No. 2 Florida Gymnastics Looks for NCAA Title No. 4 in Fort Worth
No. 2 Florida Gymnastics Looks for NCAA Title No. 4 in Fort Worth
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – No. 2 Florida gymnastics makes a return trip to the Lone Star State this week, this time looking for its fourth NCAA Championship. Competition begins Thursday in the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.
Florida is the NCAA Championships’ opening semifinal on Thursday, April 13 at 3 p.m. ET. A top-two team finish advances the Gators to Saturday’s four-team NCAA team final. The Gators advanced from semifinal to team final competition in 15 of the Gators’ last 17 NCAA appearances, including 2022.
NCAA Championships Info: Six of the top eight teams seeds advanced to 2023 NCAA Championships’ final site.
2023 NCAA Championships Field Seed School Region Final Score Region Final Result
1 Oklahoma 198.050 Norman champion 2 Florida^ 197.800 Pittsburgh runner-up
4 UCLA 197.925 Los Angeles runner-up
5 Utah 198.050 Los Angeles champion
6 LSU^ 197.750 Denver runner-up (won tie-breaker)
7. California^ 198.075 Pittsburgh champion
9 Kentucky 197.850 Norman runner-up
13 Denver^ 197.875 Denver champion
^ denotes teams in Semifinal I
Seeds set prior to NCAA Regional hold through NCAA Championships NCAA Championships Start Events
April 13 – Semifinal I 3 p.m. ET
Vault
No. 13 Denver
Bars
No. 2 Florida
Beam
No. 6 LSU
Floor
No. 7 California April 13 – Semifinal II 9 p.m. ET
Vault
No. 9 Kentucky
Bars
No. 1 Oklahoma Beam
No. 4 UCLA
Floor
No. 5 Utah April 15 – Team Final at 4 p.m. ET
Vault
NQS 1
Bars
NQS 4
Beam
NQS 2
Floor
NQS 3
How to Follow the Gators: Find NCAA Championships action on television or via stream.
Olympic medalists Bart Conner and Kathy Johnson-Clarke call the action with Samantha Peszek providing sideline reports.
Date Competition TV Stream Scores
April 13
3 p.m.ET/Semi I
ESPN 2
ESPN2<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/9d86afdd-04fa-496b-8a6c-07a1e9ef75a7>
Live Scoring<https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=464189>
April 13
9 p.m. ET/ Semi II
ESPN 2
ESPN2<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/494d337b-d498-46b1-b2fa-b4b5a2ca4bee>
Live Scoring<https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=464190>
April 15
3:30 p.m. NCAA Live Preshow
ABC
ESPN3 April 15
4 p.m. NCAA Team Final
ABC
ESPN3<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/bce248c4-09c7-46f1-8c78-6c0eca662bcb>
Live Scoring<https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=464191>
Apparatus video stream available with Olympic medalist & Gator Great Bridget Sloan (bars), Gator All-American Kennedy Baker (vault), Ashley Miles Greig (beam) and John Roethlisberger (floor) calling the action.
Date Competition ESPN+ Links
April 13
3 p.m.ET/Semi I
Multi-View<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/d5ed3524-45cb-4147-85c8-e5cab9f73bc4>
Vault<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/5fb93335-c8cb-498a-8069-b1a9d9a9b77f>
Bars<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/4a43e915-40d4-488f-bc6b-5155b6661017>
Beam<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/f4c79f55-d319-44c2-b46d-153b29d733da>
Floor<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/8bac586a-e3cb-43ce-b81e-de1234dfdc71>
April 13
9 p.m. ET/ Semi II
Multi-View<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/a7917474-2e6b-4a76-9de3-5c2516432f41>
Vault<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/d30b9ad6-7bc0-40e8-a579-1211191add8c>
Bars<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/0fdec344-aade-49d1-a7df-e397bc732c67>
Beam<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/93fa8e55-7c17-4989-b35b-6fb34538db6b>
Floor<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/d1441e99-0883-4b52-bdb6-38c876ddcffb>
April 15 4 p.m. NCAA Team Final
Multi-View<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/438b91f1-5d40-4602-beaa-833a0adb1fae>
Vault<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/2a01b246-78c9-43dc-a716-79158721a31f>
Bars<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/0ff7a90e-e7fc-4ea3-8785-cd57020669c0>
Beam<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/c6cbce00-7f95-4a7d-be94-eb3f264c64b0>
Floor<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/29d65066-e07d-454d-b658-0364394cacde>
Tickets: Dickies Arena<https://www.ticketmaster.com/artist/1691250?venueId=99330&global=true>
Florida in NCAA Championships: This is Florida’s 39th NCAA Championships’ appearance in the event’s 41-year history. Florida won the 2013, 2014 (tie) and 2015 NCAA titles.
Gators in 2023:
Making 39th NCAA Championships appearance (second to Utah’s 41) after taking second in NCAA Pittsburgh Regional (197.80).
Two Gators turned in nation’s top two all-around totals in NCAA Regional competition – Kayla DiCello (39.80 – NCAA Regional Second Round) and Leanne Wong (39.775 – NCAA Regional Final)
Swept Southeastern Conference team titles for second consecutive season. Won fifth consecutive 2023 SEC regular-season team title (6-1). Meet-record total (198.425) claimed the SEC Championship meet title with an event record 198.425 on March 18 in front of a sold-out Gas South Arena crowd.
Florida (4) and Oklahoma (6) lead all 2023 programs with totals among nation’s top 20. UF’s four: No. T3 (198.425), No. 7 (198.35), No. T17 (198.175) and No. T19 (198.15).
Finished regular-season with nation’s high team total for uneven bars (49.80 vs Kentucky on Feb. 24). Season high totals for vault (49.525 – T14th), balance beam (49.675 – T7th) and floor exercise (49.725 – 4th)
A Gator claimed at least a share of each SEC Championships’ event titles – first since Georgia in 2009. Trinity Thomas defended her all-around (39.80) title and used unanimous 10.0s from the judging panel to win uneven bars and floor exercise. Leanne Wong matched her winning mark of 2022 (9.975) to defend SEC beam title. Sloane Blakely’s 9.95 shared the SEC vault title.
2023 SEC Gymnast of the Year is Trinity Thomas. Second in league history to earn honor three times (2020, 2022, 2023). Kayla DiCello is 10th Gator named SEC Freshman of the Year. Three other Gators – Sloane Blakely, Victoria Nguyen and Leanne Wong – joined them on 2023 All-SEC team.
Three Gators – Kayla DiCello, Trinity Thomas and Leanne Wong – earned a national-high 11 Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association regular-season All-America honors.
WCGA Region V Gymnast of Year is Trinity Thomas – third such honor (2019, 2020, 2023)
Florida’s 13 10.0s by three gymnasts leads the nation. Trinity Thomas shares 2023 high of seven 10.0s with Oregon State’s Jade Carey. Florida sophomore Leanne Wong has four 10.0s. Kayla DiCello was the first freshman to post a 10.0 this season. Of the four freshmen with a 10.0 in 2023, only DiCello earned multiple 10.0s.
Gators lead nation with three different gymnasts among the top 30 all-around totals of 2023 – No. T6 Trinity Thomas (39.85), No. T8 Leanne Wong (39.825) and No. T15 Kayla DiCello (39.80). The only other schools with multiple gymnasts among the top 15 totals are LSU and Michigan.
A Gator picked up at least one SEC Weekly award in each of the 10 announcements of 2023.
Gymnast of the Week: Trinity Thomas (2), Leanne Wong (1)
Specialist of the Week: Kayla DiCello (1), Riley McCusker (1), Thomas (2)
Freshman of the Week: DiCello (8)
Florida set SEC unbeaten streak record at 26-0-1 (previous record: 24-0 by Georgia from 1992-96). The streak ended Feb. 17 with loss at then No. 8 LSU.
In the Gators’ Last Meet: The final rotation of the NCAA Pittsburgh Regional final was a bit of a nail-bitter as the Gators waited for the conclusion of competition to confirm UF was among the advancing teams. Florida held a slight 0.05 lead heading into the final rotation. California closed with a meet-high 49.625 on floor exercise to take the Pittsburgh Regional title at 198.075. Florida claimed the second advancing position at 197.80. Michigan State took third (197.65), followed by Arizona State (197.475).
A Gator won at least a share of four event titles in the regional final. Senior Payton Richards – who turned in her collegiate all-around high (39.575) – also equaled her vault best of 9.95 to share the win with Arizona State’s Anaya Smith. Sophomore Leanne Wong used near-perfect 9.975s to win both uneven bars and balance beam. She won her sixth all-around of 2023 at 39.775.
Florida Kayla DiCello’s winning total in NCAA Regional Round II action (39.80) shared the nation’s high with Denver’s Lynnzee Brown (set in NCAA Denver Regional final) in NCAA Regional action. Wong’s 39.775 is the next highest regional all-around total.
DiCello’s 39.80 in NCAA Second Round action included an uneven bars 10.0 – her second bars 10.0 of 2023. Of the nation’s four freshmen with a 10.0 in 2023, DiCello is the only one with multiple perfect marks.
Florida was without defending NCAA all-around champion Trinity Thomas for the 2023 NCAA Regional Final. She suffered a right lower leg injury performing floor in the NCAA Second Round. She is improving and still listed as day-to-day.
(Special to 1st & Ten Florida by Florida Athletics)