Bradley Leeb
Jaxon Mitchell qualified for his second NCAA Final (and his first on high bar) with a new personal best.
Smith-Gordon, Bardana Advance In 2 Events
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – California men’s gymnastics competed for the final time as a team Friday at the NCAA Championships at Illinois’ State Farm Center, sharing the floor in Session I of the qualifying rounds with Oklahoma, Nebraska, Ohio State, Greenville and Springfield College in a meet where only three teams could advance to the NCAA Championships Final on Saturday. At the end of the day, it was Oklahoma, Ohio State and Nebraska who posted the top team scores of the round as the Golden Bears finished fourth with a team score of 312.026.
Nine total Bears advanced to Saturday’s NCAA Final by virtue of placing among the top three gymnasts in each event that did not qualify either with a team or as an all-arounder. CGA Regular-Season All-Americans Jasper Smith-Gordon and Matteo Bardana each advanced in two events (a first for the former) while Tucker Yasunaga and Nathan Underhill each qualified for the NCAA Final for the first time in their respective careers.
Junior Harry Kim led off the meet for Cal with a 13.366 on pommel horse to advance to the final, while Smith-Gordon put down the first of his qualifying performances with a 13.700 in the anchor spot. Underhill, a freshman, made his NCAA Championships debut to start off the second rotation and landed the Bears’ first stick of the evening, earning a personal-best 13.300 and a spot in the final, after which Bardana joined him with a stuck dismount of his own to score a 13.200 and advance.
Smith-Gordon was the highlight of Cal’s vault rotation, recording a score of 14.233 as the fourth man up to earn his second Finals berth of the day, while graduate student Kaien Orion posted a stick on parallel bars to lead the squad with a 13.233 and likewise qualify. Juniors Jaxon Mitchell and Tucker Yasunaga bookended the high bar rotation with a stuck-dismount qualifying routine apiece – Mitchell’s score of 13.200 was a significant personal best, while Yasunaga’s stick made him 2-for-2 on the night (having also earned a stick bonus on parallel bars).
California Men’s Gymnastics – NCAA Championships Final Qualifiers
Matteo Bardana (Floor, Rings)
Jasper Smith-Gordon (Pommel Horse, Vault)
Khalen Curry (Floor)
Theodor Roald Gadderud (Floor)
Harry Kim (Pommel Horse)
Nathan Underhill (Rings)
Kaien Orion (Parallel Bars)
Jaxon Mitchell (High Bar)
Tucker Yasunaga (High Bar)
Final Scores – April 17, 2026 (NCAA Championships – Session I)
(S) – stick bonus
(PR) – personal record
(Q) – qualified for NCAA Final
Oklahoma – 322.825
Ohio State – 320.294
Nebraska – 320.059
California – 312.026
Greenville – 307.059
Springfield College – 306.426
Floor – California 53.866, Nebraska 53.232, Ohio State 53.098, Oklahoma 52.499, Greenville 51.099, Springfield College 50.532
Trigg Dudley – 12.900
Khalen Curry – 13.533 (S, Q)
Matteo Bardana – 13.733 (Q)
Theodor Roald Gadderud – 13.700 (Q)
Pommel Horse – Ohio State 54.566, Oklahoma 54.499, Nebraska 54.199, Greenville 52.365, Springfield College 51.866, California 50.799
Harry Kim – 13.366 (Q)
Trigg Dudley – 13.000
Kaien Orion – 10.733
Jasper Smith-Gordon – 13.700 (Q)
Rings – Oklahoma 53.399, Nebraska 53.132, California 52.766, Ohio State 51.599, Springfield College 50.699, Greenville 49.799
Nathan Underhill – 13.300 (S, PR, Q)
Jaxon Mitchell – 13.100
Matteo Bardana – 13.200 (S, Q)
Sam Cirlincione – 13.166
Vault – Oklahoma 56.498, Nebraska 56.065, Ohio State 55.033, California 53.932, Springfield College 53.798, Greenville 52.733
Harry Kim – 13.200
Khalen Curry – 13.366
Theodor Roald Gadderud – 13.133
Jasper Smith-Gordon – 14.233 (Q)
Parallel Bars – Oklahoma 53.732, Greenville 52.231, Ohio State 52.199, Nebraska 51.400, Springfield College 50.199, California 49.965
Tucker Yasunaga – 12.600 (S)
Kaien Orion – 13.233 (S)
Matteo Bardana – 11.266
Theodor Roald Gadderud – 12.866
High Bar – Ohio State 53.799, Oklahoma 52.198, Nebraska 52.031, California 51.698, Springfield College 49.332, Greenville 48.832
Jaxon Michell – 13.200 (S, PR, Q)
Troy Nuesca – 12.966
Matteo Bardana – 12.366
Tucker Yasunaga – 13.166 (Q)
UP NEXT
Cal’s individual qualifiers will compete in Saturday’s NCAA Championships Final, which is scheduled for 4 p.m. PT/6 p.m. CT.
STAY POSTED
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