After the Sooners defended their title with a record-tying championship score, I feel vindicated for raising my grading standards this season—their winning 198.3875 was higher than the previous five-year winner average of 198.250. While the last report card had UCLA on top, the Bruins did have an impressive championship despite not winning or even advancing to the final, and it only had the Sooners one grade away from UCLA as well.
Ultimately, changing formats this season to track a team’s momentum proved far more effective than previous grading methods. It correctly projected Auburn and Alabama’s early postseason exits, California’s run through regionals, and foresaw a tight battle between Michigan and LSU when looking at their end of the regular season grades. With the postseason now complete and a champion (re)crowned, let’s look at each nationals team’s final performance for 2023’s final report card.
An event total of 49.600 or better is required for an A+, 49.550 or better for an A, 49.500 for an A-, and the pattern continuing in five-hundredths of a point decreases per plus/minus.
Final Grades
California
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| B- | F | B | B |
Championship Recap: The bars falls are unfortunate, as otherwise, the Golden Bears were having an above-average day the one time an average performance could advance from a national semifinal. After hitting floor and vaulting better than usual, California could’ve closed the door on a program-best finish with hits on its two best events as it had the lead at the halfway point. But, it was a historic season for the program nonetheless, as it still matched its highest finish ever at the NCAA championships after a season of broken records.
Denver
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| C- | B- | F | B- |
Championship Recap: Clearly, beam was the issue—as Denver counted a fall—but overall, it wasn’t the day the underdogs needed to advance to the final. Still, the Pioneers were able to notch the third-best finish in program history and give Lynnzee Brown an appropriate send-off—the sixth-year led Denver with a runner-up finish on vault and fourth-place finishes on floor and the in the all around. The gymternet can collectively be happy about that.
Florida
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| A | A+ | A- | B |
Championship Recap: When comparing championship final grades with the Sooners, it’s only floor where they differ. Neither program got many vault landings, both teams got almost every bars dismount landing, each beam lineup had a check or two, but the stag jump out of bounds from Leanne Wong and short final tumbling passes all around were ultimately the difference. Some of that margin was negated by the Gators being “A++” on bars, but not enough. However, finishing as runner-up with a stellar performance is nothing to be bashful about.
Kentucky
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| C+ | D | B | C |
Championship Recap: The Wildcats were a bit outmatched to begin with in the stacked semifinal, but also didn’t have the best of days—only scoring four scores in the 9.9s. Having been there before, Raena Worley unsurprisingly led the way for Kentucky, but picking up some hardware with Mackenzie Wilson and Isabella Magnelli’s fourth places finishes on vault and beam, respectively, is important huge for a program on the rise.
LSU
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| A- | C+ | C- | B+ |
Championship Recap: While the Tigers finished strong on floor and vault, bars and beam were a bit too nervy and opened the door too far to recover from in a final when everyone is hitting. To start, it looked like they had run out of steam after their run to the semifinal win. But, considering the running joke on Twitter for a bit of the season was volunteering to compete for LSU due to the injury list, finishing fourth is a testament to the fight and grit this team embraced.
Oklahoma
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| A | A+ | A- | A+ |
Championship Recap: In perfect fashion, en route to winning their sixth title in nine years, the Sooners finish off their season with straight As and are the only team to do so. Oklahoma started the final with two good landings on vault to close the first rotation, take an early lead, and never look back. A few nervy routines on beam left the door open slightly, but fighting for a 49.5-plus was enough to keep distance between the Sooners and surging Gators. Don’t expect any stop to the Oklahoma dynasty soon, either, as the Sooners’ only key loss is Olivia Trautman, and they reload with a trio of key recruits.
UCLA
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| D+ | A- | A- | A+ |
Championship Recap: The Bruins followed up the highest event total of either semifinal with the lowest vault total of both sessions, and that was what did them in. Even adding a 10.0 start value for the postseason, it wasn’t enough to overcome the difficulty disadvantage that was a concern all season and the lack of landings they got on Thursday evening. It was arduous to see UCLA eliminated with a performance that would’ve advanced from the earlier semifinal, but that’s sports and doesn’t take away from the incredible season it put together—a near-198 in an NCAA semifinal is eons better than missing nationals as it did the prior two years.
Utah
| Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor |
| D+ | A | A+ | A- |
Championship Recap: When looking at the Utes’ grades from the national final, it’s obvious what their difference-making event was. Utah was going for sticks on vault, as it should’ve, but came up just short on a few too many to keep the gap close enough for a final rotation beam comeback. The Red Rocks, under Tom Farden, are known for always playing to win, and while it bit them this year, it’s also been key in their impressive three-year streak of third-place finishes.
READ THIS NEXT: Oklahoma Secures Dynasty Status, Sixth NCAA Title
Article by Brandis Heffner
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