Three Individuals Qualify for 2026 NCAA Regional Championships
March 23, 2026 01:55 PM | Gymnastics
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Three individuals of the West Virginia University gymnastics team have qualified to compete as individual event specialists at the 2026 NCAA Baton Rouge Regional Championships on Thursday, April 2, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Junior Amber Lowe earned a spot on balance beam, followed by sophomores Sophia Rice and Emerson Smith on vault and floor exercise, respectively. The trio will compete in one of two Second Round quad meets at the Baton Rouge Regional, rotating with one of four competing teams in the regional semifinal.
Lowe earns her first individual qualification as an event specialist, qualifying as a beam specialist with a 9.855 National Qualifying Score. A native of Acworth, Georgia, Lowe is ranked No. 9 in the Big 12 Conference and No. 18 in the southeast region on beam. She reached a career-high score of 9.9 on the event in a quad meet at Towson on March 1, marking her first score of 9.9 or higher on any event.
Rice qualified as an individual event specialist on vault for the second consecutive season, boasting a 9.83 NQS on the event. She is ranked No. 13 in the conference and No. 23 in the region this season. A Morgantown native, Rice reached a season high of 9.875 at Utah on March 7, while her career high on vault is an impressive 9.975.
Hailing from Westerville, Ohio, Smith also received her first event specialist qualification, posting a 9.87 NQS on floor this season. She ranks No. 13 in the Big 12 and No. 22 in the region on floor exercise, reaching a season high of 9.9 twice this season. Smith also owns a career high of 9.925 on floor.
In addition to 36 team qualifiers based on NQS, the NCAA 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 16-18, in Fort Worth, Texas, at Dickies Arena.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUGymnastics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Junior Amber Lowe earned a spot on balance beam, followed by sophomores Sophia Rice and Emerson Smith on vault and floor exercise, respectively. The trio will compete in one of two Second Round quad meets at the Baton Rouge Regional, rotating with one of four competing teams in the regional semifinal.
Lowe earns her first individual qualification as an event specialist, qualifying as a beam specialist with a 9.855 National Qualifying Score. A native of Acworth, Georgia, Lowe is ranked No. 9 in the Big 12 Conference and No. 18 in the southeast region on beam. She reached a career-high score of 9.9 on the event in a quad meet at Towson on March 1, marking her first score of 9.9 or higher on any event.
Rice qualified as an individual event specialist on vault for the second consecutive season, boasting a 9.83 NQS on the event. She is ranked No. 13 in the conference and No. 23 in the region this season. A Morgantown native, Rice reached a season high of 9.875 at Utah on March 7, while her career high on vault is an impressive 9.975.
Hailing from Westerville, Ohio, Smith also received her first event specialist qualification, posting a 9.87 NQS on floor this season. She ranks No. 13 in the Big 12 and No. 22 in the region on floor exercise, reaching a season high of 9.9 twice this season. Smith also owns a career high of 9.925 on floor.
In addition to 36 team qualifiers based on NQS, the NCAA 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 16-18, in Fort Worth, Texas, at Dickies Arena.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUGymnastics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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