These are the scores the Red Rocks need to beat to win individual NCAA national championships
Maile O’Keefe and Jaedyn Rucker have already won individual NCAA national titles during their collegiate careers at Utah, O’Keefe in 2021 (floor exercise and uneven bars) and again last year (all-around and balance beam) and Rucker in 2022 (vault).
If the duo, or any other Red Rocks for that matter, want to bring more hardware back to Salt Lake City, they now know what scores they will need to beat tonight.
After the first of two national semifinals on Thursday, the bar has been set for individual titles on all four events and in the all-around competition.
The bar, understandably, is quite high.
All-around
Current high score: 39.7125
LSU senior Haleigh Bryant was the best of the best in the first national semifinal, recording a score not far removed from her nation best NQS average of 39.772.
Balance beam
Current high score: 9.950
Both LSU’s Bryant and Cal’s Mya Lauzon were able to hit the event leading mark. For Lauzon, it was par for the course, as she ranked No. 5 in the country during the season on beam. Bryant, meanwhile, ranked No. 8 overall.
Floor exercise
Current high score: 9.9625
Another LSU Tiger currently has the inside track at a national title, only this time it isn’t Bryant. Junior Aleah Finnegan edged out multiple teammates for the highest floor score, including Bryant, KJ Johnson and Konnor McClain, as well as Cal’s eMjae Frazier.
Uneven bars
Current high score: 9.925
Bars is the event that is most contested through one semifinal, with four gymnasts currently tied with the best score. Bryant is among the group, as well as Boise State’s Courtney Blackson, Georgia’s Lily Smith, Washington’s Skylar Killough-Wilhelm and Arkansas’ Reese Drotar.
Vault
Current high score: 9.950
For much of the first semifinal, Arizona State’s Anaya Smith was in the lead on vault with a 9.375. That is until one of the final vaults of the competition from Stanford’s Anna Robert’s, which catapulted the sophomore into the lead.
Winning an individual national title is of interest to the Red Rocks, with Rucker noting that she in particular wants to defend the title she won two years ago.
“With me winning the national championship in 2022 and us (as a team) getting third each year, I want to go to nationals and I want to win,” she said. “I want to win on vault. I want to win everything we can.”
All told, 16 Red Rocks have won individual national titles, headlined by all-around champions O’Keefe, Sue Stednitz, Megan McCunniff (Marsden), Missy Marlowe and Theresa Kulikowski.
