It’s year two with Gymlytics fantasy college gymnastics in 2023! We all learned lessons last year when GymChem took up the helm and created her revamped game, and we’re ready for a fun 2023.
Our weekly cadence will continue to match Gymlytics: The fantasy “week” begins with Friday meets, ends with any Thursday ones and trading happens every Monday via waiver wire. You’ll find us here every Tuesday talking about “next week,” meaning the fantasy week starting that Friday.
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.
Whether you are coming off of a Metroplex or a Super Bowl hangover, we hope you had a fun sports weekend.
Remember that the Wednesday and Thursday meets coming up are part of fantasy Week 6, and we embark on Week 7 on Friday. There are four meets in Week 7 after Sunday: Three on Monday (Bridgeport, Brown, Towson at LIU; Utah at Arizona State; Stanford at Washington) and one on Wednesday (Boise State at Southern Utah). Monday is Presidents Day.
Be sure to check the double meet weekend list below; with so many gymnasts putting in two scores, you’ll have extra chances to get your best total. This week is Oklahoma’s annual dual at Texas Woman’s, which may be a depth meet for the Sooners but also typically is high scoring. KJ Kindler has been playing with lineups a lot this year, and we can expect that to continue this week.
Significant home teams include: Georgia, Michigan, LSU, Kentucky, Boise State, Oregon State, Iowa, and Pittsburgh.
Injury Updates Since Last Week
- Cory Shinohara (North Carolina): Torn ACL
- Victoria Fitts (Denver): Boot
- Megan Sapp (Kentucky): Achilles
- Grace McCallum (Utah): Knee injury
- Olivia Matern (BYU): Knee injury
- Amari Evans (Utah State): Achilles
- Cassi Barbanente (Arizona State): Boot and scooter
- Olivia Dunne (LSU): Updated to add torn biceps
- Madison Benson (N.C. State): Achilles
- Maia Fishwick (Utah State): Absent due to pregnancy
- Madison Carlisle (Air Force): Crutches
Gymnasts Removed Since Last Week
- Logan Clagg (UC Davis)
- Frida Esparza (UCLA)
- Simone Evans (Lindenwood)
Week 7 Byes & Doubles
Byes: Centenary, Greenville, UW-Oshkosh, Winona State
Doubles: Alaska, Boise State, Bridgeport, George Washington, Iowa State, LIU, Maryland, N.C. State, Southern Utah, Temple, Towson, William & Mary
Data Corner
This year we have data editor Dara joining us for Fantasy Central each week. She’ll be breaking down the numbers for you with notes on routine hit rate, lineup appearance frequency and breakout performances to keep an eye on.
Hit Rate and Lineup Frequency: With every team now having quite a few weeks under their belt, the most consistent gymnasts are starting to differentiate themselves from the rest in hit rate and lineup frequency numbers. Only a small fraction of gymnasts have managed to maintain perfect hit rates at the highest levels, either continuing their perfect hit streak from last season, or establishing one in the case of freshmen, while competing in every meet and holding a 9.9+ average this season. To highlight some of the gymnasts in this select group:
- Vault: Only four gymnasts meet the criteria laid out above – Jade Carey (9.939), Gabby Wilson (9.925), Mya Hooten (9.921) and Linda Zivat (9.900).
- Bars: Of the 11 gymnasts who satisfy the criteria, the six holding the highest averages are Trinity Thomas (9.958), Andi Li (9.946), Lali Dekanoidze, Kayla DiCello and Selena Harris (9.933).
- Beam: Seven gymnasts made the cut, with the highest averages being held by Maile O’Keefe (9.975), Kara Eaker (9.937), Kayla DiCello and Natalie Wojcik (9.929).
- Floor: Of the 13 who meet the criteria, Mya Hooten (9.954), Jordan Chiles and Derrian Gobourne (9.946), Sierra Brooks (9.933) and JerQuavia Henderson (9.921) stand out with the highest averages.
Breakout Performances: While Lindsey Hunter was in a lineup mainstay for BYU on bars last season with all her scores falling in the mid-9.7 to low-9.8 range, she has shown a marked improvement this year, hitting all but one of her routines for scores of 9.800 or better and reaching the 9.9+ mark twice in her last three meets. After competing in just four meets last season with a 50% hit rate on beam, Kentucky junior Bailey Bunn has made appearances in all six of her team’s meets thus far, putting up scores of 9.775 or better each time for a perfect hit rate. She matched her career high of 9.925 at home on Friday, after last reaching the mark in her freshman season.
Starts, Sits & Pickups for Week 7
This is the spot to find your sleeper picks, your two- or three-eventers and your solutions for those big bye weeks. We’ll also comment on the big names when relevant: Injuries, lineup absences, or inconsistency.
Vault: Adrianna Popp has been a little hit-and-miss on vault, but with Boise State’s double—which includes a home meet—this weekend, we’d take a chance on her in this lineup. Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso had a weird vault for a 7.250, but she competed bars afterward so appears to be healthy. Good news for Bowling Green. Olivia Hollingsworth added her Yurchenko one and a half for Auburn this week for a solid 9.875; it seems like that upgrade is likely to stay.
Bars: Well, Oklahoma’s bar lineup changed again. Katherine LeVasseur sat this week after two solid outings, and Danae Fletcher was in. It seems like the two are competing to be the sixth routine depending on how LeVasseur’s back feels, and which is up any given week is anyone’s guess. The best advice is if you can at all take a zero, keep both in your lineups every week, because it’s just not worth missing either’s scores when they do go. Jacquie Moran performed a bars exhibition for Georgia at Metroplex; Ryan Roberts said recently that she’d be a lineup option soon.
Beam: What to do about Grace McCallum? Her knee injury appeared significant. Utah is always very forthcoming and transparent, so we can expect some official word on her status at some point. Until then, we recommend holding onto her just in case she turns out to have only a sprain and can return to lineups in a few weeks. In the meantime, Makenna Smith got the beam call and stepped up in the all-around for the Utes. She performed well under pressure and seems likely to get another chance in the lineup this week, especially since Utah has such a long time to prepare before Monday’s matchup. There’s still no word on Sofi Sullivan‘s status. BYU’s Allix Mason had a tough day; she smacked her side on the beam during a fall and didn’t continue. It seems possible she’ll need a week or two to recover if she has a contusion or rib issue. Morgan Price is back on beam for Fisk, and Momoko Iwai hit for Denver.
Floor: In McCallum’s absence, Kara Eaker stepped up on floor for a huge 9.900. It seems like she’ll get the nod again, although we may also see Maile O’Keefe there. Lynnzee Brown competed floor for the first time since her Achilles injury after a last-minute substitution; it seems likely Brown will remain in this lineup. Audrey Davis popped back on floor for a 9.925 after being absent from this lineup since Week 1. Bell Johnson was pulled for Davis. It seems like Davis is part of the A lineup but perhaps is being paced; podium meets are where we often see gymnasts who can take fewer reps show up since it’s a little easier on the joints. Expect Johnson at Texas Woman’s this week, but don’t be surprised if Davis joins this lineup more often the closer we get to postseason, especially against teams like Florida and Michigan in a few weeks.
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: Keanna Abraham is on fire for UC Davis; she performs a Yurchenko one and a half and stuck it for back-to-back 9.925s. Towson’s Polina Belanovski is on a roll of her own, with back-to-back 9.900s. She also has decent floor numbers.
Bars: BYU’s Anna Bramblett has really settled in on bars with a 9.900 and 9.950 the past two weeks. Natalia Pawlak is also on a roll for Pittsburgh, with a 9.950 last week. We finally saw Karis German‘s long-awaited debut for Alabama. She scored a 9.850.
Beam: Washington’s Deiah Moody had a big hit on beam this week for a 9.900. If you can take a little risk, she’s worth looking at for bars and beam. Northern Illinois’ Alyssa Al-Ashari had a breakthrough on beam in late January for a 9.925 and has back-to-back 9.875s since.
Floor: Brown’s Julia Bedell has Alicia Sacramone Quinn’s old records in her sights. She put up a 9.925 on floor last week. LIU’s Ella Barrington has been consistently solid on floor and would be a good pickup if you need a reliable number to bolster your lineup.
READ THIS NEXT: Judge’s Inquiry: Explaining Why Some Routines Don’t Start From a 10
Article by Emily Minehart and Dara Tan
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