazier. California still has plenty of room to grow, too. Iowa hit a strong 196 last week despite plenty of newcomers and relatively off meets from Adeline Kenlin and Jerquavia Henderson—meaning the Hawkeyes can be even better. Oregon State had some bars struggles in Las Vegas that it hopes will stay in Vegas. Jade Carey had the roughest meet of her college career (yet still good by most standards), and the Beavers will want her to be lights-out moving forward. Pittsburgh is coming in hot after a performance at home where it almost eclipsed the 196 mark and ended Week 1 ranked first in the EAGL thanks to some great beam routines from Jordyn Ewing and Reyna Garvey.

Yale and Brown

Recap

Recap

The Big Storyline: Freshmen across the board turned in clutch performances at this meet, but none more impressive than Morgan Price. She led Fisk to its first team score over 190 and earned her first all-around title over seasoned veterans Hannah Joyner and Haley De Jong (at head coach Corrinne Wright Tarver’s alma mater, no less). The Nashville Bulldogs even tied their Athens counterparts for second after the first rotation.

Implications: Despite a second consecutive road win over an SEC opponent, the Buckeyes couldn’t maintain their Week 1 pace and will fall out of the top 10 nationally. However, they should remain No. 2 in the Big Ten for now with Michigan State less than a tenth behind. Similarly, a shaky meet for the Scarlet Knights will drop their overall rank without affecting their conference standing. Georgia’s performance was good enough to keep it in the top 20 and overtake Arkansas for seventh place in the SEC. 

Records: Frequent record turnover is to be expected during a program’s inaugural season, but Fisk notably improved on its previous high floor score by over a point and its bars high by nearly two points.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 10 Ohio State, No. 32 Rutgers and No. 49 Fisk at No. 20 Georgia

Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: Georgia legend Corrinne Tarver and her Fisk Bulldogs are coming off of their historic program debut at Super 16 that included a spectacular vault by former five-star recruit Morgan Price. Rutgers and Georgia also turned in steady, (mostly) fall-free efforts in Las Vegas punctuated by some seriously impressive routines on all four events. The Gymdogs tend to save their best performances for home, but they’re going to have to be nearly perfect to challenge the Buckeyes. Ohio State turned in a breakout performance last weekend that launched them into the national top 10 with a near-197. 

Need More Proof? Expect the team and all-around competitions to take a backseat at this quad. All four teams favor specialists over all-arounders, and all four teams had gymnasts break 9.900 last weekend, so the event titles truly are up for grabs.

Recap

The Big Storyline: LSU rebounded from a heart-breaking loss to Kentucky—which saw a season-ending injury to star Kiya Johnson and a scary fall from freshman Bryce Wilson—with a gutsy and resilient performance at home against top-ranked Oklahoma. The Tigers kept pace with the Sooners right to the end (even leading after the second rotation), utilizing their bench to great effect and leaving no doubt that this team will not go down without a fight. 

Implications: The Sooners were uncharacteristically hoppy on their landings, and so drop to No. 2 (tied with Michigan) in the in-progress national rankings. Despite its 0-3 record, LSU takes over the ninth spot nationally and jumps to third in the SEC standings.  

Records: Alyona Shchennikova and Aleah Finnegan matched their career highs on floor. Jordan Bowers matched her career high in the all-around and set a new career high on beam. Ragan Smith matched her career high on bars. 

Controversies: The scoring for both teams was uneven at best and outright bogus at worst. The team and event winners are arguably correct, but the individual rankings are a total mess.

Preview

Current Rankings: No. 1 Oklahoma at No. 10 LSU

Why You Should Cancel Plans for It: This Big 12-SEC Monday matchup is one that’s been highly anticipated since schedules were first released last fall. The Sooners and the Tigers haven’t faced each other in a dual meet since 2016, where LSU came out on top with a 196.950. The Sooners are the heavy favorites after having the top overall score at the Super 16 and maintaining the No. 1 ranking after Week 1. LSU dipped down to No. 10 in the rankings but had a solid performance in Utah, especially on floor exercise. In an environment known for friendly home scoring, this one could come down to the last landing in the final routine.

What We’re Watching: The all-around battle for this meet is one that will leave fans on the edge of their seats. Jordan Bowers and Audrey Davis of Oklahoma both turned in 39.500-plus all-around scores at Super 16 while LSU had three all-arounders in Haleigh Bryant, Kiya Johnson and Aleah Finnegan. Both teams have the potential for additional all-around, too. Big 12 Newcomer of the Week Faith Torrez is an option for the Sooners and LSU has Alyona Shchennikova, who only missed competing on beam in the season opener. 

What Else to Know Before Tuning in: While LSU and Oklahoma have not met in a dual meet since the 2016 season, these two teams are by no means strangers. The Tigers and the Sooners have faced off against each other in four of the last five national championships—whether it be during the semifinals or the national final.