For Michigan, this meet is a valuable opportunity to establish its place as a contender with the best teams in the country. The Wolverines are now the only top ten team to lack a 198.000+ score, and it would be a great time to change that. With the continued absence of Naomi Morrison, though, it’s going to be tough. Vault in particular has been tight without her.
Oklahoma has been looking pretty much set for postseason and can’t lose the No. 1 ranking this weekend, but it does have a 197.900 to drop off of its NQS, so that’s the target I guess…? Last week we were promised a rest week with some lineup changes and didn’t get it. It’s possible we’ll get some shuffles here, but against a team like Michigan it seems unlikely. After a stick in the exhibition last week, Soraya Hawthorne might get a vault spot this week.
Rotation 1: Oklahoma VT, Michigan UB
Davis (OU): Leg sep on the table, medium-big step forward. I was kind of hoping we’d see Hawthorne over this one. 9.8
Vore (UM): Toe to Tkachev, patient, shy on a handstand, bail is nice. DLO with two quick steps back. From the side there are some bits of foot form visible. 9.875
Torrez (OU): Tiny hop in place on her one and a half, not a lot else visible. 9.925
Wilson (UM): Blind to pike Jaeger, messy feet, looked a bit short on the bail. Not sure about her last cast handstand, DLO a bit short with a step forward. 9.875
Wells (OU): Great pop on her one and a half, small hop forward and an arm swing. 9.9
Zabrowski (UM): She’s got an odd asymmetrical cast handstand. Jaeger with flexed feet, some closed hip handstands throughout here, Pak looks a little low, DLO with flexed feet and a small step. 9.825
Bowers (OU): Superior extension on the one and a half, controlled pace forward. 9.85
Bauman (UM): Toe blind, maybe a little late, to Jaeger to overshoot. Great turnover on the Jaeger. Blind to double front, quick scoot to one side. 9.9
LeVasseur (OU): Dead stick on the one and a half. Just absolutely planted. 9.975
Brooks (UM): Pike Jaeger a little far but keeps it moving, nice position on the bail. FTDLO, baby hop back. 9.95
Scheible (OU): Handspring pike half, beautiful form, small hop straight back. 9.875
Marr (UM): Shy on the first handstand, Maloney to bail solid, DLO stuck just a little squatty.
After 1: Oklahoma 49.525, Michigan 49.500
Michigan did almost all it could in that rotation, really fighting for landings. For Oklahoma, that was just any old vault rotation.
Rotation 2: Michigan VT, Oklahoma UB
Jordan (UM): FTY, some hip angle, some landing deductions 9.725
Sievers (OU): Maloney to Pak, very clean and airy, slightly slightly awkward half pirouette. Handstands looking great, drilled the FTDB. 9.95
Mulligan (UM): FTY with leg separation and a hop. 9.775
LeVasseur (OU): Toe to Tkachev, lovely, really patient on the handstands, great bail. Blind full double back stuck. Aly thought the blind full might have been a bit slow, hard to tell from our angle but that’s about all I saw there. 9.975
Guggino (UM): One and a half, not the most height and a big hop forward. 9.875
Torrez (OU): Ray, nice and high, maybe slightly soft elbows on the catch. Leg sep on the Pak but not enough to be plausibly visible to judges. DLO, little scoot back.
Wilson (UM): Little leg sep on the table on her one and a half today, medium-large pace forward. 9.825
Smith (OU): Great turnover on her Ray, nice Pak, slight back arch on her half pirouette which is basically her normal. DLO, stuck-ish on her toes, might have stepped to salute too fast.
Brooks (UM): One and a half, looked like she might stick but an off-balance shuffle to the side.
Davis (OU): Blind to pike Jaeger, super high, the arm position on that release is one of the best parts about this routine. Double front half, stuck with one foot slightly behind the other. Her usual. 9.975 also her usual
Thaxton (UM): Yurchenko full, substantial pike down and leg sep with a big hop back.
Bowers (OU): Blind to pike Jaeger, lovely Pak, great airtime. Full in, tiny step back. Bart says “That’s a fake smile Aly, she’s mad.”
After 2: Oklahoma 99.250, Michigan 98.575
Well, that’s where the difference comes between those two teams. Oklahoma bars is just imperious and Michigan vault is really in a tough place.
Rotation 3: Oklahoma BB, Michigan FX
Davis (OU): BHS LOSO, nice and straight, front aerial to scale. Beat to ring with slightly low front leg as usual. Double full, stuck on her heels, kept the feet still. Team has to wait for high fives because she and KJ have to spend a solid moment hugging it out first. 9.975
Mulligan (UM): Front through double back, bits of form but controls the landing. Switch side half to straddle to Shushunova, imprecise rotation. Double pike, overrotated with a scoot back. 9.875
Wells (OU): Switch leg aerial, good. Love that skill. Switch switch, check. BHS LOSO, check. It’s fine when you have a 9.975 in the lead off. One and a half twist, stuck leaning forward. 9.825
Guggino (UM): Front lay through double back, weirdly half-piked position, not great control on the landing. Switch side Popa, solid. Front lay to Rudi, again slightly shuffly landing. 9.875
Bowers (OU): Full turn, BHS LOSO nice extension. Split to the best switch half in the country. Double full dismount, baby scoot back. 9.95
Brooks (UM): Full in, substantially overrotated, large scoot back. Slightly bouncy out of her leaps, front through double back better controlled but lunge maybe a little bit long. 9.925 strikes me as too high with a substantial error on the first pass and some other little things.
Torrez (OU): Orphan wolf jump cracks me up. Side aerial LOSO, so straight, looks easy. Switch to straddle, great. BHS gainer full stuck on her heels. 9.975
Wilson (UM): Nailed the half in half out, so good. Switch side half to straddle is nice. Front lay to Rudi, great control again. One of her best. 9.925 I’m confused.
LeVasseur (OU): Lovely full turn. They’re talking about the Nichols program record after two 9.975s for KLV. No question on the BHS LOSO, switch straddle quarter looks easy, cat leap front aerial airy and patient. BHS gainer full with an ARM SWING and then a step back. It was essentially perfect until that. 9.9
Thaxton (UM): Tuck jump full hell yeah. Front through double back, solid controlled lunge. Switch side half to straddle, Michigan’s favorite leap pass. Really nice double pike to finish.
Smith (OU): BHS LOSO, front aerial is nice, the straddle half Korbut is one of my favorite combos in NCAA. BHS gainer full, stuck, 10.
After 3: Oklahoma 149.050, Michigan 148.000
My god, Oklahoma.
Rotation 4: Michigan BB, Oklahoma FX
Mulligan (UM): Cat leap front aerial. BHS LOSO solid, beat to straddle half. Emphatic landings in this routine. Tucked one and a half, some form but stuck. Great start!!
Davis (OU): Front double form, a bit of leg form and a quick step forward. Switch half wolf full sissone, nice, one and a half front full landed well. 9.9
Guggino (UM): Full turn, little adjustment, BHS LOSO airy and landed well. Straddle to straddle half great. Nice side somi. BHS one and a half, seems like she loses the ground and takes an awkward cross step backward.
Johnson (OU): Front lay to Rudi, step out was a little bit long, not great control. Another scoot back on her last pass, not great splits. 9.875
Wilson (UM): Hitch kick, BHS LOSO with tons of airtime, just slightly soft knees. Standing switch x2, flexed front foot. Full turn. Double back, big step back. 9.85
Smith (OU): Double back, really emphatic landing. One and a half front lay is nice. Switch side wolf full, great rotation there. Double pike looked like it might be overrotated in the air but keeps the front foot planted. 9.925
Vore (UM): BHS LOSO, off line with a check. Split to split half, check. Super emphatic stuck dismount. 9.825
LeVasseur (OU): Full in a little short, slightly low chest but hops to lunge with no problem. One and a half Barani straddle, lovely.
Bauman (UM): BHS LOSO, touch of form but very straight. Switch to straddle half, substantial leg up check. Gainer pike, hop back.
Torrez (OU): DLO STUCK. Little heel bounce but kept her toes down. Nice airy L hop, tour jete half wolf full very controlled. Front through double back, quick lunge. In replay her chest was maybe a TOUCH low on the DLO which is normal for NCAA sticks. 9.9
Brooks (UM): BHS LOSO LOSO. Kickover front, maybe a tiny adjustment, BHS double full with a little foot shift.
Bowers (OU): Front double full front tuck, lovely, step forward maybe a touch long. Scoot back on the double pike. Great precision on her leaps,
FINAL: Oklahoma 198.650, Michigan 197.325
VT: LeVasseur (OU) 9.975
UB: LeVasseur, Davis (OU) 9.975
BB: Smith (OU) 10
FX: Bowers (OU) 9.950
AA: LeVasseur (OU) 39.775
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Live blog by Rebecca Scally
