BIRMINGHAM, Ala., April 16, 2014 – The University of Florida and 2009 World all-around champion Bridget Sloan are gearing up to defend their NCAA titles this week at the NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championships, scheduled for April 18-20 at the Birmingham (Ala.) Jefferson Convention Complex Arena. The team (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET) and event finals (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET) will stream live on ESPN3.com, with Friday’s national semifinals streaming on NCAA.com at 2 p.m. ET and 8 p.m. ET.
2013 was a banner year for the Florida Gators, who joined an elite group of programs that have won an NCAA women’s gymnastics team championship. They were just the fifth team to take home the trophy, joining the University of Georgia, the University of Utah, the University of Alabama and the University of California-Los Angeles.
Competition in Birmingham will be stiff with all five winning programs returning, in addition to Louisiana State University and the University of Oklahoma, both of which have held the No. 1 national ranking during the regular season.
“I would definitely say that for these athletes, it’s for them to really believe that it’s possible [to win],” Rhonda Faehn, Florida’s head coach, said earlier in the season about the hardest part of taking the title two years in a row. “We have tremendous potential to challenge for the title again this year, but we have to be smart. We have to be careful with our athletes, and we have to pace them properly.”
All-session and single session tickets can be purchased online through Ticketmaster. All-session prices are $50 (lower bowl) and $35 (upper bowl). Click here to buy tickets.
The following is an overview of how fans can follow the action from Birmingham. All times are Eastern.
Friday, April 18
- 2 p.m. – National Semifinal, session 1 | Live Results | Live Video (Georgia, University of Illinois, University of Michigan, Oklahoma, LSU and Stanford University)
- 8 p.m. – National Semi-Final, session 2 | Live Results | Live Video (Florida, Alabama, Utah, UCLA, Pennsylvania State University and University of Nebraska)
Saturday, April 19
- 7 p.m. – Team Finals | Live Results | Live Video
Sunday, April 20
- 3 p.m. – Individual Event Finals | Live Results | Live Video