Week 5 was all about the 10, with the weekend’s slate of competitions kicking off with nine perfect marks on Friday night. Followed were a plethora of program records, big scores and rankings shuffling. As we get closer and closer to the switch to NQS, teams are doing what they need to stand out. Catch up on everything you may have missed with superlatives, results and recaps.
We are living for Amari Celestine’s multi-poof faux-hawk from this week’s meet against Kentucky. Read more about Celestine’s motivation and her reason behind changing up her hairstyle each week in Big 12 editor Savanna Whitten’s recent feature.
The last time Josie Angeny met the PMAC beam cap, an equipment malfunction allowed Kentucky to win the meet in the last rotation over LSU. This time in a Georgia leotard, beam went off without a hitch, but not without an entertaining Tik Tok to commemorate the controversy of years past.
Best Reaction to Getting a 10.0
Friday brought us NINE perfect 10s across all four events, but Aleah Finnegan asking where her mom was almost immediately after scoring her first career 10.0 on floor was too sweet for words.
Best Score of the Week
Don’t you love it when a sport can’t have working scores to save its life? This season in particular has been on the struggle bus.
Justin Lee’s Iron Bowl Twitter commentary got controversial, but before that his shade of Alabama’s beam music was hilarious and exactly what you want to see from a beat reporter in a rivalry meet.
Best Beam Song
Cornell’s Victoria Demeo used Chicken Fried as her beam music this weekend while hosting Penn. If that doesn’t get you motivated (?) to do beam, we don’t know what does.
Best Dressed Fan
We love it when fans go all out when cheering on their favorite team on the road, and this Iowa State supporter did not disappoint, with a red and yellow cyclones-adorned blazer.
Results
Click and expand the events below to see results from each meet, as well as individual career highs and team program records.
The Big Storyline: Michigan came out with the win at Rutgers, scoring a season high 198.300. The Wolverines scored two perfect 10s on vault on the anniversary of its three-10 lineup at Rutgers last year. This year’s 10s were from Sierra Brooks and Abby Heiskell. Rutgers put up its lowest home score this season with a 194.700 after having to count several low scores throughout the meet. Southern Connecticut put up its highest score of the year, and Fisk scored a 188.175.
Implications: The conference standings will remain the same: Michigan stays atop the Big Ten and Rutgers is at the bottom. Michigan’s incredible performance gives it a good road score that the Wolverines will hope to count when it’s time to use NQS.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 69 Fisk, No. 3 Michigan and No. 71 Southern Connecticut at No. 39 Rutgers
Why You Should Clear Space on Your DVR: After an off week at Michigan State, Michigan is back to looking like its usual self. Week 5 will be about if the Wolverines can break back into the 198 range on the road. Rutgers has been inconsistent this year; it’s coming off of a 194.150 and a 195.150 in the same weekend. But with the Scarlet Knights back at home, you can expect them to perform closer to their full potential.
You Can Fast Forward, but not Through This: Michigan has some gorgeous gymnastics in all of its lineups, but you’ll definitely want to tune in to vault. Last year when Michigan competed at Rutgers, the Wolverines had three perfect 10s on the event, so you won’t want to miss the anniversary of that historic lineup. Vault is the event to watch for the Scarlet Knights, too. Emily Leese has been competing a Yurchenko 1.5 that is stuck more often than not. For Fisk, look out for Aliyah Reed-Hammon on vault and beam. She’s one of the Bulldogs’ main contributors and is coming off of a 9.700 and a 9.775 on vault and beam, respectively. As for Southern Connecticut, keep an eye on the beam. The Owls had to count several scores below 9 last week, so they’ll be looking to stay on the event and find a bit more consistency here.
The Big Storyline: The Iron Bowl lived up to expectations, with both teams scoring vital season highs in one of the closest meets of the year. The main highlight was the trio of 10s, two from Sunisa Lee on bars and beam, as well as Luisa Blanco, who earned her second career 10 on beam, the event in which she was the 2021 national champion.
Implications: Alabama will stay in contention for the night session of SEC championship after a slow start by the Crimson Tide’s standards. Auburn will keep its second place spot in SEC rankings and will return to the national top five.
Records: Alabama tallied a program high on floor with a 49.700.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 6 Auburn at No. 11 Alabama
Why You Should Cancel Plans for It: Rankings aside, NCAA gymnastics’ version of the Iron Bowl never fails to disappoint. Last year’s match-up saw the Tigers beat the Crimson Tide for just the third time in program history; can they make it two in a row without the home arena advantage?
What Else to Know Before Tuning in: Despite falling to host Kentucky, Alabama is coming off its highest score of 2023 while Auburn had its lowest scoring meet of the season. In-state rivalry aside, this has the potential to be an incredibly tight competition.
The Big Storyline: Despite a less-than-stellar floor rotation, the Gators were able to bring in their second highest score of the season thus far. Leanne Wong in particular had a great night, scoring 10s on bars and beam. Arkansas hit 197.4-plus at home for the second week in a row, proving last week’s meet against LSU wasn’t a fluke.
Implications: Less due to its own performance and more due to Michigan’s outstanding weekend, Florida will slip down from second to third in the national rankings. Arkansas will finally vacate the SEC basement, which it has occupied all season. The Razorbacks will also reach the national top 16 for the first time since Week 1.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 2 Florida at No. 18 Arkansas
Why You Should Clear Space on Your DVR: Florida is the clear frontrunner in this SEC matchup with an imposing 197.700 season average. However, here’s where things get interesting: Arkansas pulled off a dramatic upset win over LSU during which it scored 197.475, a full one and a half tenths higher than Florida’s only road score of the season. The Gators are going to have to up their away game to ensure the win over the hosting Razorbacks.
You Can Fast Forward, but not Through This: Trinity Thomas completed her fourth Gym Slam at last week’s meet and is just four 10s away from having the most perfect scores in NCAA history. Reigning SEC Freshman of the Week Lauren Williams has been one of the Razorbacks’ top scorers on both vault and floor.
The Big Storyline: For the second week in a row, Oklahoma came out and scored 198-plus while Iowa State came in and scored a season high and did not have to count a fall, a big accomplishment in the young season.
Implications: Oklahoma will remain No. 1 nationally and No.1 in the Big 12. Iowa State will stay No. 4 in the Big 12 and will maintain its spot on the regionals bubble as long as it continues to put up numbers in the 195s. However, in the long run, 196s are what it’s going to take to make regionals.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 43 Iowa State at No. 1 Oklahoma
Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: While this meet may be a little lopsided rankings wise, there are still some important storylines. Conference wise, both teams have a 1-0 record, so any victory will be important. Oklahoma has cruised through its season, but KJ Kindler may take this opportunity to rest some of her frequently used athletes and give alternates a chance to get competition experience. Iowa State came very close to scoring a 196 after only counting one score below a 9.600. The Cyclones will want a high road score to count toward NQS, so a good showing will be necessary.
Need More Proof? Loganne Basuel made her season debut on balance beam for a 9.900 at the Cyclones’ most recent meet, and Maddie Diab scored a season high 9.925 on floor. These routines will be ones to watch for high scores at the Lloyd Noble Center. For Oklahoma, the beam rotation will be one to watch after tallying a 49.725—the third highest beam total in program history—last time out. Look out for Olivia Trautman, who scored a 9.950 on her first routine back this season.
The Big Storyline: LSU finally broke out of the low 197s, putting up a season-high and dispelling rumors that it is are anything less than a force to be reckoned with. Georgia got a useful road score for its NQS but still failed to reach 197 for the second week in a row.
Implications: Georgia will drop to the bottom of the SEC rankings, though the Gymdogs are not far behind Arkansas. The two teams, along with conference foe Alabama, will meet next week at the Metroplex Challenge, with Georgia competing in the afternoon and Arkansas and Alabama at night. LSU’s national ranking didn’t change, but the Tigers improved their average by over a tenth.
Controversies: Georgia originally finished with a 196.725, but a trio of score changes on beam bumped the Gymdogs’ score by two tenths.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 17 Georgia at No. 9 LSU
Why You Should Clear Space on Your DVR: So far, a revamped Georgia program has exceeded expectations while LSU has faced one stumbling block after another. Don’t let the rankings fool you: Both teams are 1-2 in conference and 1-4 overall. Theoretically, the Tigers have the higher scoring ceiling, but the GymDogs have averaged 197 in their last two meets, including a 196.850 on the road. The outcome is far from a foregone conclusion.
You Can Fast Forward, but not Through This: Somewhere in midst of its preseason chaos, Georgia transformed into a bars and beam team. You won’t want to miss either of those rotations. Also keep an eye on the LSU vault rotation: Even without individual nationals qualifier Kiya Johnson’s dynamic Yurchenko double full, this lineup remains one of the best in the country.
The Big Storyline: Boise State eclipsed 196 for the first time this season despite struggling on bars. It was far from a perfect meet from Utah State as well, as the Aggies struggled on beam in particular.
Implications: While Utah State has yet to hit 196, its 195.675 is another step toward erasing its disastrous 193.425 at Southern Utah from its eventual NQS. Boise State has improved its overall score in each meet so far and will definitely welcome a 196. The real work toward an ideal NQS, however, will come as the team hits the road in five of its final six regular season meets. After this meet, the Broncos moved into a regional position at No. 33 nationally. It’ll also be worth monitoring Utah State’s Sofi Sullivan, as the Aggie beam standout was notably absent at this meet.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 40 Utah State at No. 35 Boise State
Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: Last week these two teams scored within two tenths of one another. Both are looking to finally break into the 196s, and this could be the meet.
Need More Proof? Boise State is quietly becoming a beam team, ranked 13th in the country right now on the event. Emily Lopez and Emma Loyim have been excellent there all season. As for Utah State, the Aggies put up an impressive 49.200 on bars last weekend thanks to strong routines from Brianna Brooks and Dani Kirstine.
The Big Storyline: Southern Utah impressed on three events after a mediocre vault rotation to affirm its spot at the top of the MRGC against conference foe BYU.
Implications: Southern Utah was excellent on bars, beam, and floor, and while it benefitted from some looser home scoring, the performance was impressive nevertheless. For BYU, posting a mid-196 for the second week in a row was an important step to gaining some consistency after a rough opening to the season. While Southern Utah looks in control of the MRGC for now, BYU’s performance suggests that the conference will continue to be close all season long.
Records: With a 49.500 on floor, Southern Utah tied its third highest floor score in program history.
The Big Storyline: The Bruins led after the first rotation and closed their meet with a giant season high of 49.575 on beam, but it wasn’t enough to match the Utes, who set season bests on every event but vault to break 198 for the first time this season. Jordan Chiles stepped up—even more than she normally does—in the absence of Chae Campbell, who was out with a family emergency. However, it wasn’t enough, as Maile O’Keefe and Grace McCallum rallied Utah for the largest margin of victory in their now four-meet win streak in the series.
Implications: The Utes remain undefeated in Pac-12 conference action while the Bruins now have one win, one loss, and one tie. Utah will stay steady at fourth in the national rankings while UCLA will fall slightly.
Records: With a 49.775 on beam, Utah set a variety of marks. It’s the country’s top beam total of 2023, ties the Utes’ program record on beam, and matches their third-best total on any event behind 49.800, which it scored on both bars and floor.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 5 UCLA at No. 4 Utah
Why You Should Cancel Plans for It: The annual Bruins-Utes clash is a must-watch meet every season, as it’s usually an instant classic. With this year’s edition also producing a top five showdown, it should be no different. Utah may be undefeated against UCLA in duals this decade, but it only has a combined 0.275 margin of victory from all three matchups. Plus, with three Pac-12 teams ranked in the top 10, this victory will be huge in the conference title race.
What We’re Watching: With the debut of Jillian Hoffman’s Yurchenko one and a half last week, the Utes can put up a full lineup of 10.0 start values when fully healthy. That would be a first for Utah since the devaluation of the Yurchenko full and would go a long way in establishing a second standout event to complement beam. The Bruins’ beam lineup has gone sub-49 the last two outings and lowered their team total significantly, so watch for a possible shakeup as Ana Padurariu hit an exhibition set last week after a strong 2022 on the event.
The Big Storyline: N.C. State and North Carolina even out the series between the two teams with the Wolfpack taking the win here after a steady four event performance and the Tar Heels winning the first matchup.
Implications: All three teams were looking at this meet as an opportunity to get a 196 for NQS, but only N.C. State was able to come away with the result despite the Tar Heels getting incredibly close. North Carolina did, however, manage to get its highest road score of the season so far.
Controversies: Shepard did seemingly a great beam routine, and then the judges found start value discrepancies. The score started from a 9.9 for a 9.7 overall and was later raised after an inquiry to a 10.0 start value and 9.8 overall.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 27 North Carolina, No. 41 Western Michigan at No. 23 N.C. State
Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: Even though it’s only Week 5, this is already the second meeting between the top two teams in the EAGL, who are both coming off of three consecutive 196-pluses. Western Michigan will join the rivalry meet in search of its first 196 of the season after finishing incredibly close to the mark over the last two weeks.
Need More Proof? Chloe Negrete for the Wolfpack and Julia Knower for the Tar Heels have been on fire the past couple of weeks and will be a big part of both teams’ success this week. Look out for Negrete on beam where she has gone 9.900 the past two weeks, as well as Knower on floor where she went 9.950. Payton Murphy has been leading the Broncos’ charge this season, notching 9.875 or higher on three events and tying her own program all-around record. Ronni Binstock has similarly played a key role, returning from absence last season as a major floor contributor and a steady leadoff on vault and beam.
The Big Storyline: Minnesota came out on top of Illinois by almost a full point. The Illini had a shaky bar rotation followed by a lot more small mistakes throughout the meet that really added up. Minnesota also had its fair share of shakiness on the beam, but the Gophers were able to fight through and come out with the win.
Implications: Minnesota will remain in fifth place in the Big Ten, extending its lead over Illinois, so the Illini have some ground to make up if they want to sneak into the top five in the conference.
The Big Storyline: Despite some uncharacteristic landings in the last rotation, the Golden Bears used five all-arounders en route to earning a new season-high and routing Arizona State, led by Mya Lauzon’s career best 39.700 that ties the program record. She nearly swept the events, only stopped by teammate Madelyn Williams’ near-perfect bars set that also set a new personal best. As she has many times before, Hannah Scharf stood out for the Sun Devils, posting a new season-high in the all-around while they tied their season high team score from last weekend.
Implications: The Golden Bears improve to 3-0 in the Pac-12 regular season standings to remain on top of the conference while the Sun Devils fall to 1-2 with meets at UCLA and against Utah up next.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 21 Arizona State at No. 7 California
Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: Two of last season’s Pac-12 regular season co-champions will face off in a dual with enormous conference implications. The Sun Devils sit at 1-1, and a win over the undefeated Golden Bears in this top-24 battle would start to level the standings.
Need More Proof? Standout freshman eMjae Frazier has been huge for California this season, with highs of 9.950 on three events in just three meets. Maddie Williams has also been critical for the Golden Bears, stepping into the all-around when needed while also contributing 9.950s of her own on bars. Arizona State’s Anaya Smith brought her dynamic Yurchenko one and a half back to the vault lineup last week for a 9.950—the highest score of the season for the Sun Devils, who will need more similar scores to stand a chance at taking the win.
The Big Storyline: Iowa State shook off whatever fatigue it might have had after competing at Oklahoma on Friday and earned two wins at the TWU tri meet. Balance beam ended up being the difference maker between the teams; each had some rough routines, but the Cyclones only counted one low score, whereas the other teams had to count multiple, which affected their team total.
Implications: Iowa State’s score will keep it in the regionals picture while New Hampshire will need to figure out its beam woes if it wants to contend for a spot. TWU will want to keep building scores to keep it in contention for USAGs.
Records: Kylie Gorgenyi tied a New Hampshire individual program record on bars by scoring a 9.950, winning the event title.
Preview
Current Rankings: No. 43 Iowa State and No. 51 New Hampshire at No. 55 Texas Woman’s
Why You Should Make Time to Tune in: If you are looking for a tri meet that could end up going any team’s way, you don’t want to miss this one. Each team has had some large score fluctuations so far this season, so while Iowa State is the favorite rankings-wise, a shake up in the bottom three is likely. Any of the teams could come out on top should the Cyclones not have a clean meet.
Need More Proof? New Hampshire is coming off of a rough beam rotation and will be looking for strong routines from Robyn Kelley and Alyssa Worthington to right that ship. Iowa State scored a season-high last time out and had big numbers from Loganne Basuel and Maddie Diab on beam and floor, respectively. You also can never count the home team out; TWU logged a season high team score last week and had big floor scores from Alix Pierce and Ruby Goad. The Pioneers always find the most success at home.
Interested in a more in-depth breakdown of how the USAG and NCGA teams performed this week? Check out recaps and results in our other respective Dismounts.
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