Conference Championships Live Blog | Balance Beam Situation

Everyone hold onto your butts because it’s gymnastics for the next 10 hours straight. Lots happening, lots to follow, but let’s start with the most pressing topics to watch for regionals considerations.

We have five teams still in contention for the final three spots at regionals: BYU, Boise State, North Carolina, San Jose State, and UC Davis.

BYU—qualifies with 196.200
Boise State—qualifies with 196.200
San Jose State—qualifies with 196.400
North Carolina and UC Davis have to rely on above things not happening.

The first significant event for regionals purposes is MPSF, where Davis must score at least 196.575 to stay in contention, and San Jose must score at least 195.875 to stay in contention. If neither of those things happen, regionals will be set and BYU, Boise State, and North Carolina will go through. If either or both of those things do happen, then we’ll reset goal scores at that point heading into EAGLs Session 2 and MRGC.

As for regionals seedings, we still have seven teams in contention for the final three spots: Arizona State, Ohio State, Arkansas, Missouri, Georgia, Stanford, and Minnesota.

Arizona State—seeded with 197.350
Missouri—seeded with 197.500
Ohio State—seeded with 197.550
Arkansas, Stanford, Minnesota, and Georgia have to rely on other scores not happening as well as their own big results. Stanford needs to go at least 197.225 to stay in contention, and Minnesota needs to go 197.425 to stay in contention.

And then there’s, you know, the whole winning titles of it all.

I’ll keep updating the NQS Tracker for regionals qualification and pairings as we go.

Up first is the opening session of Big Tens. Keep an eye on whether Minnesota gets that minimum of 197.425 to stay in the seeding hunt. Right now, I have Maryland, Nebraska, and Illinois avoiding the play-in meets and going straight to the regional semifinals, and they will want to make sure it stays that way with some higher 196s. Penn State is squarely in the play-in meet zone and will find it difficult to extract itself from that, but is already locked for regionals.

We’re about to start, but world beam champion Watanabe just had a preposterous fall on beam to end the Stuttgart women’s competition, where the US women will unsurprisingly take the team title by it looks like 6.5 points.

Rotation 1 – Big Ten Session 1

Takekawa has to step out of her opening pose on floor. Great start!

Takekawa – FX – Illinois – rudi to split jump, solid rudi, some travel backward on split jump – double pike, controls the step – switch side, overturns into split jump full – back 1.5 to front lay, lower position on layout and some knees. 9.850

Vihrova – VT – Penn St – handspring front pike, 9.9 start, hop forward. 9.725

Gerdes – UB – Minnesota – following 9.775 from Johnson – maloney, some legs on backswing to bail, solid vertical, legs together – good hs on high – some elbows in giants, FTDT, stuck. Solid. 9.850

Simpton – BB – Nebraska – following 9.800 from Hall – bhs bhs loso series, holds it – full turn, small arm correction – cartwheel to knee – split jump to sheep jump, small check – some back foot on split jump, good 180 – gainer full, stuck. 9.850

Johnston – VT – Penn St – yfull, solid, small hop back, some pike – 9.825

Jencks – UB – Minnesota – hits Ray but close catch with elbows – clear hip to bail, slight body angle – hits hs on high bar – DLO, chest down, small hop forward. 9.775

Rushlow – VT – Penn St – yfull, good amplitude, larger bounce back. 9.750

Mueller – FX – Illinois – FTDT, controls the step, ever so slightly deep in landing – front lay to front full, good rise, some knee position in first lay – switch 1/2 to wolf full, around – LOLLL at Dean trying to get that guy’s attention in the background – double tuck, small rebound. 9.850

Remlinger – UB – Minnesota – Ray, hit, some feet – good hs on high – toe on to bail, a bit of angle – solid cast hs on high – FTDT, holds the stick with a lean.

Salcedo – VT – Penn St – Omelianchik, large lunge forward

Colombo – BB – Nebraska – aerail into bhs bhs, large break on back handsprings, hips down to horizontal for .200 – split jump to stag ring, wobble – full turn, good – 1.5 dismount, hop to the side and some knees.

Nataraj – FX – Illinois – FTDT, hit, chest down, step forward – switch ring to switch 1/2 to wolf full, nice switch ring but lack of control on them as the series progressed – front lay to front full, controls the step – 9.750

Sales – UB – Minnesota – bail, nice legs together – short cast hs on high – blind to khorkina, just a bit of dead hang on catch – DLO, good stick. 9.925.

Johanson – VT – Penn St – hits yfull, bounce back, solid position. 9.850

Hooten – UB – Minnesota – blind to high piked jaeger to overshoot, solid, some hip position in overshoot – FTDT, small step. Good. 9.900

Minnesota goes 49.300 on bars.

Spence – BB – Nebraska – nice wolf double – aerial, small lean to connect to bhs bhs, hit – some knee – switch to beat, solid, some knee position on switch again – 1.5 dismount, holds the stick. 9.875

Townes – FX – Illinois – front 2/1, small crossover step, just some knees, but solid – back 1.5 to front full, another solid landing – split leap full to popa, around. Good. 9.850

A look back at Piedrahita’s vault anchor for Penn State – hits Omelianchik with hop forward.

After 1:
Minnesota 49.300
Illinois 49.175
Nebraska 49.125
Penn State 49.000

No one will be particularly unhappy with that first rotation. Scores not subtle but not insane. We’ll have to watch how the standard progresses through both sessions today. Minnesota a bit down on the pace for what they need to stay in it for a seeding, but within a normal range for them on bars. They’ll expect to pick it up on floor as long as they survive beam with over a 49.

Rutgers leos: Never not doing the most.

Rotation 2

Zieden-Weber – UB – Rutgers – short first hs – tkatchev hit, probably amplitude deduction – some angle in these hs – toe on to bail, some hip angle – short cast hs on high – giant full to double tuck, good height. 9.725

Koch – BB – Minnesota – bhs loso, knees in both – beat to split jump 3/4, secure, some foot position – kickover to scale, well done – 1.5 dismount, stuck. Solid opening. And starts 9.900

Mueller – VT – Illinois – hits yfull, pretty large bounce back and some pike – 9.750

Adams – UB – Rutgers – some struggle on cast up – giant 1/2, some arch, pulls it back – hits tkatchev to overshoot, good amplitude – very short cast hs on high – FTDT, large stumble back, two lunges. 9.550

Waight – VT – Illinois – solid control on her y1/2 landing, small hop forward. 9.775

Pearl – BB – Minnesota – bhs loso, secure – full turn, solid – switch to a high straddle 1/4, hit – aerial, solid leg position, connects fast enough to beat jump – gainer full, small hop. 9.900

Green – VT – Illinois – yfull, lunge back, some feet and piked hip angle – 9.725

Checking in on Komoroski on floor for Maryland – struggles on a split ring 1/2, can’t really get up to front leg split and some lack of security in landing – finishes 1.5 to layout, hit, some whip over in layout.

Townes – VT – Illinois – good y1.5, medium hop forward. 9.800

Aird – UB – Rutgers – blind to piked jaeger, hit with feet – short hs on high – clear hip to bail, some hip angle – a bit short on final cast hs – DLO, some pike, step forward. 9.725

Nataraj – VT – Illinois – Y1.5 – small hop to the side and then another uncontrolled step-salute after – good form. 9.825

Nylin – BB – Minnesota – full turn, tight but hit – bhs bhs loso, right to the end, secure – hitch kick to switch side, low back leg on switch side – straddle jump 3/4, massive save there but a large lean forward and leg up – gainer pike, step forward. 9.450

Silberman – FX – Maryland – 1.5 to layout 1/2 to straddle, some travel back – switch side to popa, a little under rotated, nice foot positions – front 2/1, solid, small crossover step

Joyner – UB – Rutgers – blind to jaeger, hit – some hip angle in bail handstand and some leg break – hits better cast hs on high – DLO, some pike down, step forward. 9.775

Sales – BB – Minnesota – bhs bhs loso, wobble – switch, keeps moving into switch side with a small arm correction – full turn – gainer pike. Some things but a necessary hit. Could still be a huge beam score. And it’s 9.875

Ward – VT – Illinois – yfull, a bit chest forward with a step to the side. Direction.

McClure – FX – Maryland – double tuck, good height, overdoes it a bit with a bounce back – front lay to rudi, controls step, chest down – split leap full to wolf full, under split position – front lay to front full, solid.

Gerdes – BB – Minnesota – aerial, wobble after landing, bend at hips – bhs loso is hit – full turn, little slide – split jump to stag ring, holds it – bhs gainer full, holds the landing. 9.875

So that’s going to be a huge beam score for Minnesota that you wouldn’t really have factored in. Big deal for them.

In rotation 2, Maryland goes 49.075 on floor, Illinois 48.900 on vault, Rutgers 48.500 on bars, and Minnesota 49.425 on beam.

After 2:
Minnesota 98.725
Illinois 98.075
Nebraska 49.125
Maryland 49.075
Penn State 49.000
Rutgers 48.500

Big number for Minnesota now as they’ll expect to go higher than that 49.425 on floor and get well above the desired pace. The byes are after beam and vault, so Illinois and Minnesota go to byes now.

Rotation 3

Johanson – UB – Penn St – good first hs – toe on to tkatchev, lower, hit – solid hs position – pak, good – 1/2 turn on low – hitting casts – DLO, chest slightly down, hop forward. 9.800

Kogler – VT – Maryland – yfull, solid leg together position, hop back. 9.825

Aird – BB – Rutgers – holds onto candle mount, not quite vertical candle – full turn, hit – bhs loso, good amplitude – switch 1/2, short of split, arm wave correction – split jump, under, small pause before split jump 1/2 – front gainer full, short landing, large lunge back. 9.675

Johnston – UB – Penn St – maloney with some legs into a nice vertical bail – giant full to double tuck dismount, some cowboy, shows stick. 9.850

Rourke – FX – Nebraska – front tuck through to double tuck, slide back – double pike, secure landing, chest forward – switch 1/2 to popa to wolf full attempt, ends up about a quarter turn under, so some things to take there. 9.725

Leese on beam for Rutgers hits kickover to bhs series – split jump to split 3/4, on – full turn, holds it – beat – front tuck full dismount, good stick. 9.850

Rech – VT – Maryland – yfull with a giant bounce back and then an additional step to try to control it. 9.500

Piringer – FX – Nebraska – double tuck, holds the landing, chest down – back 1.5 to front lay, good layout position maintained – switch 1/2 to popa, clearly around – double pike, hit

Manifold finishes beam for Rutgers in the third spot with front layout full dismount, just a small rebound in place.

Gallentine – UB – Penn St – good first hs – toe on to maloney, good legs together into pak, nice – 1/2 turn on low, some back position – hits hs on high – DLO, hop back. 9.875

McClure – VT – Maryland – good amplitude and distance on yfull, bounce back. 9.750

Comin – FX – Nebraska – FTDT, hits it, chest down – split leap full to popa to wolf full, has to pull it around with some arms but does – 1.5 to layout, some amplitude, controls the step forward. 9.825

Ortiz with a fall in the 4th spot for Rutgers on beam.

Piedrahita – UB – Penn St – toe on to maloney, some legs into pak, nice – 1/2 turn on low is solid – FTDT with some feet, step back. 9.800

Weir – VT – Maryland – also solid height on yfull, smaller bounce back, little pike. 9.800

McClelland – FX – Nebraska – front 2/1, bit of a slide out – back 1.5, struggles to punch into the front lay, pulls it around, short with a step back – switch 1/2 to popa – rudi to double stag, under control. 9.750

Joyner – BB – Rutgers – bhs loso, great height and elegant leg position – switch to switch 1/2, hit – 1.5 dismount, step salute out.

Rushlow – Ub – Penn St – blind to jaeger, good height and feet, into overshoot – good hs on high – FTDT, little hop.

Silberman – VT – Maryland – ro full on back pike, large lunge back and some direction.

Spence – FX – Nebraska – front tuck through to double tuck, chest up, some slide – hits wolf turn – switch ring to split leap full, gets a little low but pulls it around – double pike, good control, chest down. 9.850

Rubio anchors vault for Maryland with only small movement on her yfull.

Zannella hits beam for Rutgers to minimize the damage, dropping the fall but counting the 9.675. 9.925. More than minimize the damage, they went 49.225.

Rushlow went 9.925 to get Penn State to 49.250 on bars. Maryland went 48.900 on vault, Nebraska 48.950 on floor.

After 3:
Minnesota 98.725
Penn State 98.250
Illinois 98.075
Nebraska 98.075
Maryland 97.975
Rutgers 97.725

Interested to see how Minnesota’s floor goes now. We haven’t seen the floor judges go over 9.875 so far, and that was just once, but they’ve also been holding up some scores that could have gone lower. The first 18 routines all bunched within .175 of each other. Minnesota is pretty reliant on floor numbers to be willing to go there the way bars and beam have thus far.

Rotation 4

Piedrahita – BB – Penn St – bhs loso, secure, some chest down – full turn, hit – cat leap to side aerial, pulls it out, wobble and step forward, saves it – switch to tuck jump 3/4, secure – 1.5 dismount, bound forward. 9.725

Borden – UB – Illinois – jaeger, a bit crooked into overshoot – solid hs on high – blind to rudi, stuck. Solid.

McClelland – VT – Nebraska – nice stick on yfull, just some pike and distance. 9.825

Johanson – BB – Penn St – bhs loso and falls, so that 9.725 is already counting – beat to side aerial, holds it with small correction

Leneave – FX – Minnesota – double pike, lunge back, looks like she just kept it in bounds – switch 1/2 to wolf full to straight jump 1/2 hop around – back 1.5 to layout, solid dance out, small foot crossing in twist – double tuck, stumbles backward OOB and sits down.

Kuenemann – VT – Nebraska – yfull, bit larger bounce back for her 9.775

Ewald – UB – Illinois – good first hs – blind to jaeger, solid height – hits hs – pak, just a small leg break at the end, good height – broadcast turned her into a ghost int he middle – FTDT, some leg separation in the air, hop.

Salcedo on beam for Penn State, hits a standing front tuck with a step forward – split jump to straddle 3/4, well done – front full dismount, stuck. Good. 9.875

Mizuki – UB – Illinois – good hs on high – blind to piked jaeger, a bit close – bail, some body angle and hip on catch – solid hs on high – giant full to double tuck, hop forward. 9.750.

Hall – VT – Nebraska – well she held onto a stick on her yfull but it was very very deep, knees well down.

Gibble – BB – Penn State – hits aerial to back tuck combination – full turn – cat leap to switch 1/2, slightly crooked – beat to split ring jump, secure – 1.5 dismount with lunge. 

Knight comes in deep on her bars dismount with a hop forward. 9.775

Comin – VT – Nebraska – hop back yfull, some knees. 9.775

Gerdes – FX – Nebraska – front tuck through to double tuck, good chest up, small rebound – switch ring to split leap full to popa, hit, just slightly under rotated on split leap full –  double pike, secure landing. 9.900

Rushlow on beam with a wobble on bhs loso, keeps it on – and another on side aerial – 1.5 dismount, hop forward. 

Davis – VT – Nebraska – yfull, finds the stick but a lot of tucking in the air. 9.750

O’Donnell – UB – Illinois – blind to jaeger to overshoot, a bit close on overshoot – some angle in hs on high – giant full to double tuck, holds onto the stick, small hesitation. 9.900

The way Dean is saying these season highs makes me think they happened today.

Remlinger – FX – Minnesota – FTDT, controls it – switch side, overturns into popa – back 1.5 to lay, hit, a little lower on the layout, good position – double tuck, slide back. 9.900

Spence – VT – Nebraska – y1.5, hit, hop forward and some knees. 9.800

Takekawa – UB – Illinois – blind to piked jaeger, solid – short hs on high – bail, legs together, shows vertical – a bit tighter on final cast hs – DLO, some pike down. Sticks it. And it’s 9.950. Bars has been the loosest event today, so watch out for session 2.

Penn State gets a hit from Johnston to finish beam and go 48.925 there.

Hooten – FX – Minnesota – FTDT, a bit of front foot movement today – switch side, overturns to popa, good height and positions – front full, good rise into front pike, controls the step – double tuck, excellent.

A couple 48.925s there from Penn State and Nebraska, which won’t help their paces. Illinois does help itself with a 49.325 on bars, and Minnesota will get a strong but not hugely gigantic number on floor.

9.950 for Hooten takes them to 49.350 on floor.

After 4:
Minnesota 148.075
Illinois 147.400
Penn State 147.175
Nebraska 147.000
Maryland 98.975
Rutgers 97.725

Looks like William and Mary has taken GEC Session 1 with a 193.050.

Pitt’s 49.150 on floor has the first rotation lead in the first session of EAGLs.

So now Minnesota will go to vault needing at least 49.350 to stay in contention for a regionals seeding.

Rotation 5

Leblanc – UB – Maryland – blind to piked jaeger, lower amplitude but hit – bail, some angle – shorter final cast hs – DLO, hop forward. 9.825

Balser – FX – Rutgers – hits doubel tuck – switch ring to switch 1/2 to popa, under split on the switch 1/2 – back 1.5 and can’t punch into anything over than sitting down – rudi is solid. 8.700

Jencks – VT – Minnesota – yfull, hit, medium bounce back and some pike. 9.775

Gatzendorfer – UB – Maryland – toe on to maloney to pak, straddles the pak – 1/2 turn on low, low with loose back – stalder into double tuck, good position on double tuck, stuck.

Mizuki – BB – Illinois – following 9.850 from Knight – full turn, hit – bhs loso, secure – swtich to straddle 1/4, also solid, just a bit of low back leg on swtich – cat leap to side aerial, smooth – split jump to straddle 1/4, arms does to avoid movement – gainer pike, stuck. Good. 9.900

Jones finishes floor for Rutgers with 1.5 to front lay with a lunge forward. Excellent double back first pass.

Brozowski hits jaeger on bars for Maryland – bail, risking not handstand credit there – DLO, some legs, lunge forward

Mueller – BB – Illinois – hits full turn – bhs loso, secure, some feet – switch to switch, good positions, wobble, pulls it back – beat to kickover, small check – 1.5 dismount, small hop. 9.800

Kondo with a small step back on DLO dismount for Maryland.

Moraw – VT – Minnesota – yfull, medium lunge back, chest up. 9.800

Wood on floor for Rutgers – solid control on front 2/1 to finish.

Townes – BB – Illinois – switch to straddle 1/4, held it, some back leg on switch – cat leap to kickover, solid – bhs loso, small adjustment, knees – 1.5 dismount, small step.

Silberman on bars for Maryland has a leg break and hesitation on bail – DLO, chest down, lunge forward

Remlinger – VT – Minnesota – y1.5 tucked, step forward, hit. 9.825

Tsiknias – UB – Maryland – high jaeger, good – small arch on cast hs – also turns to a ghost for a second and now we’ve cut to beam. Fun.

Nataraj – BB – Illinois – bhs loso, good rise in layout – switch to straddle 1/4, good split positions – beat to aerial, secure – 1.5 dismount, small lean into step salute.

Gerdes – VT – Minnesota – y1.5, comes in a bit deep in the legs with a full tenth lunge. 9.850

Joyner – FX – Rutgers – good chest up position on double pike – switch 1/1 is excellent, great height and split position – front full to front lay, under control, a bit low – switch side to popa, overturns switch side – 1.5 to a high front pike, solid. 9.850

Takekawa – BB – Illinois – side aerial to bhs, holds it – full turn, good – switch to straddle 1/4, good height – gainer full dismount, quick step back salute.

Quarles – VT – Minnesota – y1.5 lands pretty short with a lunge back. 9.725

Hooten – VT – Minnesota – y1.5 is solid, slight knees and a small hop forward. 9.925.

Minnesota goes 49.175 on vault, which will not be enough to catch Arkansas in 16th place. 

Illinois gets 9.950 for Takekawa and a 49.400 for beam to get a useful 196.800 final, shy of Minnesota’s 197.250.

Leese – FX – Rutgers – FTDT is a struggle, chest well down and a major rebound, legs up – switch 1/2 to popa to shushunova is nice – front tuck through to double tuck, rebound back.

With that 197.250, Minnesota will jump ahead of Georgia and Stanford for the moment and sit in 18th place on 197.015.

Illinois with that 196.800 will jump ahead of Nebraska and Maryland, at least for a rotation, and into 22nd as we wait for the finals for Nebraska and Maryland after the last rotation.

After 5:
Minnesota 197.250
Illinois 196.800
Penn State 147.175
Maryland 147.075
Nebraska 147.000
Rutgers 146.275

We can feel fairly confident at this point that Minnesota and Illinois are locked at 1-2 for this session.

Rotation 6

Johnston – FX – Penn State – double pike, under control, some feet – switch ring to split leap full to jump full, pulls it around – rudi, chest down, little bounce – 1.5 to front lay, a little low. 9.750

Good jaeger on bars from McClelland for Nebraska, hits hs on high – DLO, bounce back. 9.800

Silberman on beam for Maryland with a wobble on bhs bhs loso series, pulls it back – swtich to straddle 1/4, good 180s, arm correction – 1.5 dismount, lunge back.

Rushlow – FX – Penn St – double tuck, stumble back with a lunge OOB – split leap full to wolf full, some lack of control – 1.5 to front lay, a little under, shuffle back – rudi, also struggles to get into the split jump, low and some travel.

Pagliaro sticks a yfull on vaulf for Rutgers, some legs and direction. 9.800.

Gibson – UB – Nebraska – good hs – toe on to maloney to pak, legs together – hits 1/2 turn on low – good hs on high – DLO, lower but around, step back.

Jones – VT – Rutgers – good height on yfull, bounce back, not the most distance –

Debarberie – BB – Maryland – bhs loso series, hit – switch, pauses before tuck jump 3/4, I’d say no connection – cat leap to aerial, hit –

Colombo – UB – nebraska – strong piked jaeger and pak, good height and firm – higgins to front giant to double front 1/2 out, holds the stick with some lean forward. 9.925

Dildy – VT – Rutgers – good control on yfull, some lower amplitude and distance, basically stuck. 9.775.

Piedrahita – FX – Penn St – double pike, bounce back – 1.5 to layout – finishes secure double tuck.

Spence – UB – Nebraska – maloney to pak, legs together on both to toe on to van leeuwen, legs good – giant full to double tuck, holds the stick, chest down, nice – 9.875

Aird – VT – Rutgers – yfull, step back, better layout position, chest down. 9.750

McClure – BB – Maryland – aerial, leans through the combination into bhs – switch to straddle 1/4, secure – cat leap to kickover to beat jump, well done – gainer rudi dismount, small slide back.

Johanson finishes floor for Penn State with double tuck, chest up well. 9.850

Davis – UB – Nebraska – food hs – maloney with legs into clear hip to hindorff, good – bail, some position in the air – DLO, deep in the knees, slides forward into salute. 9.875

Joyner – VT – Rutgers – some lack of control on yfull landing with bounce back

Vihrova – FX – Penn St – FTDT, somehow keeps it in bounds right into the corner, chest down – switch to split full to wolf full – front lay to front full, crossover step

Simpton – Ub – nebraska – maloney to pak, solid form – rushes 1/2 turn on low bar – also some angle on high bar hs – DLO, finds the landing. 9.825

Leese – VT – Rutgers – y1.5, good, small hop forward. 9.825

Kogler – BB – Maryland – switch to straddle 1/4, under on the straddle – bhs bhs loso, solid – walkover with a wobble – swtich, pause before split jump, under split, arm correction – full turn – gainer full, small hop forward.

Salcedo – FX – Penn St – switch – double front with a step forward, some cowboy but not too much – switch side 1/2 to straddle shushunova is nice – front lay to front full to front pike, good rise – Nice. 9.850

Rutgers vaults 48.850, Nebraska 49.275 on bars, Maryland 48.825 on beam, Penn State 49.025 on floor.

FINAL:
Minnesota 197.250
Illinois 196.800
Nebraska 196.275
Penn State 196.200
Maryland 195.900
Rutgers 195.125

Non-counters for Maryland and Rutgers here. Penn State increases NQS a little to 196.415, which will move ahead of Ball State and Towson for now. Nebraska goes ahead of Maryland for 23rd but will be behind Illinois in 22nd. Maryland drops to 24th with that non-counter.

We’re into the last rotation of the first session of EAGLs, where everyone is playing “who’s miss rotation was the least miss.”

But a bit of a momentary pause before the first sessions of Pac-12s and SECs get underway. Eat something. Caffeine something.

So despite counting a fall on bars, Temple will take the first session of EAGLs with 194.925, ahead of George Washington, which also counted a fall on bars for 194.550, ahead of LIU, which counted a fall on beam for 194.275, and ahead of Pitt, which counted falls on vault and beam for 194.225. None of those scores will count for NQS.

Meanwhile, MAC Championships is 19 hours long, so they’re two rotations in and we know nothing so far. One more team needs to join that conference and then they need to go to two sessions. Dear Sir, there are too many conferences nowadays. Please eliminate three.

Pac-12s start 30 minutes earlier than SECs, so we’ll have a chance to see how that one is shaping up and who is in contention to get a useful score before the furor that is Auburn/Arkansas/Missouri/Georgia gets underway.

Both conferences have apparatus feeds now. My preference is to go with the Pac-12 broadcast on real TV and the SEC AA feed with the four events on the computer. But you do you.

Pac-12 Session 1 Rotation 1

Jaslow – VT – ASU – yfull, good amplitude but comes in chest a bit forward, slide forward, good height and distance. 9.800

Brooks – BB – Washington – full turn, solid – kickover, connects to bhs – switch to split jump, also comfortable – aerial, connects to beat jump – stag to gainer full, stuck. Solid start, no checks. 9.900

Brunette – UB – Stanford – following 9.700 for Dean – good first hs – giant 1/2 to deltchev to overshoot, hit, some hip angle – good hs on high – DLO, some legs, hop forward. 9.725

Mangahas – VT – ASU – following two 9.800s – good open position on her yfull, solid distance, bounce back. 9.800

Neault – UB – Stanford – good first hs – maloney to pak, clean – 1/2 turn on low, hits vertical – toe full, good finish position into double tuck, stuck. Nice. This will be a good test of today’s bars scoring. 9.875.

Theodorou – VT – ASU – ro 1/2 on tuck 1/2, pretty solid, chest forward and a small hop to the side. 9.825

Killough-Wilhelm – Bb – Washington – following 9.750 for Bowles – aerial to bhs, kept moving, good positions – full turn, hit – kickover, nice height, connects to beat jump – switch to split jump – side aerial to layout 1.5, holds the stick despite coming in a little stiff. 9.900

Smith – VT – ASU – y1.5, nearly finds the stick, ends up short with a slide back and a step-salute, some direction. 9.750

Roberts – UB – Stanford – nice pak, legs together – short hs on low bar and then misses her foot on the low bar and has to hop off – resumes with toe on to van leeuwen, small foot separation – giant full to double tuck, step back. Now they’re counting multiple low 9.7s.

Navarro – BB – Washington – bhs bhs loso series, holds onto it but a major wobble – leg up and a big arm wave to save it – beat to switch side, short on switch side, lean forward wobble – 1.5 dismount, stiff legged on her dismount as well, couple steps back. 9.700

Widner – UB – Stanford – small back position in first hs, good vertical – high tkatchev – giant full, good finish into bail, legs together, solid vertical – nice hs on high bar – DLO, some legs, good stick. 9.900

Scharf went 9.775 on vault to finish for ASU on a yfull with a small step back, chest a little forward.

Arizona State 49.000 on vault, Stanford 48.950 on bars. Today’s theme so far is, hey this isn’t some bullshit home meet where you get a 197.5.

Hargrove – FX – Arizona – FTDT, chest up, rebound back, some leg separation – back 1/2 to front full, controls the step – switch ring to split leap full – double tuck, a bit deep, controls the step. 9.875

Davis – BB – Washington – bhs bhs loso, secure – beat to straddle 3/4, hit, holds it  – full turn, small arm adjustment – 1.5 dismount, a bit short, slide back. That will give Washington the lead after the first rotation. 9.900

After 1:
Washington 49.325
Arizona 49.150
Arizona State 49.000
Stanford 48.950

Not what Stanford wanted for those 197 goals.

SEC to get started now.

SEC Rotation 1, Pac-12 Rotation 2

Reeves – UB – Arizona State – a bit short on first hs – blind to jaeger, good height, connects to overshoot, some body position in the air – DLO, legs apart, small rebound. 9.850. Bars scores on the rise?

At SECs, Leonard leads off vault for Auburn with a yfull, small hop to the side. Lawrence starts beam for Missouri, switch to split is nice – full turn, comfortable – bhs loso, some knees, secure landing – aerial, held well – holds onto landing on 1.5 despite being a little short. 9.850

Williams OOB on her first pass on floor for Georgia.

Onyshko on beam for Stanford falls on her opening aerial.

9.800 vault for Leonard for Auburn.

Groth – VT – Auburn – lands short on her yfull, chest down, lunge forward, will need to drop that. 9.675 is charitable too.

Scalzo – UB – Arkansas – blind to jaeger, good into overshoot – borderline cast hs on high – DLO, nice float, step salute backward. 9.850

Hubbard – VT – Auburn – couldn’t see anything about it because of coach back but it was a hit 1.5

Navarro – FX – Washington – following a 9.800 and 9.775 in the first two spots – double tuck, good feet, but a big stumble back, multiple lunges.

Drotar – UB – Arkansas -dismounts with high DLO, chest down, step forward

Hollingsworth goes a bit off line on her y1.5 on vault for Auburn, crossover step out of the area, some knees.

We have an acro series fall on beam for Davis of Missouri, they have a 9.850 and 9.800. And now another huge break on her kickover front.

Alexeeva went 9.875 on beam for Stanford, trying to drop the fall from Onyshko, now it’s Neault in the fourth spot – bhs loso, smooth – full turn, good – aerial, hit – stag ring, clear and elegant position – 1.5 dismount, stuck. Very nice. And 9.950

Good stick from Stevens on her y1.5 for Auburn to bring that rotation back up. And 9.950. We’re not starting low at SECs, in case you were concerned.

Another OOB for Georgia on floor, a FTDT from Elsadek.

Gobourne with a hop forward on her Y1.5 for Auburn. 9.875. Auburn goes 49.300 on vault to begin, a useful score.

Pratt – UB – Arkansas – ray, hit – bail, can’t hold vertical, collapses onto the bar and off. 9.100

Sheremeta holds the stick on her gainer tuck full on beam, a hit in the 4th spot. 9.875.

Georgia now has a 9.575 and a 9.475 in the first three floor routines.

Hu – BB – Missouri – swingdown mount, nice – y spin, hit – aerial to aerial, lovely – beat to split 3/4, excellent – bhs gainer full, stuck. Nice.

Flatley comes through with a good hit, slide back on DLO dismount, to avoid Arkansas having to count a bars fall.

9.875 for Flatley, Arkansas goes 49.175.

Widner finishes beam for Stanford with a check on her series but otherwise a hit, avoiding a counting fall for them as well. 9.925.

Big 49.400 for Stanford on beam. 

9.950 for Hu, Schreiber to anchor beam for Missouri – bhs loso, hit – switch 1/2, good height, connects to split jump, nice split position – beat to split jump 3/4, comfortably around – gainer full, stuck. Good.

Avoiding counting a fall the theme of that rotation.

Washington retains the lead at Pac-12s with a 49.225 on floor.

After 2:
Washington 98.550
Stanford 98.350
Arizona State 98.200
Arizona 98.000

Schreiber’s 9.900 on beam gives Missouri 49.375 and the rotation 1 lead.

DeJong gets 9.900 on floor to start to save Georgia, which is important because as we know all teams must feel like they are the same at all times.

Hawthorne – FX – Georgia – DLO, pulls out that landing, some pike in the second salto and chest down, improving on that pass – split leap full to jump full – front lay to rudi to split jump, controls the split jump, some leg crossing in rudi.

9.900 for Hawthorne as well gets Georgia over the 49 mark to 49.025.

And now Elsadek has been raised from 9.475 to 9.575 to get Georgia to 49.125, right with Arkansas.

After 1:
Missouri – 49.375
Auburn – 49.300
Arkansas – 49.175
Georgia – 49.125

Advantage Missouri so far in the race for a regional seeding.

Pac-12s Rotation 3, SECs Rotation 2

Innes – VT – Washington – solid amplitude on yfull, pretty large bounce back. 9.750

Dean – FX – Stanford – double pike, chest down, controls step – switch full, nicely done, around – back 1.5 to front full, controls, some leg crossing, but solid – switch 1/2 to popa, nicely around as well –

Big beam rotation upcoming for Arkansas considering the push Missouri made with its beam.

Gamiao – BB – Arkansas – standing loso loso, hit with some knee position, secure – side somi, solid – switch to split jump, nice 180s – full turn – 1.5 dismount, holds onto the stick. Strong start. 9.850

9.825 for Hollingsworth to start bars for Auburn.

Navarro vaults a yfull for Washington, pretty large bounce back. They already have a 9.6 they need to drop there. 9.700

McLaughlin – UB – Auburn – hits first hs – maloney with some legs into pak combination – solid 1/2 turn position on low – good hs on high – giant full, quite late into double tuck, slide back. 9.825

Gianfagna staying on beam but giving away lots of .1 wobbles on different skills.

Stanford will now have to work against a floor fall from Brunette in the second spot.

Groth – UB – Auburn – hits first hs – Ray – pak, misses her hand and slams her knees against the mat. Resumes with 1/2 turn on low – giant full to double tuck, step-salute.

Cunningham finishes vault for Washington with yfull, really trying for the stick but ends up chest down and a step-salute forward.

Linton anchoring bars for Arizona – good first hs – toe on to maloney to pak, nice pak, small leg break in maloney – slighty body angle on 1/2 turn on low – DLO, legs, good stick. Nice one. 9.875

Hawthorne anchors vault for Georgia with a full, small bounce back, a bit of feet, solid. 9.825 for her and a 49.100 vault for Georgia.

Nguyen on floor for Stanford sits down her DLO, so they will be counting a fall now. Door opened for Arizona State now given Washington’s vault score and Stanford’s counting fall. Beam has been willing to go there all day at Pac-12s and ASU taking advantage.

Nice triple series from Swaney on beam for Arkansas following the 9.5 for Gianfagna – switch to split jump, just a bit of back foot – bhs 1.5, some knees, small hop.

Stevens – UB – Auburn – Ray, hit – bail, gets to vertical – DLO, some piking, nice stick. Following Brusch 9.900 and will be a big number. 9.900 for her as well.

49.325 beam for Arizona State will secure a lead after three.

Big balance error for Weaver on beam for Arkansas on her loso, lean with chest way down, keeps it on the beam – switch to split is good – 1.5 dismount, hop.

Gobourne – UB – Auburn – nice tkatchev to pak – 1/2 turn on low bar a bit late – shortish cast hs on high – holds the stick on FTDT with a little stagger. Another 9.900

Auburn 49.350 on bars.

It’s 9.650 for Weaver on beam, which will have to count. Big moment for Hambrick now in the 5th spot – full turn, hit – bhs loso, secure, knees to deduct – switch to switch 1/2, under control, a little under split – beat to straddle 3/4, holds it – gainer full, stuck.

Seems like she has figured out beam this year. Wasn’t as perfect as she can be in form execution, but stayed secure. 9.875

Moore hits a good DLO on floor for Missouri – nice height on straddle elements – front tuck through to double back, controls step. 9.900, which means Missouri will still have the lead after 2.

Celestine – FX – Missouri – FTDT, chest up, good control, some leg separation –  nice 180 position on leaps – slide out in front lay in combination – double back, chest down some, step forward. 9.875

Flatley – BB – Arkansas – aerial to bhs loso, just a little, arm wave correction  – L turn to split jump to beat jump, nice – hits 1.5 dismount. Arkansas minimizing damage. 9.825

After 3:
Arizona State – 147.525
Washington – 147.350
Arizona – 146.975
Stanford – 146.825

So Stanford is now out of the race to be seeded at regionals as well. Right now the money would be on Missouri to pop into the top 16, and then we wait to see who they pop out.

After 2:
Missouri 98.900
Auburn 98.650
Arkansas 98.225
Georgia 98.125

News in the race for regionals is that live scores are not functioning at MPSF and will only update after the end of each rotation, which I love for us and this sport.

Pac-12 Rotation 4, SEC Rotation 3

Arizona State still with a shot to improve its NQS, needing a 49.300+ on floor to do that.

Clark – FX – Arizona State – double pike, secure landing, chest up – back 1.5 to front lay, also under control, lower on front lay – switch ring to switch 1/2, a bit under on ring front leg – doubel tuck, solid. 9.850

Hollingsworth – BB – Auburn – bhs loso, secure, a bit tight in hip position – switch 1/2, arm wave before split jump beat jump – side aerial, holds it – switch to split jump, good 180s – gainer full, hop back. 

McCrary – VT – Missouri – yfull, only a small slide back, pike throughout. 9.850

Angeny – Ub – Georgia – blind to jaeger to overshoot, solidly done – a bit shy on final cast hs – DLO, nice stick.