Semifinal two will see the reigning national champions take the floor, determined to defend their title. But with only two spots in the regional final, the battle is far from over.
LSU enters as the heavy favorite with a 99.91% chance to advance. The Tigers, the No. 1 overall seed for the first time in program history, have been unstoppable all season. If they keep sticking landings and racking up 9.9+ scores across all events, as they have for months, their ticket to the next round is all but secured.
Maryland has made it out of the play in round and put a great 196.25 to qualify into the night session. The Terps were locked in on landings, putting up its best scores of the meet on bars and floor. In order to keep pace with the other three, Maryland has to have a repeat competition with just a bit more attention to the smaller details to save some extra tenths to give them a shot of another day in competition here.
The real fight will be for the second qualifying spot. Arkansas, which missed SEC championships by the narrowest of margins, is still a top-20 team with plenty of potential. Beam has been a weak point, but a solid four-for-four performance could keep the Razorbacks in the mix.
Michigan, ranked just behind Arkansas, has the tools to shake things up. If the Wolverines have a breakout meet, they could steal the second spot and move on. With both teams evenly matched across the board, expect a down-to-the-wire showdown for that final ticket to Sunday’s regional final.
Rotation 1: VT Arkansas, UB Michigan, BB Maryland, FX LSU
AFTER ONE:
Rotation 2: VT LSU, UB Arkansas, BB Michigan, FX Maryland
AFTER TWO:
Rotation 3: VT Maryland, UB LSU, BB Arkansas, FX Michigan
AFTER THREE:
Rotation 4: VT Michigan, UB Maryland BB LSU, FX Arkansas
FINAL:
EVENT STANDINGS AFTER TWO SEMIFINALS:
VT:
UB:
BB:
FX:
AA:
READ THIS NEXT: Tracking Individual Nationals Qualification Scenarios
Live blog by Julianna Roland
