NCAA gymnastics Week 9: Cal bests Utah, and Florida clinches the regular-season SEC title

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  • D’Arcy Maine, ESPN.com

Mar 4, 2024, 04:21 PM ET

The No. 3 California Golden Bears had the chance to get one step closer to their goal of the Pac-12 regular-season title on Saturday — but they knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

At home, in a showdown against No. 4 Utah, the Golden Bears would need to have one of their best meets of the season to put themselves in position to win it outright.

They did just that.

Led by sophomore standout eMjae Frazier, who scored 39.750 to claim the all-around crown, Cal earned its third best team score ever for a 198.100-197.700 victory, and a guarantee of a share of the regular-season title with Utah.

Now, Cal will have a chance to win its first-ever outright regular-season conference title if it wins the meet on Sunday against Stanford.

With Saturday’s result, Cal moves back up to No. 2 in the rankings and has a national qualifying score of 197.950. Oklahoma remains No. 1 with a NQS of 198.420. LSU, Florida and Utah round out the top five.

Here’s what else you may have missed from Week 9 of the 2024 NCAA gymnastics season:

Gator greatness

Florida clinched sole ownership of the SEC regular-season conference title on Sunday with a 198.225-198.10 victory over Kentucky on the road. The Gators had guaranteed at least a share of the distinction last week following their victory over LSU, and Sunday’s win eliminated both Kentucky and LSU, the other two teams hoping to secure part of the title.

It marks the sixth straight year Florida has won at least a share of the regular-season championship.

The Gators were led by Leanne Wong, who earned 9.975s on both bars and beam, as well as Anya Pilgrim, who earned a 10.0 on floor (more on that below). Florida trailed Kentucky at the halfway point of the meet, but the Gators turned it around on floor with a season-high 49.725, and five gymnasts earning a 9.90 or better on the event. They continued their dominance on beam, with four Gators scoring a 9.90 or above for their second-highest beam total (49.575) of 2024.

“With this team, starting on day one looking back to where we are now, I couldn’t be prouder,” head coach Jenny Rowland said after the meet. “This SEC Championship is extremely meaningful. This team has been through highs and lows and did it together. They never stopped fighting. And today we get to celebrate a sole possession of the SEC championship. They earned every tenth we received tonight so [I’m] extremely proud of them.”

The Perfect 10 Club

Eight gymnasts were awarded perfect scores over the weekend. Two reached the milestone for the first time, another did it twice in three days on the same event — and a pair of seniors did it in ultimate mic-drop fashion.

Anya Pilgrim, Florida: The Gators freshman continued her stellar rookie campaign with the first perfect score of her career during Florida’s win on Sunday. She also became the first freshman in the country to earn a 10.0 on floor in 2024, and just the second Florida gymnast in history to do so in her first year.

Audrey Davis, Oklahoma: After receiving a near-perfect 9.975 score 11 times during her career, the Sooners’ senior earned her first 10.0 during the team’s quad meet victory on Sunday over Clemson, Texas Woman’s and Penn.

Ragan Smith, Oklahoma: Last week, Smith tied the program record for most perfect scores on beam. On Friday, against Michigan, she broke the record. Then on Sunday, she furthered cemented her lead by securing her ninth perfect mark on the event (and fourth in a row!). She is now tied with Maggie Nichols for most perfect scores on any event in Oklahoma history.

Haleigh Bryant, LSU: By this point of the season, it almost feels like Bryant should be a given in this section. On Friday night, during the Tigers’ 198.325-197.325 victory over Alabama, Bryant recorded her third perfect score on floor and 14th overall with her latest high-flying, show-stopping performance. She is now tied for 11th in NCAA history for perfect scores. And if that wasn’t enough, Bryant also won the all-around with a season-high score of 38.850, as well as the titles on vault and bars.

Raena Worley, Kentucky: The Wildcats lost on Sunday to Florida, but it was still a monumental day for the team. Kentucky eclipsed the 198-mark for the first time in school history, on Senior Night in front of packed crowd at Rupp Arena. Worley, a fifth-year senior, capped off her incredible career at home with a 10.0 on her final event of the night on floor. It marked her third perfect score on floor, and gave fans the ultimate parting gift.

Makenzie Wilson, Kentucky: The Wildcats’ junior closed out the team’s first rotation on vault with her second perfect score of the season. Her front handspring pike half helped the team earn its third highest vault score (49.500) in program history.

Jessica Hutchinson, Denver: Much like Worley did in Lexington, Hutchinson put an exclamation point on an amazing career by scoring a 10.0 on her final event — also floor — during Senior Night festivities on Sunday. And, to make it even better, the Pioneers (198.025) got the win over San Jose State, Lindenwood and Air Force.

Sienna Schreiber, Missouri: Similar to Davis, the Tigers’ graduate student had come oh-so-close to perfect several times throughout her career, but had never achieved the feat. Until Sunday, that is. During the team’s loss to Arkansas, Schreiber finally earned the elusive score on beam — thanks to a textbook triple series and perfectly stuck landing — and became just the fourth gymnast in school history to do so on any event. The ecstatic reaction from her and her teammates once the score comes in truly says it all.

Best of the rest

Jade Carey, Oregon State: The junior had her best night of the season on Friday during the Beavers 197.400-196.625 victory over Arizona State. Her Yurchenko full on vault earned a 9.95 — the highest possible score for that vault — and her 9.975 on floor reminded everyone of why she’s the reigning Olympic champion on the event. Carey won both event titles, as well as the all-around (39.725), and finished in second place on bars and beam.

Elena Deets, Arizona: Entering the final rotation during the team’s meet against Washington on Sunday, the Wildcats trailed by 0.350. But, led by Deets, the team stepped up in a major way and scored a new program high of 49.625 on beam. Four other gymnasts scored a 9.90 or better, and Deets earned a career-high 9.975 to help clinch the 196.675-196.550 win on the road.

Katie Harper, North Carolina State: The Wolfpack had a banner day on bars on Saturday during its quad meet victory (197.00) over Iowa State, Northern Illinois and Temple. Harper, a freshman, earned a career-high score of 9.95 — tying with teammate Emily Shepard for the event title — and helped carry the team to its fourth best bars score in program history (49.400).

Key meets this weekend

Friday: Auburn, George Washington and Texas Woman’s at LSU; 7 p.m. ET

Friday: Georgia at Michigan; 7 p.m. ET

Friday: Kentucky at North Carolina; 7:30 p.m. ET

Friday: Illinois, Minnesota and Talladega at Alabama; 8 p.m. ET on SECN+

Friday: Ohio State at BYU; 9 p.m. ET

Friday: Utah at Arizona; 10 p.m. ET on Pac-12 Insider

Friday: Washington at Oregon State; 10 p.m. ET

Saturday: Central Michigan, Fisk and Greenville at Michigan State; 2 p.m. ET on B1G+

Saturday: UCLA at Arizona State; 3 p.m. ET on Pac-12 Networks

Saturday: Florida, Eastern Michigan and Lindenwood at Nebraska; 7 p.m. ET on B1G+

Sunday: Denver, New Hampshire and Southeast Missouri State at Missouri; 2 p.m. ET on SECN+

Sunday: Oklahoma at Arkansas; 4 p.m. ET on SECN+

Sunday: California at Stanford; 5 p.m. ET on Pac-12 Networks

This article was originally published by Espn.com. Read the original article here.
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