In just the second year under the WCGNIC name, these championships are already setting up to be even more exciting than last year.
Texas Woman’s is looking for a back-to-back win after a huge season and will be looking to cap off the year with another WCGNIC title. With the major improvement of both Bridgeport and Southern Connecticut from last season, as well as the level of competition and confidence of SEMO coming off a conference win, West Chester being the host, and the addition of Alaska to the mix, getting into the night session and making a run for the title is going to be very exciting to watch.
The Contenders
Texas Woman’s
Friday, March 27 at 7 p.m. ET | Virtius
Chance to Advance: 99.9%
Relevant Stats: 194.920 NQS | 194.887 AVG | 196.100 high
Why It’s an Underdog: If the Pioneers struggle on an event, it tends to be bars, which contributed to a handful of their lower team totals this season. Losing some key athletes from last season on the event, the team has struggled to have six consistent hits week after week. The highest score here for the Pioneers this season has been just over a 49.100, and if they want a repeat, hitting here is going to be essential.
What’s the Bright Side: The Pioneers are the reigning WCGNIC champions, so not only do they know what it takes to win, but they’re hungry for a repeat. With only two scores under a 194 this season and the majority being in the mid-195s, Texas Woman’s has not only continued to show consistency, but has proved it can compete with any team, getting wins over highly-ranked teams like Oregon State, Kent State, and Arizona State this season.
Why It Would Be Cool If It Won: With this technically being only the second year of the WCGNICs, it would be impressive to hold two back-to-back titles.
SEMO
Friday, March 27 at 1 p.m. ET | Virtius
Chance to Advance: 99.4%
Relevant Stats: 194.065 NQS | 194.023 AVG | 194.950 high
Why It’s an Underdog: SEMO scored a 195.025 last year in the team final, but has yet to top that score so far this season. Having just been up against its biggest competition for the title at its conference championship, the only event it scored lower than Texas Woman’s on was bars. Still, SEMO needs to put up a great meet across the board in order to come out on top.
What’s the Bright Side: SEMO is coming off a huge conference win, taking home the 2026 MIC title by just a two-tenth win over the Pioneers. The Red Hawks’ most consistent, highest-ranked event is beam, which is something any team would dream of. With a season high of a 49.000 on the event, the team has gotten close to this point several times this season, but needs to best that and use this strong event to its advantage. The Red Hawks also have several individual competitors who have brought in big scores throughout the year in Taylor Ingle, Nyah Reader, and Jaidan Kossuth, to name a few. If these athletes are having their best days, their scores alone could drastically change the outcome of where this team finishes.
Why It Would Be Cool If It Won: SEMO was the closest team to Texas Woman’s last year in the final, finishing as the runner-up, but still scored a point lower in total. The last time this team won a championship was in 2021, so having another win five years later would certainly be a major highlight for the Red Hawks.
In the Mix
Bridgeport
Friday, March 27 at 1 p.m. ET | Virtius
Chance to Advance: 88.3%
Relevant Stats: 192.603 NQS | 192.386 AVG | 194.125 high
Why It’s an Underdog: Most of the Purple Knights’ event totals have been relatively consistent after the first few meets of the season, but have not yet reached maximum scoring potential. In order for Bridgeport to have a real chance at winning, it not only needs to bring the consistency it’s capable of, but needs to hone in on the details to achieve its best performance at the right time.
What’s the Bright Side: Bridgeport has shown tremendous growth from the previous season, and is coming into these championships in a much better place than in 2025, scoring its two season highs in back-to-back weeks with 194+ scores. The Purple Knights have been most consistently strong on vault and floor, with all-arounders Abigail Kenney and Nova Staruk being a large part of this success. With these two events being what could propel the team into a better standing, both bars and beam need to match the potential that Bridgeport has proven capable of in recent weeks.
Why It Would Be Cool If It Won: The Purple Knights’ last championship win was over a decade ago in 2014, and with all the change this program has endured over the past few seasons, winning this title and besting last year’s third-place finish would be a perfect end to the 2026 season.
Southern Connecticut
Friday, March 27 at 7 p.m. ET | Virtius
Chance to Advance: 58.1%
Relevant Stats: 192.244 NQS | 192.130 AVG | 194.150 high
Why It’s an Underdog: Southern Connecticut’s consistency is either going to be what keeps it from advancing or what gives it its first finals appearance. Although the team has proven it can score into the 193-194 range a handful of times this year, the majority of its scores have been below that mark, with inconsistent beam performances and lower bars scores being the biggest contributing factors.
What’s the Bright Side: The Owls have undoubtedly been one of the most improved teams from last season and have shown they have the potential to put up a competitive score, posting a season high of 194.150 at New Hampshire in early March. If the team has a repeat of that performance, it could be a huge ending to its year.
Why It Would Be Cool If It Won: If the Owls qualify as a team for the final and potentially win it, this could be a historic finish for SCSU.
The Dark Horses
West Chester University
Friday, March 27 at 7 p.m. ET | Virtius
Chance to Advance: 42.0%
Relevant Stats: 191.930 NQS | 191.698 AVG | 193.175 high
Why It’s an Underdog: The Rams have been consistent with scoring throughout the season, but have been stuck around the 191-192 mark, with only one team total of over 193 thus far. The biggest issues for the team have come on beam this year, but it does have individuals capable of big scores in Tatum McGuinn and EmmaGrace Kelly. Both beam and bars really need a couple more great scores to give West Chester a chance to get back to the team final and build on what it is capable of doing on vault and floor.
What’s the Bright Side: West Chester has the advantage of being the host; it knows the equipment, the arena, and does not have to travel, all of which could really be assets to the Rams. In the past few weeks, West Chester has started to pull in some of its biggest scores of the season, notching a season-best 193.175 against Bridgeport at home, showing it can hit four for four. The Rams have been consistently strong on both vault and floor, posting several high 48 scores on both events. West Chester can absolutely utilize the strength it has on these events to make its bid to the final more of a reality.
Why It Would Be Cool If It Won: The last time West Chester hosted championships under the USAG name, the Rams made it all the way to finals for the first time in history. Being able to qualify again for the second time hosting would be a major win for the team.
Alaska
Friday, March 27 at 1 p.m. ET | Virtius
Chance to Advance: 0.6%
Relevant Stats: 191.050 NQS | 190.933 AVG |192.675 high
Why It’s an Underdog: Alaska has fewer opportunities to compete throughout the season because of its location, only recording nine competitions before its conference championship. The team has proven it can be consistent, but has struggled to bring in big scores on both vault and floor, events where most of its competitors can usually rely on solid totals. No scores on these two power events have yet to break a 48, and to be competitive in the semifinals and potentially qualify for the final, getting above this threshold is going to be crucial.
What’s the Bright Side: Even with this extra layer of challenge with fewer opportunities to compete, Alaska has proven to be consistent in its team totals as a whole, ranging from the 190-192 mark throughout the season, with only one total under. Beam has been the strongest event for the Seawolves, with a season best of a 48.550 early on in the year, and having gotten close to that mark several times in the following competitions.
Why It Would Be Cool If It Won: Alaska needs to have a big day with bigger scores than it has put up until this point, and if it qualifies for the final or wins, this would be a huge way to end its year, and would definitely be its best performance of the season.
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Article by Julianna Roland
