Alabama
NCAA Regional Championships
Alabama Advances to the NCAA Gymnastics Championships Final Site in Ft. Worth, Texas
4/3/2021 10:33:00 PM | Gymnastics
The Crimson Tide finished second in the Tuscaloosa Regional and is one of eight teams to earn a spot at the final site of the NCAA Championships in Ft. Worth, Texas
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama gymnastics team used a 197.575 to take second at the NCAA Gymnastics Tuscaloosa Regional Championships Saturday night and advance to the final site of national championships as one of eight teams that will compete in Ft. Worth, Texas for the 2021 NCAA Championship.
Oklahoma also advanced to Ft. Worth out of the Tuscaloosa Regional after winning on Saturday with a 198.175. Arkansas (196.700) and Missouri (196.550) rounded out the Tuscaloosa Regional final.
Alabama opened the regional finals with a huge 49.625 on the uneven bars, the third-highest score in school history on the event, following the school record of 49.675, which came on Friday. Freshman Shania Adams led the Tide with a career-best 9.975, while Cam Machado and Luisa Blanco both scored 9.925s and Makarri Doggette and Emily Gaskins posted matching 9.9s.
The Tide scored a 49.150 on the balance beam led by Blanco's 9.9. On the floor exercise, Blanco's 9.950 along with a 9.925 from Emily Gaskins and a 9.900 from Griffin James paced Alabama to a 49.425.
The Tide went to vault, its final event of the night, needing a solid score to earn one of the two bids available out of Tuscaloosa to Ft. Worth. A pair of 9.9s from Blanco and Shallon Olsen, a 9.875 from Kaylee Quinn and 9.85s from Gaskins and Lexi Graber added up to a 49.375 team total and a trip to national championships.
This season marks the 37th time Alabama has advanced to the NCAA Championships final site, the second-highest total in NCAA history. In addition to Oklahoma, Alabama will be joined in Ft. Worth by California, Florida, LSU, Michigan, Minnesota and Utah, giving the Southeastern Conference nearly half the field. The NCAA Championships Semifinals will be held on Friday, April 16 and will feature two sessions of four teams each with the top-two from each advancing to the NCAA Championship Finals, which will be held on Saturday, April. 17.
Head Coach Dana Duckworth Said
"It's an honor to move on and you never take it for granted. This team has a lot of fight and they're extremely disciplined. They show fierce grace and so much love for each other … they truly do it for one another. They're just a fantastic group to work with. This process started back in August and we've had so many moments this season where our ladies have been so mentally tough and gained experience in different environments. In the practices to come, we have to be very intentional so that the next time we compete, we can continue to get better."
Emily Gaskins on Competing Two Nights in a Row
"Our team was trained for this. I think coming into this second night, we built on the first night. We just kept that energy up and pretended like it was day one again. It was one-hundred percent worth it and I'm really excited for us to go do even better in Texas."
Jensie Givens on Stepping in on the Uneven Bars at Regionals
"I think it's a very crucial position to be an alternate. With the flick of a switch, it can change and you can get put in. We talked about competitive greatness this week. It's about performing your best when your best is needed. I just had to trust the numbers that I was doing in the gym. You never know when the moment's going to come. I just let go and did what I knew how to do."
Luisa Blanco on Alabama's Fight
"Tonight was the definition of grit. Not only that, but grace. We fought for every single landing. If something went wrong, we switched it up. We always talk about that next second. You clear out what's in your head. You block out negative thoughts and you're ready for the next turn. I think we demonstrated that at its best tonight and I'm so proud of my girls."
Alabama's Regional Final Highlights
- The Crimson Tide's 197.575 in Saturday's regional final marked its third-consecutive score 197.500-plus
- The Tide's 49.625 on the uneven bars is the third-highest total in program history, with the program record of 49.675 coming Friday
- Luisa Blanco posted a 39.675 to take top honors in the all-around and a 9.950 to post the top score of the night on the floor exercise
- Shania Adams scored a career-high 9.975 on the uneven bars, following her 9.950 from Friday
- Griffin James matched her career-high on floor for the second day in a row, scoring a 9.900
- Emily Gaskins competed in the all-around for the second night in a row, scoring a career-high 39.525 and setting a new career-high of 9.925 on floor exercise and tying her career-best scores of 9.850 and 9.900 on the vault and uneven bars, respectively
- Jensie Givens set a new season-best mark 9.875 on the uneven bars
- Blanco's 39.675 in the all-around marked her seventh-straight win, with 25 out of her last 28 routines scoring 9.9-or-higher
- Blanco leads the Tide with 22 event titles so far this season, with seven on the balance beam, six in the all-around, three each on the vault and uneven bars and three on floor exercise
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