After a third place finish in the Lexington Regional Final, Missouri Gymnastics’ season has come to an end. The Tigers posted a total score of 197.225, improving their semifinal total by over three tenths. Still, it wasn’t enough to overtake Arkansas’ 197.450.
While the team will not compete in Fort Worth, Hannah Horton will appear as an individual on the bars. Her 9.925 in the regional semifinal was the highest score among gymnasts from non-advacing teams, placing her among the 19 qualifying individuals.
Despite earning a share of the regional floor title, Horton will not compete that routine at nationals. Kentucky’s Creslyn Brose, who received identical scores to Horton, advanced on an NQS tiebreaker.
Missouri’s performance was highlighted by what looked to be its best floor outing of the season. Kennedy Griffin posted a season-high 9.950 and Horton followed it up with a 9.925. However, the four preceding routines earned lower scores than expected, making it hard for Missouri to mount a comeback after being over a tenth out from second place.
“It was a little tighter scoring,” Missouri head coach Shannon Welker said about the team’s results on the event.
While the scores were a let-down for many Mizzou fans, the performances themselves were a fitting end to what could be considered the best floor lineup in program history.
“They’ve got a lot of innate ability, and we also feel like we’ve developed it quite a bit. It’s an impressive group and I’m excited. I think we only lose one out of that group next year,” Welker said.
While redshirt senior Elise Tisler has competed her final season of eligibility, the rest of the lineup is expected to return.
“I think that tells you what we’re going to be capable of next year, especially with the No. 4 recruiting class in the country,” Welker said.
On the bars, the team hit its highest postseason score which included a second-straight 9.925 from Horton. The team greatly improved its beam score, which has been a point of struggle over the back half of the season.
“Beam was better. The bar was quite low over there so we had the ability to get quite a bit better,” Welker said.
Missouri’s chances to jump Arkansas occurred on vault, its final rotation of the evening. The team didn’t record a stick on the event, leading to multiple hop and step-back deductions impacting the total score.
“Just some landings, it comes down to sticks at this point when you’re at this level and you have those goals,” Welker said about the team’s execution.
“We needed to stick a little bit better from the first event on, but overall, I’m really proud of them.”
With the season now officially in the books, Coach Welker looks to turn the page onto his next group. The team is bringing in the fourth-ranked recruiting class in the nation and a potential list of transfers.
“I think every event we have is going to get stronger next year. I know we’re losing a couple of routines here and there, but what we’re going to develop along with what’s walking in the door, I think people are going to be really impressed,” Welker said about the program’s future.
“This is not necessarily how we wanted to send our seniors out at this point in the season, so how we honor them is making sure that they take a trip to come cheer us on at NCAA Championships next year.”
The NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championship Semifinals will be held in Fort Worth, TX on April 16. The field includes Oklahoma, Arkansas, UCLA, Minnesota, LSU, Stanford, Florida and Georgia. Horton will rotate with a team to be announced.