Photo by: Seth Seebaugh
Mountaineers Earn NCAA Bid, Selected to Norman Regional
March 22, 2022 01:31 PM | Gymnastics
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The 2022 National Collegiate Women's Gymnastics Championships regional selections were announced on Tuesday by the NCAA. The West Virginia University gymnastics team will compete in the play-in round of the Norman Regional, inside the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Oklahoma, on Wednesday, March 30.
Joining the Mountaineers in Norman are No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 9 California, No. 16 Arizona State, Arkansas, Boise State, Utah State and Arizona.
Under the current NCAA regional format, modified from last year, four meets will be held across four days. On Wednesday, March 30, West Virginia and Arizona will compete in dual meet, beginning at 4 p.m. ET. The Mountaineers and Wildcats are set to meet for the fifth time in program history, as well as the first time since 2010. The two squads have split the series, 2-2, with Arizona claiming a 194.750-192.975 victory over WVU in the most recent meeting in 2010.
The winner of Wednesday night's matchup will advance to the second round of competition to face Oklahoma, Arizona State and Arkansas on Thursday, March 31, at 8 p.m. The first second-round meet on Thursday will feature Minnesota, California, Boise State and Utah State at 2 p.m. The top-two teams from each second-round meet will advance to the regional final, which is scheduled for Saturday, April 2, at 6 p.m.
Tuesday's bid marks the 42nd regional championships berth for the Mountaineers (13-5, 0-2 Big 12), their 37th in NCAA competition, and the team's seventh consecutive qualification. West Virginia has advanced to the NCAA National Championships three times (1995, 1999, 2000) since 1983.
The Mountaineers' regionals selection comes following their highest finish at the Big 12 Championship since 2017, placing third with a season-best 196.650 team score. The score helped WVU reach a National Qualifying Score (NQS) of 196.315 to rank No. 31 nationally, marking its highest NQS of the season, as well as its highest since 2004.
The top 36 teams based on NQS were selected for regional competition. The committee named the top-16 teams and seeded them in the bracket. Seeding determined at the time of selections will be maintained through the championship. Teams 17-36 were placed geographically at one of the four regional sites. Nine teams will compete at each of the four regional sites.
The committee also selected the top-12 all-around competitors and the top-16 event specialists based on NQS and placed them geographically into one of the four regional sites, keeping individuals from the same team together. The list of all-arounders and event specialists included individual qualifying scores from the teams competing in the first round to ensure those individuals will compete in the individual competition, regardless of whether their teams advance from the first round.
The top-two teams and the top all-around competitor (who is not on an advancing team) from each regional will receive an automatic berth to the national championships. In addition, the top event specialist at each regional site who is not part of an advancing team or all-around competitor will advance to the national championships in that event only.
The national championships will take place April 14-16, in Fort Worth, Texas, at Dickies Arena. The championship event is hosted by Texas Woman's University. The top-two teams from the Norman and Seattle Regionals will compete in the first semifinal, and the top-two teams from the Auburn and Raleigh Regionals will compete in the second semifinal.
All-Around Competitors
Angelica Labat, Illinois State
Malia Hargrove, Arizona
Individual Event Specialists
Vault – Suki Pfister, Ball State
Vault – Alana Laster, Illinois State
Vault – Gayla Griswold, Lindenwood
Uneven Bars – Alissa Bonsall, Penn State
Uneven Bars – Alysen Fears, Arizona
Uneven Bars – Lauren Bridgens, Penn State
Uneven Bars – Cassidy Rushlow, Penn State
Balance Beam – Sirena Linton, Arizona
Balance Beam – McCaleigh Marr, Penn
Balance Beam – Ella Chemotti, Eastern Michigan
Balance Beam – Abbie Pierson, West Virginia
Floor Exercise – Bella Salcedo, Penn State
Floor Exercise – Kendra Combs, West Virginia
Floor Exercise – Jaye Mack, Illinois State
Floor Exercise – Caroline Herry, Arizona
Floor Exercise – Abbie Pierson, West Virginia
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUGymnastics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Joining the Mountaineers in Norman are No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 9 California, No. 16 Arizona State, Arkansas, Boise State, Utah State and Arizona.
Under the current NCAA regional format, modified from last year, four meets will be held across four days. On Wednesday, March 30, West Virginia and Arizona will compete in dual meet, beginning at 4 p.m. ET. The Mountaineers and Wildcats are set to meet for the fifth time in program history, as well as the first time since 2010. The two squads have split the series, 2-2, with Arizona claiming a 194.750-192.975 victory over WVU in the most recent meeting in 2010.
The winner of Wednesday night's matchup will advance to the second round of competition to face Oklahoma, Arizona State and Arkansas on Thursday, March 31, at 8 p.m. The first second-round meet on Thursday will feature Minnesota, California, Boise State and Utah State at 2 p.m. The top-two teams from each second-round meet will advance to the regional final, which is scheduled for Saturday, April 2, at 6 p.m.
Tuesday's bid marks the 42nd regional championships berth for the Mountaineers (13-5, 0-2 Big 12), their 37th in NCAA competition, and the team's seventh consecutive qualification. West Virginia has advanced to the NCAA National Championships three times (1995, 1999, 2000) since 1983.
The Mountaineers' regionals selection comes following their highest finish at the Big 12 Championship since 2017, placing third with a season-best 196.650 team score. The score helped WVU reach a National Qualifying Score (NQS) of 196.315 to rank No. 31 nationally, marking its highest NQS of the season, as well as its highest since 2004.
The top 36 teams based on NQS were selected for regional competition. The committee named the top-16 teams and seeded them in the bracket. Seeding determined at the time of selections will be maintained through the championship. Teams 17-36 were placed geographically at one of the four regional sites. Nine teams will compete at each of the four regional sites.
The committee also selected the top-12 all-around competitors and the top-16 event specialists based on NQS and placed them geographically into one of the four regional sites, keeping individuals from the same team together. The list of all-arounders and event specialists included individual qualifying scores from the teams competing in the first round to ensure those individuals will compete in the individual competition, regardless of whether their teams advance from the first round.
The top-two teams and the top all-around competitor (who is not on an advancing team) from each regional will receive an automatic berth to the national championships. In addition, the top event specialist at each regional site who is not part of an advancing team or all-around competitor will advance to the national championships in that event only.
The national championships will take place April 14-16, in Fort Worth, Texas, at Dickies Arena. The championship event is hosted by Texas Woman's University. The top-two teams from the Norman and Seattle Regionals will compete in the first semifinal, and the top-two teams from the Auburn and Raleigh Regionals will compete in the second semifinal.
All-Around Competitors
Angelica Labat, Illinois State
Malia Hargrove, Arizona
Individual Event Specialists
Vault – Suki Pfister, Ball State
Vault – Alana Laster, Illinois State
Vault – Gayla Griswold, Lindenwood
Uneven Bars – Alissa Bonsall, Penn State
Uneven Bars – Alysen Fears, Arizona
Uneven Bars – Lauren Bridgens, Penn State
Uneven Bars – Cassidy Rushlow, Penn State
Balance Beam – Sirena Linton, Arizona
Balance Beam – McCaleigh Marr, Penn
Balance Beam – Ella Chemotti, Eastern Michigan
Balance Beam – Abbie Pierson, West Virginia
Floor Exercise – Bella Salcedo, Penn State
Floor Exercise – Kendra Combs, West Virginia
Floor Exercise – Jaye Mack, Illinois State
Floor Exercise – Caroline Herry, Arizona
Floor Exercise – Abbie Pierson, West Virginia
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUGymnastics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
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