No. 5 Red Rocks Advance to NCAA Championship Final in Third Consecutive Year
Utah Red Rocks poses for a photo after the advancement to the final at the 2023 NCAA Women’s National Collegiate Gymnastics Championships at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX, on Thursday, April 13, 2023. (Photo by Xiangyao “Axe” Tang | The Daily Utah Chronicle)
April 13, 2023
The No. 5 Red Rocks continued an incredible streak this weekend of appearances at all 47 national championships. Utah has won nine total NCAA championships and finished runner-up eight times. The Red Rocks came in to Fort Worth looking for their first championship since 1995.
The Red Rocks have hit their stride at the right time, recording consecutive scores over 198.000 for the first time in program history. They are also coming off of their third consecutive Pac-12 championship, a conference first since expansion in 2012.
The Red Rocks have also announced that they will participate in a brand-new invitational, ESPN’s first invitational ever. It will begin in 2024, taking place on Jan. 13 at the Maverik Center in West Valley City. Although the location may change year-to-year, it will feature Utah as well as No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 6 LSU and No. 4 UCLA, all of which made it to the championship this year.
This invitational has the potential to be a highlight year after year, with all four teams participating in the NCAA Championships this year. All four teams have had phenomenal seasons, finishing the regular season ranked in the top six in the nation.
Keeping focused on today, the Red Rocks faced off against UCLA, Kentucky and Oklahoma in the second session of the semi-final, with Florida and LSU advancing out of the first. Utah lost to Oklahoma earlier this year, and beat UCLA at home, in the Pac-12 Championship and in the NCAA Regional Final.
The Red Rocks started the night off on floor, with Abby Brenner leading off with a 9.8875. Jaylene Gilstrap came in with a 9.900 and Abby Paulson got 9.8375. Maile O’Keefe came in at the anchor and got a team high 9.950 to give the Red Rocks 49.500.
Sitting in second, Utah was right behind UCLA with 49.5125 and ahead of Oklahoma with 49.4875. The Red Rocks moved on to vault, an event they have been very hit-or-miss with this season.
O’Keefe started Utah off on vault with 9.8625, and Jillian Hoffman had a 9.8750 before freshman Makenna Smith’s 9.900. Jaedyn Rucker got a 9.8750 and Gilstrap finished Utah off with a 9.8375 that would be dropped. The Red Rocks tallied 49.3625 on the vault and dropped to third.
With two events down, UCLA led with 99.2250, followed by Oklahoma with 99.0375, Utah with 98.8625 and Kentucky with 98.4375.
With bars and beam left, the Red Rocks needed to make up some points. Amelie Morgan started Utah off on bars in her first appearance of the night with a 9.8125. Brenner came next and hit a big 9.9375 before Sage Thompson came in and hit 9.9125.
O’Keefe got the crowd on their feet with a beautiful 9.950, quickly followed by a 9.925 from Cristal Isa. Grace McCallum made her first appearance since the Metroplex Challenge on Feb. 11, and she tied O’Keefe with 9.950 in her first appearance since the injury. The Red Rocks finished bars with an incredible 49.675, a season-high when it mattered most.
Utah’s season-high combined with a UCLA’s low 49.175 on vault pushed the Red Rocks into second place with only one event left. The big routine on bars set the Red Rocks up perfectly heading into the final round, where the they would prove why they are the top beam team in the nation.
With a trip to the finals on the line, the Red Rocks stepped up to the beam. Morgan started Utah off with a 9.8875, followed by Paulson with 9.850 and Kara Eaker with a 9.9125.
Isa came in next and delivered a beautiful performance to push Utah closer to the finals with a 9.9625. O’Keefe came in and shook the building with a perfect 10 to extend her school-record with five. McCallum came in as the anchor with a 9.925 to push Utah ahead of Oklahoma and take first place.
O’Keefe took the all-around title with 39.7625, as well as the beam title with her perfect score. She now holds four NCAA titles, two tonight along with the 2021 bars and floor title.
“Everybody’s gymnastics at this level is exquisite, we’re very fortunate to be in this position,” head coach Tom Farden said in a press conference after the meet.
The Red Rocks finished with 198.225 and the win, just over Oklahoma with 198.1625. Red Rocks and Oklahoma will meet Florida and LSU on Saturday in the NCAA Championship Final. It will be Utah’s third year in a row in the final, searching for their first title since 1995.
The 2023 NCAA Championship Final will take place on Saturday, April 15 at 2 p.m. MDT and will be broadcast on ABC. Make sure to tune in as four of the nation’s most elite teams battle for the national title.
