The Gators finish NCAA runner-up; Thomas Ties NCAA career record 10s

FORT WORTH, TX — The Gators brought it on in the NCAA gymnastics team final on Saturday at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.

• Florida’s highest ever team at the NCAA Tournament site.
• Three events is the highest for Florida in NCAA team final action.
• Individual results leaders in Saturday’s two competition events – Trinity Thomas 10.0 (vault), Kayla DiCillo & Lian Wong 9.975 (uneven bars)

It all added up to the Gators’ 198.2375—just a fraction of Oklahoma’s winning total of 198.3875. He quickly equaled his NCAA team final record for the second time since 2017 to claim his second straight and sixth straight NCAA title.

Florida’s 198.2375 is the fifth-highest all-time in the team’s 30-year history that began in 1993.

Utah came in third (197.9375) on Saturday, followed by Louisiana (197.525).

“The Gators left it all on the floor tonight. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. This is what we talk about every day is to have no regrets. From day one of this season, this team has been very intentional and giving everything they’ve got,” Florida head coach Jenny Rowland He said. “Tonight’s competition was absolutely amazing. Amazing, insane, incredible gymnastics and any four of these teams could have won a national championship tonight.

“It is truly an honor and gratitude to be here tonight with this amazing team of 17 athletes. We made so many great memories today and they have so much to be proud of.”

Four of the eight-lowest winning margins in the event’s 41-year history have come in four of the team’s last five finals, including today’s slight advantage of 0.15 OU.

This afternoon’s meeting:
Sloane Blakely The Gators started with a 9.9 on balance beam—the highest mark among the team’s four opening opponents. It was the Gators’ first of four beam marks of 9.9 or better as UF opened the meet with a 49.525 — the team’s highest ever beam total in NCAA final measure. Sophomores Riley McCusker And Lian Wong He led the Gators, with marks of 9.9375 and 9.9125, respectively. student Kayla DiCillo Also posted 9.9.

Floor results were solid but not amazing, with only Super Senior Rachel Bowman And DiCello reached the 9.90 mark.

At the halfway point, Florida trailed the Sooners by . 250.

Saturday was a great time for a better season and the Gators did just that in a cellar. The Gators placed their highest vault total in NCAA final action with 49,575. That total was the best of the UF season and led all teams in the event on Saturday. Super Senior Trinity Thomas Its competition started with the first 10.0. That 10.0 was 28th to tie the NCAA record for best marks.

Wong of the Vault lineup started with a 9.9125 and DiCello also got a 9.90.

Heading into the final round, Florida trailed OU by 0.1875. The Gators placed the final NCAA uneven bars with a high of 49.7125 but it wasn’t enough to close the gap. Like the Gators, the Sooners closed out with a team-highest total of the day in their final event as OU posted a 49.675 on floor exercise.

Each Gator scored 9.9 or better in rails rotation on Saturday. That includes 49.7125 pairs of 9.975 near-completes from DiCello and Wong. Blakely and McCusker started and anchored the lineup, respectively, with 9.925 seconds. Thomas 9.9125 also went towards the UF bars total.

Event winners:

Trinity Thomas shares an NCAA 10.0 record

In the last encounter of her remarkable gator career, Trinity Thomas Hanging touchdowns among the legends of the sport with her 28^y 10.0.

She now shares the all-time lead at 28, set by Kentucky’s Jenny Hansen (1993-1996) and matched by UCLA’s Jimmy Dancher (2001-04).

Of those three top 10.0 job listings, only Thomas has a Gym Slam – 10.0 in each event. She posted a 10.0 in Saturday’s NCAA Team Final vault for her fifth career Gym Slam, having at least five 10.0s in each of the four apparatus.

Of the 13 gymnasts in NCAA history with a Gym Slam, Thomas is one of three players with enough 10.0s in each apparatus to score multiple Gym Slams.

• Trinity Thomas – Florida (5)
• Kayla Ross – UCLA (2)
• Maggie Nichols – Oklahoma (2)

GATOR PERFORMANCE NOTES:

• Florida has achieved four of the program’s highest-ever totals for an NCAA final tournament:

  • Team Total: 198.2375 (previous high: 198.175 in the 2014 NCAA Super Six)
  • Vault: 49.575 — also a season high (previous high: 49.50 in the 2013 NCAA Super Six)
  • Uneven bars: 49.7125 (previous height: 49.60 in the 2014 NCAA Super Six). Also total No. 3 bars in final action for the NCAA team
  • Balance beam: 49.525 (previous height: 49.50 in the 2014 NCAA Super Six)

• Trinity Thomas He is 13^y gymnast—and the first since 2012—to earn a 10.0 in the NCAA Team Final vault competition. She is the second Gator on that list, as Suzanne Haynes turned 10.0 in the 1998 NCAA Super Six Action. Haynes was in the stands on Saturday cheering the visitors on.
• The gymnast has scored a 10.0 or 9.975 in the NCAA Team Final uneven competition 12 times — with Gator getting five of those marks
• Today’s best colleges:

Next:

The NCAA Championships for the 2023 collegiate gymnastics season ends. Six join the Gators next season.
In the fall, Florida signed Gabe DeCidor, Skylar Dreser, and Anya Pilgrim. Sky Blakely has also signed with the Gators but will hold off on signing up until the fall of 2024 as she looks to earn a spot on the 2024 US Olympic team. In February, the Gators announced that a pair from the Sunshine State — Alyssa Arana and Kylie Blafston — would also be joining the 2024 team. Earlier this month, the Gators signed Danielle Ferris, who is in the process of accelerating her high school graduation to enroll at UF this fall.

“We have a group of freshmen who are really passionate and brave and love gymnastics and love the Gators and I know they will fit in perfectly on the team for 2024,” Rowland said.