With the regular season finished, the No. 5 Utah Red Rocks remained in Utah to take on the Pac-12 Championship. Competing in session two, the Red Rocks faced No. 17 Oregon State, No. 11 UCLA and No. 2 California.
Starting on bars, Makenna Smith lead off with 9.900, which Ella Zirbes quickly matched. Amelie Morgan delivered a beautiful 9.925 before Maile O’Keefe struggled, recording 9.800. Grace McCallum scored 9.925, matching Morgan for the team-high. Alani Sabado finished things off as the anchor, scoring 9.850 to give the Red Rocks 49.500 on bars. Sitting in second, just behind Oregon State’s 49.550, the Red Rocks moved to their strongest event.
Moving to beam Morgan got things started, scoring a 9.200 that would later be dropped. Smith followed, recording only 9.725 before Elizabeth Gantner did the same. The Red Rocks finally found their stride, with McCallum and Abby Paulson scoring 9.925 back-to-back. The improvement continued, as O’Keefe recorded another perfect 10. After tying Theresa Kulikowski for the program record against Oregon State this year, O’Keefe recorded the record-breaking 15th perfect 10 of her career, with 14 of them coming on beam. Despite the slow start the Red Rocks totaled 49.300, sitting in second.
Behind UCLA’s 99.100, Utah totaled 98.800. Oregon State followed closely behind with 98.775, and California followed with 98.600.
Moving to floor, Smith once again got things started. After the unfortunate 9.725 on beam, Smith scored a strong 9.925. Paulson followed, scoring 9.950 in another fabulous performance to Taylor Swift. Jaedyn Rucker scored 9.900, and Jaylene Gilstrap came in with another 9.950. O’Keefe scored another 9.950 before McCallum finished the rotation with 9.925. With everyone scoring at least 9.900, the Red Rocks tied their season-best on floor, vaulting into the lead with just vault to go. With 49.700 on floor, the Red Rocks sat at 148.500, holding a narrow lead over UCLA’s 148.475.
In her first appearance of the night, Camie Winger scored 9.925 to get the Red Rocks started on vault. Meanwhile, UCLA’s Chae Campbell struggled on bars, scoring just 9.300 and giving Utah some breathing room. Zirbes came next, scoring 9.825 to keep the Red Rocks in the lead. Ashley Glynn also made her first appearance, scoring a strong 9.900 which was followed by 9.800 from Smith. Rucker, the 2022 NCAA Vault Champion, delivered a team-high 9.950 to keep Utah ahead despite UCLA’s best effort. McCallum came in at the anchor, scoring 9.900 to give the Red Rocks 49.500 on vault.
UCLA had one gymnast remaining on bars, but the Red Rocks were already out of reach, and Utah’s win was secured. Totaling 198.000, the Red Rocks became just the second team to win the Pac-12 Championship four times in a row, joining UCLA’s four-peat from 1987 to 1990.
UCLA finished second with 197.875, California finished third with 197.325 and Oregon State finished third with 196.775. Stanford finished first in Session One with 197.175, good for fourth overall.
Utah didn’t just four-peat, they did it in the last Pac-12 Championship ever. Joining the Big 12 next year, the Red Rocks ended the Pac-12 era on top. Since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, the Red Rocks have won seven conference championships, the most of any team since.
But the season isn’t over, and the Red Rocks now set their sights on the NCAA Championship. Regional selections will be announced March 25, with Regionals taking place April 3-7. With 36 teams receiving a spot based on national qualifying score, Utah’s fifth-ranked score ensures they will see action in Regionals.
