ST. LOUIS, April 14, 2017 – The University of Florida’s Alex McMurtry won the National Collegiate Women’s Gymnastics Championships all-around title tonight at Saint Louis University’s Chaifetz Arena. The field for tomorrow’s Super Six is set for tomorrow evening at 9 p.m. ET with live coverage on ESPNU or online at WatchESPN.com. Louisiana State University posted the top team total of the day.
In tonight’s national semifinal, LSU scored 198.2750, followed by Florida (197.8125) and the University of Alabama (197.600). All three teams advanced to tomorrow’s night final. The University of Nebraska totaled a 197.2125 for fourth place, followed by the University of Michigan (196.4625) and the University of Georgia (195.800) in fifth and sixth places, respectively.
In the first national semifinal, the University of Oklahoma earned a team total of 197.725, followed by the University of California at Los Angeles with 197.500 and the University of Utah at 197.050 to advance to the Super Six. The University of Washington finished fourth with a 196.5625. The University of Denver (196.475)and Oregon State University (196.3625) finished fifth and sixth, respectively.
The all-around and individual event champions were also determined today, using the scores of from both semifinals. The all-around standings were: McMurtry, 39.8125, MyKayla Skinner of Utah, 39.6125, and Kiana Winston of Alabama, 39.600. LSU’s Kennedi Edney grabbed the vault tile at 9.9875. There was a six-way tie for the uneven bars crown between Florida’s McMurtry, Alabama’s Katie Bailey, LSU’s Sarah Finnegan, UCLA’s Kyla Ross, and Oklahoma’s Nicole Lehrmann and Maggie Nichols, who all scored 9.9500. On the balance beam, Ross posted a 9.9625 to take the title. Skinner and LSU’s Ashleigh Gnat shared the floor title with matching 9.9625 scores.
The Tigers stormed out of the gates posting a massive 49.7125 on floor, a record for the NCAA semifinal. Myia Hambrick, Finnegan and McKenna Kelley all posted 9.9500s with Gnat adding a 9.9625 in the anchor position. On vault, LSU was again brilliant, earning a 49.5625. Edney was near perfect at 9.9875 for her Yurchenko one-and-a-half. LSU scored 49.4125 on the uneven bars with Finnegan leading the way at 9.950. Closing on the beam, the Tigers showed nerves of steel and earned a 49.5875. Hambrick and Gnat earned 9.9375s.
Florida was solid on all four events with event totals of 49.5125, vault; 49.425, uneven bars; 49.3875, balance beam, and 49.4875, floor exercise. The Crimson Tide’s individual apparatus scores were 49.3625, vault; 49.4875, uneven bars; 49.3625, balance beam; and 49.3875, floor exercise.
Seven women in the field helped Team USA to gold at the World Championships Maddie Desch, Alabama; Brenna Dowell, Oklahoma; Madison Kocian, UCLA; Maggie Nichols, Oklahoma; MyKayla Skinner, Utah; Kyla Ross, UCLA; and Sabrina Vega, Georgia. Kocian and Ross are the first Olympic gold medalists to compete in the NCAA ranks, while LSU’s Sarah Finnegan and Stanford’s Elizabeth Price were both alternates to the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team and Skinner was an alternate for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team..