For the eighth time in twelve years, the Sooners are back-to-back national champions and the third most winningest team in history, fighting until the last routine to claim this title.
The Oklahoma Sooners end their 2026 season with a 198.1625, narrowly beating out LSU’s 198.075 to claim the national championship team title. Holding a strong lead in the first two rotations but trailing the Tigers by less than a tenth as they headed to floor after the third, the Sooners needed every tenth up until the final competitor.
“We never take for granted the opportunity to do this or how difficult it is, and tonight LSU made it extra difficult, pushing up to our limit, and we were also pushing ourselves,” said head coach K.J. Kindler, who rounds out her twentieth season with the Sooners. “This was a team effort from top to bottom. It was a fight to the finish.” After the final rotation, Kindler told the team, “You did everything you could, and you should be at peace.”
The Sooners are known for their consistency, but having to come back from a fall tonight on beam in order to stay in the competition, their mental game and confidence in one another are what carried them to the win. “ After an error like that, you know it’s a do-or-die situation,” said Kindler. “Ella Murphy, guts of steel as a freshman going up after that mistake on beam. She told me [after she competed] “I have never been that nervous before, but once I got up there I was calm.””
Sophomore Lily Pederson, also having to come up with a big performance on beam, added to this saying, “That was a really big moment for us, and we have been prepared for it. It didn’t really mess with us, mistakes happen. and you have to move forward. You have to go big or go home; holding back is going to make it worse.”
Heading into floor, the mindset was staying in the bubble, being in the moment, and finishing this competition the way they had been trained to do. “When we selected our events, it was more about where we finished [rather than where we started]. I felt like they could let loose finishing on floor tonight,” said Kindler. Being less than a tenth behind the Tigers, Oklahoma was locked in, only focused on what it could do. “I feel like we did a good job staying in our bubble,” said senior Faith Torrez. “We knew we had to leave it all on the floor for floor; be aggressive, don’t play it safe, and just do what we have to do.”
Ending the competition with a 49.6375 to clinch its eighth championship, Oklahoma adds to the dynasty it has been creating for the past decade, but this championship was maybe its most unlikely. The Sooners have faced some major adversity this season, especially this past week leading up to championships, having to replace all-around staple Addison Fatta in three of four lineup spots. Slating in new faces, the team relied on the training it has been putting in since its last win and the depth it has been able to create. “Since August we have been working so hard towards this moment,” said Fatta. “Being able to rely on our training and rely on one another, we have a lot of trust in [each] other, and that was really helpful tonight.”
Delivering in a big way this weekend, Caitlin Smith, who went in for Fatta on bars. Head coach Kindler called Smith an “unsung hero” and praised her performance. “For someone who has had limited experience, to come up with two stuck landings, two meets in a row, those were the best routines she’s ever done. She really lifted everyone up,” said Kindler.
Another standout performance was Torrez’s 9.9500 floor routine to anchor the Sooners’ final rotation. With Torrez competing on floor for only the second time this season, and being able to end her career like this, Torrez shared, “This was a dream come true, [and] I am so thankful [for my coaches] for putting me in the all-around and trusting me.”
Oklahoma has created a strong foundation over the past two decades that this staff has been in charge, and leaning into this over the years has allowed the Sooners to be able to produce big moments, and the heart that goes into this year after year is what Kindler is so proud of.
“If you had told me when I took this position in 2006 and told me we would be here [with eight championships], I wouldn’t believe it,” Kindler said. “The way our staff has stayed together for twenty years has a huge amount to do with it, the way our athletes invest and are all in every year and the culture they maintain. We built it over time, but they have maintained it, and that’s not easy to do.”
The Sooners rely on the leadership of the seniors, the freshmen who come in and perform like veterans, and the goal of living in the moment. Kindler reflected on what the team was able to accomplish, sharing that even though this is the eighth time they have captured the national title, they still felt disbelief upon winning today. “Each win is different and unique. You don’t get immune to the feeling of having an accomplishment like this … and [even with the challenges we faced] I told the team going into tonight: ‘You can break due to adversity or you can break records.’”
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Article by Julianna Roland
