None of these teams are likely to figure into the final result here, with a Utah-UCLA faceoff on the agenda, but of all of the big-conference sessions on the agenda today, this one is a frontrunner on pure vibes. All four of these teams have had great success this season and are on a very positive trajectory. They all likely feel great about the seasons they’ve put together and, with luck, will be able to enter regionals with their heads held high. It’s a stark contrast to some of the heartbreaks of recent years. Many years in the past this meet has included teams on the brink of qualifying to regionals or without a chance at all, and that’s just not the case today.
That doesn’t mean there are no stakes, though. Due to the … situation with the geographical distribution of regionals this year, both Washington and Arizona are in serious danger of being forced to contend a play-in regional despite being ranked in the top 28. A great meet today (both began the weekend with the ability to top out at No. 22, though that’s likely changed by now) could allow them to avoid this fate.
Rotation 1: Arizona State VT, Stanford UB, Washington BB, Arizona FX
Jaslow (ASU): FTY, slightly piked throughout, small hop back. 9.8
Brooks (UW): Full turn, great, looks focused. Kickover front BHS, looks wonky to me in the middle but works through smoothly, switch split. Finishing the skills aggressively. Front aerial to beat, maybe a tiny adjustment there, stag jump gainer full stuck. Pretty dang close to her best. 9.9
Brunette (Stanford): Half turn to Deltchev to overshoot, a little loose in the air as usual, Fighting for handstands, slightly overshot both of them and then tightened up and pulled them back. Double layout, flexed feet and a little close to the bar, medium hop forward. 9.725
Mangahas (ASU): FTY, looked a little closed off the table but flares out, small hop back. 9.8
Neault (Stanford): Maloney o Pak, pretty half turn. Nice and clean so far. A touch shy on a high bar handstand, blind full very slightly late, double tuck stuck. 9.875 taking it up a level for Stanford.
Theodorou (ASU): Half on tuck half off, chest a little low, hops diagonally with feet a little staggered. 9.825
Killough-Wilhelm (UW): Front aerial BHS nice and clean. Her acro series has been intermittently dodgy this year, including a midseason composition change. Kickover front to straight jump. Slightly awkward on dance but not a big deal, switch split nice, side aerial one and a half dismount lock-legged but hangs onto the stick. 9.9
Smith (ASU): One and a half, soft on the table with a little form, big hop back. 9.75
Roberts (Stanford): Pretty pretty Pak, missed a handstand, can’t cast out and falls. Toe to van Leeuwen, misses a handstand again, blind full double back OK.
Navarro (UW): BHS BHS LOSO, medium check. Beat switch side, misses the takeoff, doesn’t make the position with a little check. May or may not have done enough to get credit for a leap series there. Full turn, one and a half with two steps back. Not her best, but droppable. 9.7 is pretty forgiving.
Widner (Stanford): Small arch on her first handstand, got the Tkachev. A little shapey DLO but stuck. No counted fall, no problem. 9.9
Scharf (ASU): FTY, scoot back. 9.775
Hargrove (Arizona): Full in, slightly overrotated. Whip half front full is good, lunge just a touch long but no foot movement. Switch ring tour jete half, stuck, solid double back. Just lifts the front heel, the kind of wiggle that judges choose to ignore regularly. 9.875
Davis (UW): Triple series, nailed. Beat straddle 3/4, full turn with a little tiny shoulder wiggle, one and a half twist hop to the side.
After 1: Washington 49.325, Arizona 49.150, Arizona State 49.000, Stanford 48.950
At the beginning of the meet we were basically told that ASU and Stanford could challenge the evening session and then two other teams are also here. Well, well, well.
Rotation 2: Arizona VT, Arizona State UB, Stanford BB, Washington FX
Reeves (ASU): Missed the first handstand, blind to Jaeger with flexed feet, overshoot OK. DLO, leg sep and flexed feet, stuck. 9.85
Innes (UW): Front double full, long step forward but stays in bounds. Very nice one and a half front lay. Nice easy Rudi, clean lunge. Solid start. 9.8
Onyshko (Stanford): Following a hit from Dean. Front aerial, off to the side the whole time, hops off. Front aerial, check, BHS BHS, check. No acro series. Switch ring to beat, adjustment. Full turn, looks like she’s got her rhythm back, gainer pike good. 9.125
Mangahas (ASU): Shy on the first handstand, blind to pike Jaeger to overshoot nice and clean. Full in, stuck with a lean forward. 9.8
Herry (Arizona): Twisting onto the table but still a significant pop, FTY stuck. Nice! 9.8
Navarro (UW): Double back, overrotated with two steps back, likely OOB. Switch side Popa. One and a half front lay is good. Double pike, missed the punch, half-tucked it and landed weird but not dangerously. She’s off today. 9.475
Neault (Stanford): BHS LOSO, lean. Full turn, front aerial really nice. Split to split ring, pretty, great stuck one and a half twist. 9.95!!
Clark (ASU): Blind to Jaeger, a little loose-legged on the catch, awkward close catch on her Pak. Double lay, stuck.
Scharf (ASU): Replay from earlier. Maloney, leg sep in the backswing, to Pak, slightly imprecise half turn. FTDB dismount with messy legs.
Cunningham (UW): SKW got UW back on track with a 9.875. Front through double back, lunge maybe a little long but no foot movement. Switch half wolf full wolf full, fully rotated but steps it around a little more in the lunge, Great double pike, straight upright. 9.9
Widner (Stanford): Pretty splits, BHS LOSO with a check. Front aerial to split. Full turn, BHS gainer full stuck. Very solid. 9.925
Davis (UW): Not always in this lineup, 9.475 to drop. Front double full to stag jump, RIGHT in the corner but the right side of the line. Tour jete half Popa, maybe a touch underrotated. Beautiful one and a half front lay, Washington holds the lead. 9.875
After 2: Washington 98.550, Stanford 98.350, Arizona State 98.200, Arizona 98.000
Vault, especially with tight judging, is an important hurdle for leader Washington. Arizona State, meanwhile, is heading to beam which looks like a relatively loose event today. This is close.
Rotation 3: Washington VT, Arizona UB, Arizona State BB, Stanford FX
Innes (UW): FTY, piked down, decent-sized hop back. 9.75
Dean (Stanford): Glad we’re seeing her because she’s done every event and we haven’t laid eyes on her yet. Double pike, slightly odd set and she’s definitely falling all skill but gets her chest up fine. Tour jete full is really nice. One and a half front full very nice. She’s just an absolute rock. 9.85
Harper (ASU): Kickover front BHS, tentative but clean. Quick full turn. Cat leap, check. Repeats to switch half, don’t think she made that split. BHS gainer full, step back. 9.8
Navarro (UW): Solid FTY, long step back. 9.7
Clark (ASU): Full turn, BHS LOSO good. Split double stag, adjustment. BHS one and a half twist, messy legs but stuck. 9.9
Neault (Stanford): Following a fall from Brunette. She keeps having to save Stanford today. Double pike, low chest and lunge forward. Rudi, scoot back. Pretty in the air. Switch to ring full leap, one and a half front lay stuck-ish.
Cunningham (UW): Needs a good one for a rotation that’s sitting at 48.7 right now. FTY, short with a hop forward. Oops. 9.725
Linton (Arizona): Maloney to Pak, some soft elbows throughout. Slightly short on a cast handstand, DLO whippy but stuck.
Nguyen (Stanford): Double layout, stumbles back and falls. Stanford’s counting one now. Switch side Popa. Two and a half front tuck, shuffly.
Scharf (ASU): Nice clean double wolf, BHS LOSO medium check. Side somi, little check. Switch split with shoulders a little uneven. One and a half twist with a baby step forward. 9.8
Roberts (Stanford): Front lay to Rudi, overrotated with a scoot back. Switch half wolf full, not sure that was fully rotated. Angle made it hard to tell. Double back, way overrotated, big lunge back. Really could have sat that if her foot moved an instant slower. 9.875 ok lol
White (ASU): We’re replaying this one because it rocked. BHS LOSO, great. Full turn. Nice split to double stag. BHS one and a half… step-scoot back. I don’t think that dismount should be just a half tenth since it went backward.
Sander (Stanford): One and a half front lay good, switch side half pretty and precise. She’s so dramatic, it’s a blast. Chest maybe a touch low on her double tuck, lunges out fine. Switch side Popa, awkward step back.
After 3: Arizona State 147.575, Washington 147.350, Arizona 146.975, Stanford 146.825
That went sideways for Stanford and also a little bit sideways for Washington. Arizona State was always going to surge in the back half of this meet as it enters its best event. Washington now just needs to stay on the bars for sixth but has its work cut out to challenge ASU, while Arizona is heading to high-scoring beam and has an advantage over Stanford.
Rotation 4: Stanford VT, Washington UB, Arizona BB, Arizona State FX
Clark (ASU): Double pike, high and clean. One and a half front lay nice, switch ring with front leg WAY low to switch half. Double back great. Very nice start. 9.85
Moody (UW): Toe to Maloney, soft on the backswing, to Pak. Nice half pirouette, handstands are probably close enough, FTDB hop back. 9.75
Theodorou (ASU): Full in, messy legs, low chest but gets it up quickly to lunge out. Tour jete half wolf full, travels a bit in the air, one and a half front lay. Double cat leap, love those. 9.825
Brooks (UW): True Shap to clear hip to bail, shy on a cast handstand, fights through her blind full to a completely drilled double back. 9.825
Jaslow (ASU): Double pike, long lunge. Switch side Popa, iffy positions. Front lay front full bouncy with a cross step. Double tuck, long lunge again.
Mueller (Arizona): Side aerial BHS, absolutely nailed. Full turn. By the way, she’s got two 9.9s behind her. Switch to straddle, slight adjustment. Beat jump. One and a half, baby hop forward. 9.875
Oppegard (UW): In for Lilly Tubbs today I believe. Blind to Jaeger, a little loose-legged, good bail. Double layout, slightly mistimed off the bar but works it out, step forward. 9.65 they nailed that. It may have looked worse from the side.
White (ASU): Front double full, slightly weird step forward. Nice combo pass, switch switch half solid. Nice front full front lay.
Killough-Wilhelm (UW): Pike Jaeger to overshoot, legs don’t come apart for a second. Blind to half to double back, tiny hop back. Nice one. 9.8………………………
Mangahas (ASU): Full in, a little low but lunges out OK. Front through double back, low chest. Switch half wolf full wolf full is great.
Bowles (UW): Needs a good one to stay ahead of Arizona. Full turn to Deltchev to overshoot, some of her cleanest. DLO, piked down with a step forward. 9.8 means it’s TIED.
Scharf (ASU): Front through double back super precise. ASU has won this session either way, this is bonus. Nice clean combo pass, looking good, double pike looks overrotated but gets to the lunge.
FINAL: Arizona State 196.700, Arizona 196.375, Washington 196.375, Stanford 195.875
VT: Anna Roberts 9.850
UB: Chloe Widner 9.900
BB: Emily White, Brenna Neault 9.950
FX: Amara Cunningham 9.900
AA: Brenna Neault, Skylar Killough-Wilhelm 39.400
READ THIS NEXT: Stanford Flips the Script, Competes With Gratitude
Live blog by Rebecca Scally
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