(GYM) ***CLOSED***Gymnastics 2023 - 2024***CLOSED

hopes check: 1. no injuries = good-----2. improve road score = good-----3. improve highest score = fail - had this until victoria and leanne on beam.

EDIT:

Need to correct hope #3. When the SEC Network concluded, UF had a final score of 197.425. Checking both floridagator.com and Road to Nationals, it looks as if Anya Pilgrim's beam score was raised from 9.850 to 9.900 which gave UF a final score of 197.475. This is UF's highest score of the season and a good road score. Yes, for a second week, the score could have been higher, but UF won, had no injuries, and has improved scores in all 4 meets of the season.

On Victoria Nguyen's beam, I thought she got a screw job at 9.775. One judge had her at 9.850, but the other judge had her at 9.700, no way, but I said that about Pilgrim's floor last week too. Usually when the difference is over .1 of a point, the judges get together to see why a difference, in this case a .150 difference. I don't know if that was done. I'll fast forward through the meet only watching UF routines to see if anything else jumps out at me.

Post week 4, UF will be moving up from #8 to #6. Both Alabama and Arkansas had down weeks scoring below 197. The good news is when UF has a down week, not scoring to potential, the Gators continue to improve which bodes well for the remainder of the season.

 

Follow up for my post #423:

I reviewed UF's balance beam rotation with these findings, my subjective opinions:

1. Skyler Draser had a terrific leadoff. Judge 1 gave her a 9.8 while judge 2 gave her a 9.9. I'd have scored her a 9.9 regardless of her position in the lineup.

2. Anya Pilgrim's 9.850 original score was too low. Judge 1 gave her a 9.8 while judge 2 gave her a 9.9. With Anya's change to her 9.9 final score, it's obvious that judge 1 changed her score after the meet conclusion. The only fault I could see was Anya needs to get her split jumps to 180 to avoid deductions. Anya is capable of scoring 10s on both beam and floor with better split jumps.

3. Victoria Nguyen scored at 9.775 is exactly the screw job that I thought it was live and now in review. Judge 1 gave her a 9.7 while judge 2 gave her a 9.850. I'd have given Victoria a 9.850 for 2 balance checks well covered on the beam and a small hop on her landing, -.05 for each.

4. UF's final score after reviewing beam should have been 197.600, +.05 for Skyler and +.075 for Victoria, not 197.475. UF's beam score should have been 49.500, not 49.375. UF could have scored higher had Leanne Wong not missed her beam mount.

5. If you are seeing the differences between judge 1 and judge 2, you are right to see them. It's clear to me judge 1 was rough with UF's scoring. This type of crapola will work itself out in the SEC and NCAA championships where the judges will be increased from 2 to 4 for SEC and 6 for NCAA. In the meantime, this biased/inept judging is what we have to live with.

 

197.475

Florida at Georgia 240202 - Florida Gators

I've edited my posts above to reflect this. Sorry, I must have been a bit sleepy late last night and then first thing this morning.

 

Yes. Post season judging is a bit more accurate as the high and low is thrown out with the remaining scores averaged.

 

This is good reading from College Gym News:

Judge’s Inquiry: What Actually Happens During a Judging Conference? - College Gym News

What all of this doesn't help are judges who refuse to score per the rules. It's these judges who piss me off, too much partiality/bias/corruption. Bart Connor has commented on these rogue judges too. There are many of these bad judges in the sport today. Given some of the exceedingly high meet scores this year, one has to put head judges in this category as well.

Found this article which explains well why the college gymnastics judging needs to be cleaned up, an interesting read:

NCAA women’s gymnastics: Overscoring more of an issue than ever - Deseret News

 

If you'd like to see 2 of the best 3 in the B1G, #13T Michigan State at #13T Michigan will be televised on the B1G Network:

4:00 pm ET MSU at Michigan Link BTN

#11 Ohio State leads the B1G at this time. I can't help thinking Michigan and MSU have the better gymnasts, but that will have to be proven as the season progresses. Both Michigan and MSU are capable of scoring in the mid to upper 197s at peak performance.

EDIT:

In the battle for the state of Michigan, the Spartans kicked the Wolverines butt in Ann Arbor. It was MSU's first win in Ann Arbor since 1990:

Michigan State 198.050 (a terrific road score)
Michigan 197.625 (uncharacteristically lost on beam)

Michigan gave the meet away on beam. Otherwise, both teams would have scored in the 198 range. No, I do not want to see either of these teams in the Gainesville Regional. These scores are legit with no tainted judging. Both teams were scored properly. The performers were also scored fairly without regard for their placement in the rotation. This meet was refreshing to watch.

Ohio State scored 196.625 in a road win at Maryland.

Now that I have seen the 3 top B1G teams, I think Michigan State has the most talent and depth in the conference.

 

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde LSU Plus Oklahoma & California in Week 5. This from College Gym News:

No. 7 Arkansas (196.200) at No. 5 LSU (198.475)

• VT: Bryant (LSU), 9.975
• UB: Schoenherr (LSU), 9.950
• BB: McClain (LSU), Park (ARK), 9.975
• FX: Bryant (LSU), 10.000
• AA: Bryant (AA), 39.825
• Records: Arkansas – tied 3rd highest team beam score (49.45), tied individual beam record (9.975 – Priscilla Park) and LSU – new team all around record (198.475), tied 3rd highest team beam score (49.625), tied team floor record (49.775), tied 2nd highest individual all-around score (39.825 – Haleigh Bryant), tied individual floor record (10.0 – Haleigh Bryant)

No. 1 Oklahoma (198.375) and No. 2 California (197.950) at No. 23 Arizona State (197.250)

• VT: Smith (ASU), Lauzon (Cal), 9.950
• UB: Bowers (OU), 10.000
• BB: Torrez (OU), 9.975
• FX: Bowers (OU), 9.975
• AA: Bowers (OU), 39.675
• Records: California – tied 5th highest team vault score (49.425), tied 5th highest individual all-around score (39.65 – eMjae Frazier) and Oklahoma – tied team bars record (49.825), tied individual bars record (10.0 – Jordan Bowers)

LSU scored the highest in their history at 198.475 and the highest in the 2024 season. I'm skeptical of the scores as they were at home so I'm going to look at the LSU routines to check for inflated scores by the judges. LSU is capable of putting up big scores but closing in on 198.500 is pretty dang high for a team that runs so hot and cold from week to week.

Oklahoma and California put their scores up in an away meet at Arizona State. Both are running at 1 and 2 in the nation for consistently scoring at a high level at home and away. California has been scoring close to 198 in their last 4 meets after opening with a lower score in week 1 so they may be at their peak.

EDIT: How did LSU get to the highest score of the season and in their history? It's called home cooking judges. It's really sad that this persists in collegiate gymnastics today.

I couldn't get past LSU's open on the vault before disgustedly turning off ESPN. I was okay with all of the vaults until LSU's final vaulter, Haleigh Bryant who was scored a 9.975 that I saw as a 9.90. She was leaning backward on her landing never stopping her movement before she tried to pull her feet together for a leaning stick which was nothing more than a small step back and a salute that was never held. Under the new rules this season for eliminating the college stick, Bryant should have had a .050 deduction for not holding her stick on top of the .050 deduction for not sticking her landing. One judge gave her a 9.950 and the other judge gave a 10, a 10!!!!! Unbelievable poor judging! LSU's vault score should have been 49.450, not 49.525 which matched their season high on the vault. I can just imagine how the rest of the meet unfolded in LSU's favor. However, I wasn't going to waste another second watching.

Savannah Schoenherr had her 9.800 vault score dropped. She did give LSU their highest score on the bars. Her performances are in line with what she gave to UF when she was healthy, strong on bars and not so good on vault.

 

Road to Nationals (Week 5)

Standings (roadtonationals.com)

1. Oklahoma 198.045
2. California 197.700
3. LSU 197.590
4. Utah 197.485
5. Kentucky 197.480
6. Florida 197.331
7. Alabama 197.285
8. UCLA 197.220
9. Denver 197.215
10. Michigan State 197.190
11. Michigan 197.105
12. Missouri 197.075
13. Arkansas 197.025
14. Auburn 196.950
15. Ohio State 196.935
16. Minnesota 196.850
19. Georgia 196.510

Looking ahead to week 6, #6 Florida is hosting #13 Arkansas on Friday night. The meet will be televised by ESPN at 7:15 PM ET so national coverage for the Gators. After a season low 196.200 and an embarrassing performance at LSU with the tiggers scoring LSU historic highs, I expect the piggies to be primed for a bounce back week run at what they perceive to be the vulnerable Gators.

 

UCLA has scored high in back-to-back meets scoring 198.075 last weekend:

Arizona 196.525 at UCLA 198.075 - CollegeGymFans.com

UCLA has moved up in the rankings after starting the season slowly.

Nya Reed is back to her old self. She performs vault and floor and is producing top scores in each event for UCLA.

 

College Gym News - The Dismount: Week 5

The Dismount: Week 5 - College Gym News

CGN continues to call out the judges to "do better."

I can tell you from watching the meet, CGN hit the nail on the head with Michigan State. Except for lower than their normal beam, Michigan is very good too.

 

I don't think Leanne's performance has anything to do with feeling pressure. She is simultaneously training elite for her try at the US Olympic Team while performing collegiate with UF. Training for weekly performances during the season is tough enough without the added elite training. Me? There is a meet down the line against teams UF will beat without Leanne. I'd give her a well-deserved week off from training and performing her collegiate routines.