For the first time in program history, the Golden Gopher women’s gymnastics team has advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA Championships.
The No. 13 Gophers punched their ticket with a second-place finish at the NCAA Gymnastics Semifinals Thursday night, April 16, in Fort Worth, Texas. The team posted a score of 197.4625, its best score ever at nationals.
"I'm so proud of these guys," said head coach Jenny Hansen after the semifinals. "They believed we could do this and they just walked in with that belief. They were steady all the way through and I'm just so proud of them. I'm still a little in disbelief. What a night."
Minnesota's previous best finish at the NCAA Championships was sixth in 2022.
Senior Brooklyn Rowray became the second Golden Gopher in program history to win an individual national title, joining Marie Roethlisberger, who won in 1990. She took home the beam title with a score of 9.9625.
"I think I'm still in shock," says Rowray. "The support of my teammates and my coaches means everything. … I'm so honored and grateful to represent the University of Minnesota. This is just such a blessing."
Top-ranked Oklahoma placed first in the four-team semifinal with a score of 198.3000, followed by the Gophers, with the top two teams advancing to the Final Four. UCLA took third (197.2750) and Arkansas finished fourth (196.9625).
Along with the Gophers and Oklahoma, No. 2 LSU and No. 3 Florida will also be competing in the “Four on the Floor” meet to decide the national champion on Saturday, April 18 at 3 p.m. (on ABC).
The Gophers earned team scores of 49.2500 on vault, 49.3875 on bars, 49.3875 on beam and 49.4375 on floor.
"Coming into this meet, we knew we belonged here," Hansen says. "I really believe that going into Saturday, that mentality will carry us to another great meet. We had so many amazing routines and we had a few athletes that were lights out tonight."
Four Gophers have earned All-America honors at the NCAA Championships. In addition to Rowray on beam, Jordyn Lyden earned All-America on floor, Arianna Ostrum on vault and Lacie Saltzmann on bars.
Updates:
The team finished fourth at the NCAA Gymnastics Championships on April 18 with a score of 197.3750. No. 1 Oklahoma won the title with a score of 198.1625, while LSU took second (198.0750) and Florida was third (197.6875).
The Gophers ended their season with a 30-12 record (7-2 in the Big Ten), marking the most wins in the program's 52 years.
On April 25, the Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) named Minnesota head coach Jenny Hansen the WCGA Head Coach of the Year. In addition, assistant coaches Mya Hooten, Kiki Parenteau and Sam Scherwinski were named WCGA Assistant Coaches of the Year.
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Learn more about the Gymnastics Performance Center — the new practice home of the Gopher women’s gymnastics team.
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