Oklahoma, Missouri, UCLA and Utah will compete for the NCAA team title at Saturday’s women’s gymnastics national championship in Fort Worth, Texas.
Thursday’s second semifinals session saw No. 1 LSU, No 4. Utah, No. 5 UCLA and No. 8 Michigan State battle in close competition as the Bruins held the lead after the first and third rotations.
LSU trailed UCLA by less than a tenth of a point heading into the final rotation, and Tigers freshman Kailin Chio added pressure on the Bruins by scoring a 9.9750 on the vault. However, UCLA edged LSU and locked its spot in the final after Emma Malabuyo scored a 9.9750 on the beam near the end of the rotation.
Making it look easy. 🐯
9.9750 on vault for Kailin Chio.#NCAAGYM x 🎥 ESPN2 / @LSUgym pic.twitter.com/KdxKbEXomW
— NCAA Gymnastics (@NCAA_Gymnastics) April 18, 2025
UCLA had a boost from Olympic gold medalist and Bruins star Jordan Chiles in the third rotation when she scored 9.9750 on the uneven bars, which allowed her to win the individual title in the event.
Chio won the title on vault, and Missouri’s Helen Hu took home the honors for beam with a clutch 9.9875 that secured Missouri’s upset over Florida in Thursday’s first session.
UCLA’s Brooklyn Moors won the floor exercise title with a 9.9625, and Oklahoma’s Jordan Bowers captured the all-around title with a 39.7125.
The Bruins head to the national championship after missing nationals last year and finishing 17th. UCLA last won a title in 2018.
SHE’S THAT GIRL.
Jordan Chiles takes the top spot on the uneven bars with 9.9750.#NCAAGYM x 🎥 ESPN2 / @uclagymnastics pic.twitter.com/dT3vYpIzF9
— NCAA Gymnastics (@NCAA_Gymnastics) April 18, 2025
Meanwhile, LSU won’t have a chance to repeat last year’s championship victory after finishing third in Thursday’s second session. The Tigers’ 2024 title marked the program’s first.
Utah finished second in Thursday’s second session and is still seeking its first championship. Michigan State finished fourth in its first-ever NCAA championship appearance in the program’s 37-year history.
Thursday’s competition opened with No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Florida, No. 7 Missouri and No. 12 Alabama in a first session that featured nervous gymnastics and few stuck landings. All four teams underscored their national qualifying scores.
Oklahoma took the lead after the first rotation and stayed on top through the end. Florida was in second place after the first two rotations but opened the door for Missouri in the third rotation, counting two vault scores in the 9.7s for a vault score of 49.075, the team’s lowest in five years.
The battle between Florida and Missouri for the second spot in the final came down to Hu’s last routine. By advancing to the finals, Missouri also guarantees its highest NCAA finish ever after previously placing fifth in 2022.
Call her the closer.
Helen Hu clinched a 9.9875 on beam for the Tigers.#NCAAGYM x 🎥 ESPN2 / @MizzouGym pic.twitter.com/6MjdcjTQwW
— NCAA Gymnastics (@NCAA_Gymnastics) April 17, 2025
Florida finished third in the first session, making it the second time in 10 years the Gators have missed the finals. Alabama finished fourth.
In the second rotation, Lily Pederson put pressure on Oklahoma with a fall on beam. A missed connection from Keira Wells meant the Sooners had to count a 9.775, but hits from the rest of the lineup, including a 9.9375 from Bowers and a 9.95 from anchor Faith Torrez, got Oklahoma through.
Pressure makes diamonds.
9.9500 – Faith Torrez closed out beam in a big way for the Sooners.#NCAAGYM x 📷 ESPN2 / @OU_WGymnastics pic.twitter.com/6AMRCxMiuu
— NCAA Gymnastics (@NCAA_Gymnastics) April 17, 2025
Going into Saturday’s team final, Oklahoma looks to win its seventh national championship in 10 years, after finishing sixth and missing the final four in 2024 after a series of uncharacteristic vault misses.
Saturday’s NCAA national championship will air at 4 p.m. ET from Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.
(Photo of Jordan Bowers: Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)
