What We’re Talking About
We want more of this. From Thursday to Sunday if you were watching gymnastics it was probably from the edge of your seat. If you were to look at the final eight teams it might seem that all went as expected with all but one of the top eight teams advancing. Instead… we got some early knockouts, particularly with Denver upsetting Stanford and Arizona edging out Georgia. And when the dust finally settled No. 12 Alabama swapped plane tickets with No. 6 Cal for a trip to Fort Worth. But all of that still doesn’t tell the story of early rotation falls and clutch performances to keep these meets razor thin to the final routine. Now imagine if these meets were spread out over two weeks instead of four days. The ratings, the hype, the conversations. Let’s do it!
The other thing we learned in the action-packed week was that we don’t know who is going to win the National Championship. We’ll be watching Mizzou on repeat during the break; and just when we thought LSU was starting to pull away Michigan State went toe-to-toe and came just 0.05 short of toppling the reigning champs. Even more exciting is that all these teams have more to show. Further west, Utah and UCLA pushed their way through with respectable scores; and in the Alabama regional, Florida and Alabama demonstrated that a Saturday appearance in Texas is well within in the cards. Perhaps the least surprising recalibration that we’ve been waiting for was Oklahoma. The Sooners posted a huge 198.45, in no small part to the near-perfect competitions by Jordan Bowers (with three perfect 10s) and Faith Torrez (who scored a massive 39.700 with a 10 of her own). With all eight teams within striking distance of each other, the anticipation until next weekend is going to be excruciating.
Feelings
- Emma Spence brings it with the hairography
- Engaged: Nina Derwael
- Watch it: MIT Sports Analytics Conference – Gymnastics Rebalancing Act: AI Judging, Analytics, and Economics
- Feeling charitable: USA Gymnastics Foundation launches the Podium Club
- Add to your watch list: “Legend Has It: The Remarkable Rise of Stephen McCain”
- Elimination meets should be spread out over weeks not days
- NCAA vs. House: Still working the details on a seismic change
- It’s now looking like “neutral athlete” Russians will not compete at Worlds this year
- While the U.S. cowers from DEI training Ireland addresses their shortcomings
- Heartbroken: Former Boise St. and Oregon St. gymnast, Hailey Okula (Gaspar), passed away due to complications from childbirth. GoFundMe here.
- Bonus: You should definitely get your Live Show Season Pass and/or your NCAA Live Show Ticket
Facts
- The Final 8 by qualifying score are : Oklahoma, LSU, Michigan State, Utah, Florida, Alabama, UCLA, Missouri
- The all-around qualifiers are: Joscelyn Roberson (Arkansas), Madison Ulrich (Denver), Jade Carey (Oregon St.), Mary McDonough (Washington)
- Vault qualifiers are: Sophia Diaz (Michigan), Rosie Casali (Denver), Kaya Forbes (North Carolina), Ady Wahl (Georgia)
- Uneven bars qualifiers are: Maddie Jones (Arkansas), Rylie Mundell (Denver), Madelyn Williams (Cal), Olivia Greaves (Auburn)
- Balance beam qualifiers are: Isabella Magnelli (Kentucky), Brynlee Andersen (BYU), Mya Lauzon (Cal), Gabby McLaughlin (Auburn)
- Floor exercise qualifiers are: Creslyn Brose (Kentucky), Mya Hooten (Minnesota), Mya Lauzon (Cal), Lily Smith (Georgia)
- Arizona, Denver, Auburn and Kentucky all had very commendable performances
- Heading to Jesolo: Dulcy Caylor, Tatum Drusch, Zoey Molomo, Claire Pease, Simone Rose, Ashlee Sullivan
- Cuba’s Yesenia Ferrera is coming back
- Racking up the 10s! – Grace McCallum (UB), Helen Hu (BB), Gabi Stephens (VT), Jade Carey (FX), Faith Torrez (BB, FX), Jordan Bowers (VT, UB, FX)
- Bonus: Coming in two weeks – The Balance: My Years Coaching Simone Biles
Award(s)
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- It’s a Bird, it’s a Plane: Michigan State Vaults
- Assassin: Jordan Bowers
What’s On the Socials?
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Quotes
“I get to go to Nationals for the first time.”
~ Frida Esparza, National Qualifier
In a tearful moment of joy, Frida expresses her excitement for her upcoming trip to Fort Worth, TX.
♦
“I’ve shattered expectations and consistently surpassed industry NIL projections. Yet, every year, those projections have underestimated my actual earnings. That’s not just a personal detail. It’s a warning sign. When a settlement uses flawed data to cap damages, it risks undervaluing the very athletes it claims to support.”
~ Livvy Dunne , Trailblazer
Livvy testified at the House vs. NCAA settlement hearing asking the judge to not approve the settlement as it currently stands.
♦
“If someone had told me last year I would be back on the team, I probably would have laughed in their face.”
~ Helen Hu, Perfect Beamer
After taking a year off, Helen returned to the Tigers this season and was clutch on beam in the Regional final to send her team to the Championships.
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What? You want even more? Join Club Gym Nerd and you get a bonus episode, College & Cocktails, every weekend after our meet of the week. Once the NCAA season is over you continue to get a weekly bonus episode every Friday afternoon. Plus you get access to all of our archives, exclusive content and more. Then we give the sober analysis on Monday (or Tuesday) after we’ve allowed the data to penetrate our feelings.
This column was composed and compiled by Steve Cooper, Editor at GymCastic and co-author of the upcoming book “The Balance: My Years Coaching Simone Biles“; some thoughts culled from hosts Jessica O’Beirne and Spencer Barnes.
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