Coming off an exciting week one of competition, No. 6 Washington hits the road to meet Arizona. With fresh faces and healthy lineups, last week the Huskies garnered a team score nearly a full point higher than their first score the previous season. Beam stood out as Washington’s best performance of the night, highlighted by Chelsea Hallinan’s 9.900. Through thick and thin, the Huskies have consistently excelled on beam. On floor, the Huskies nearly cracked the 49.000 mark as well, setting high expectations for the event as the season develops. The Huskies are excited to have the security in Junior Lilly Tubbs, Deiah Moody, and several other key athletes who returned after sitting out last season due to injury. With a more complete roster and many options for depth, the Huskies are in a much better position than they were at this time last year.
As for the host, Arizona opens the season this weekend after a fairytale 2025. The Wildcats fought to earn a spot in the 2025 regional final and secured a huge No. 16 final national ranking. The graduation of seasoned all-around duo Alysen Fears and Emily Mueller will certainly be felt, but any slack should be quickly collected by a strong pack of veterans. The Wildcats return junior Abigayle Martin, a talented all-arounder who will lead the charge along with senior Emma Strom, known for her consistency on vault and floor. The addition of formerly rated recruits Delaney Mead and Hillary Puleo without a doubt won’t hurt Arizona’s confidence, either. While the Wildcats may look different as a team, the performance of their lineups will not be quick to waver.
The meet will be streamed on ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, and scores can be found on Virtius.
Starting the night off strong with some stream delays! Bear with me.
While it appears though the meet has started, the ESPN broadcast hasn’t. I will update scores until they decide to share with the class.
Rotation 1: Arizona VT, Washington UB
Greever (AZ): 9.825
McWilliams (UW): 9.650. As seen on the @uwgymnastics Instagram story, she stuck her DLO dismount, with a little leg separation mid-air.
LaRusso (AZ): 9.750
Lin (UW): 9.625
Derr (AZ): 9.775
Oppegard (UW): 9.675
Martin (AZ): 9.750
Moody (UW): 9.675
Strom (AZ): 9.675
McDonough (UW): 8.825. It seems like there was a fall here.
Janicke (AZ): 9.725. With Janicke’s score Arizona will drop Strom’s. Interestingly though that Greever’s leadoff routine scored the highest of the lineups. I’d have loved to have seen it…
Tubbs (UW): 9.725. Tubbs hits her routine to stave off counting a fall.
Exhibition- Puleo (AZ): 9.700
Ex- Mouyenga (UW): 9.525
Ex- Childs (AZ): 9.575
AFTER ONE: Arizona 48.825, Washington 48.400
No stream for the entire first event, unfortunately. Washington trails Arizona by nearly half a point, posting scores all under 9.750. The Huskies already have a lot of ground to make up as Arizona hit six-for-six. I’m still disappointed at the lack of a broadcast. ESPN, what’s up?
Rotation 2: Washington VT, Arizona UB
Puleo (AZ): 9.725, her collegiate debut.
McWilliams (UW): 9.400. Not a great start for Washington. I’d be curious to see what happened (!!)
Carman (AZ): 9.625
Tubbs (UW): 9.750 to get the Huskies back on track.
Krohnfeldt (AZ): 9.850, a very solid performance.
Lin (UW): 9.700
Martin (AZ): 9.775
Schaffer (UW): 9.750
Smith (AZ): 8.825. I’m assuming she fell. Smith transferred from Arkansas and this is her debut routine with the Wildcats.
Bolden (UW): 9.800
Derr (AZ): She goes 9.700 and Arizona will not count a sub-9.0 on bars.
McDonough (UW): 9.675
Ex- Maisel (AZ): 9.650
Ex- Mead (AZ): 9.650
AFTER TWO: Arizona 97.500, Washington 97.075
Both the cats and the dogs encountered issues in rotation two. After a less-than-desirable leadoff routine for the Huskies, the experienced returners were able to maintain their composure and hit on what is Washington’s typically worst-performing event. Arizona was cruising along until a *likely* fall (we’ll never know), but Derr hit to successfully drop the score. Hillary Puleo debuted her college bars routine in the leadoff spot, a high-pressure position for a freshman that she breezed through.
Rotation 3: Arizona BB, Washington FX
A stream update! The meet is available on the Hulu app (with ESPN+), but apparently ESPN is having technical difficulties. We have visuals, I repeat, we have visuals.
Lenczner (AZ): Wolf full to begin, a very floaty BHS LOSO, side aerial is very solid, RO 1.5 is stuck and we’re all celebrating! 9.800
Fichiera (UW): First pass is front LO Rudi to stag jump cleanly executed, she is all smiles in her dance. RO 1.5 to front full, a little close to the edge of the floor. 9.825
Wise (AZ): Excellent toe point, BHS BHS LOSO allll the way to the end. Straddle jump is slightly low, dismounts with a RO 1.5, steps back. 9.750
Schaffer (UW): Opens with a front double full, RO 2.5 twist, a tad cross-legged but we love a twister. Finishes with a back 1.5 to front layout. 9.625
Puleo (AZ): BHS LOSO hits it easily, has a hip break on her side aerial but catches it. RO 1.5 dismount, a small hop to the side. 9.175 it appears she didn’t get value for her dance connection.
Bolden (UW): FTDT, lands well if a bit low, she’s having fun with her dance. RO 1.5 to front layout, legs and toes are glued in the twist. 9.700
Krohnfeldt (AZ): BHS LOSO series is well done. Nice to see a double stag jump. Front kickover has a wobble, BHS 1.5 dismount and doesn’t get a lot of distance, hops forward. 9.650
McWilliams (UW): Opens with a Rudi layout stepout, keeps her legs together on the layout a heartbeat longer and it’s beautiful. Ends with a clean double pike. I love the Muse music! 9.825
Strom (AZ): Kickover to beat jump is super solid. BHS LOSO, leg up but stays on. She has palpable confidence. Wolf turn is clean. RO 1.5, hops forwards and hold on her toes. 9.650
Lin (UW): FHS double full, steps crossed a bit. RO 1.5 to front layout with great technique. Her dance is super sharp! FHS Rudi, a little loose form in her third pass. 9.750
Martin (AZ): Speaking of sharp! She starts off with a textbook BHS LOSO, standing front aerial. BHS gainer full dismount, rises and sticks it cold. 9.850
Hallinan (UW): In for McDonough. Front layout, front full to pike, looks slightly rushed. RO double tuck, lands well. Ring leap could have a little more ring. 9.675
Ex- Janicke (AZ): 9.575
Ex- Bragga (AZ): 9.125
Ex- Nguyen (UW): 9.775
No exhibitions were broadcast this rotation.
AFTER THREE: Arizona 146.200, Washington 145.850
Arizona overall looked good on beam. They had some wobbles, as expected for the season opener, but the potential is there. Abigayle Martin, known for her beam prowess, shined with her precision and exacting dance. Washington, similarly, performed well on floor. Fichiera and McWilliams’ matching 9.825’s led the way, and Hallinan stepped in for McDonough to anchor the event. The Huskies trail Arizona after a slow start, but the energy is on the rise going into the last rotation.
Rotation 4: Washington BB, Arizona FX
Apparently one of the commentators is Emma Strom’s mother, I guess that’s one way for parents to capitalize on sitting through hours of gymnastics meets. ~
LaRusso (AZ): Front double full, off from the start and sits it down. Quick leap combo, finishes with a RO 1.5 to front layout. 9.125
Oppegard (UW): BHS LOSO and comes off immediately. Recovers with a solid leap series. Side aerial is confident as is her dance. Dismounts with a gainer full, not too much height. 9.200
Puleo (AZ): Rudi front back layout 2 feet, stag jump. She really makes use of her facial expressions in the dance, some spunky jazz. RO 1.5 to front full with tight form and floaty. 9.900, what a way to make an impression!
Moody (UW): BHS LOSO LOSO, lifts her leg but stays on. RO 1.5 to dismount is high, hops forward and steps into the salute. 9.650
Krohnfeldt (AZ): A huge double pike to open, gorgeous leap combo. RO 1.5 front layout, then turns right around for her double tuck to end, lands with her chest a bit low. 9.725
Lin (UW): Nails her BHS LOSO, her eyes are up in her dance, love to see the confidence. RO 1.5 dismount and sticks! 9.750
Derr (AZ): Hamilton routine let’s go! Front double full, done well. She has a fun contemporary dance style, it’s quite theatrical. Ends with a front layout to front full, takes a controlled step out. 9.85
Tubbs (UW): Opens her routine with a front aerial to scale, BHS LOSO not a bobble in sight. Not often do you see a hitch kick in college gym. Gainer pike off the end, gets phenomenal height and sticks it easily.
Martin (AZ): Another sky-high double pike, very energetic music. I like to see how sharp her arm positions are in her leap pass, front layout front full is clean. Finishes with a double tuck, lunges in place. 9.850
Navarro (UW): BHS BHS LOSO, hits despite being a little shaky throughout. RO 1.5, attempts to stick but shuffles a bit. 9.650
Strom (AZ): The Uptown Girl and Sweet Caroline remix is iconic. Rudi to layout stepout, gets a lot of air. RO 1.5 to front full, very energetic but stays in bounds. 9.925
Hallinan (UW): Shows her flexibility in her mount. Front kickover to back tuck series, nails it. This is clearly Hallinan’s event. Front aerial beat jump, no problems there. RO 1.5 and lands well. An excellent anchor routine, and with that the Huskies won’t have to count a fall. 9.900
Ex- Carman (AZ): 9.750
Ex- DeYoung (UW): 9.650
Ex- Mead (AZ): 9.400
Ex- Rak (UW): 9.625
FINAL: Arizona 195.450, Washington 194.650
VT: Ainsley Greever (AZ) – 9.825
UB: Aubrey Kronfeldt (AZ) – 9.850
BB: Chelsea Hallinan (UW) – 9.900
FX: Emma Strom (AZ) – 9.925
AA: Abigayle Martin (AZ) – 39.225
Wow what a rollercoaster! With a multitude of broadcast issues, it’s a surprise we were able to even watch the meet at all. It felt like the performance quality increased as the meet progressed. Washington had a slow start on bars and vault, with a couple mistakes raising the stakes. Ultimately, neither team had to count a fall. Arizona took the lead from the jump, but the real showdown came on bars and beam. The Wildcats put on a show for their home audience on floor, punctuated by Emma Strom’s 9.925 in the anchor position. And let’s not overlook freshman Hillary Puleo debuting on all four events–she’s one to watch.
A bit of shaky execution staggered the Huskies on beam, where they wanted to make up the most ground. But Chelsea Halllinan again put on a clinic and nabbed the night’s beam title with a 9.900. While the final team score wasn’t exactly what the Huskies wanted, the road experience against a team on the rise like Arizona is incredibly valuable. More experience equals more confidence, and Washington will keep chugging.
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Live blog by Frances Leadman
