She’s a confident competitor, and has relished in the moment to go against other top teams all season. – Utah co-head coach Tom Farden, on MyKayla Skinner
SALT LAKE CITY — The 2017 Utah gymnastics regular season is in the books. The young Red Rocks' squad that comprised nine underclassmen and three upperclassmen has exceeded expectations all season long — but did have some bumps in the road.
Utah concluded the regular season with a 10-2 overall record. The two losses came in away meets at the hands of No. 10 Oregon State and No. 8 Georgia. The losses don’t mean much in the grand scheme of things as Utah sits No. 5 in the regional qualifying score (RQS) rankings.
The Red Rocks' season-high score (197.875) came against No. 3 UCLA on Feb. 18, while their season low (196.45) was against Cal on Feb. 4. The low score against Cal was the only meet Utah counted a fall (bars).
Utah had three meets with no falls this year, and MyKayla Skinner (40-40), Macey Roberts (15-15) and Maddy Stover (10-10) didn't fall in any of their double-digit routine attempts. Skinner’s streak is a primary reason for her outstanding debut season.
The freshman has gained attention all year, shattering the Pac-12 record for gymnast of the week honors with seven nods. Her top 10 rankings include No. 2 in the all-around, No. 8 on vault and No. 3 on floor.
She’s coming off her lowest-scoring meet of the year at Georgia (39.425), but some would argue the judges weren’t very generous to the standout on the Gym Dogs’ senior night.
“MyKayla had a very good meet for us (against Georgia),” said Utah co-head coach Tom Farden. “She’s a confident competitor, and has relished in the moment to go against other top teams all season.”
Baely Rowe, who ranks No. 9 in the all-around, has also had a great season. The senior set or tied career bests on every event but beam, an event where she’s the reigning Pac-12 champion.
Utah has nine of its 12 gymnasts competing in at least one event. Only the injured Kim Tessen and Sabrina Schwab, and sophomore Erika Muhaw, who fought hard to stay in the vault lineup, are not competing.
Utah’s best event is floor, where it has hit season highs of 49.675 twice. Skinner is the only Red Rock to record a 10.0 this season, and it was on floor. The team ranks in the top 10 on all four events.
“Our team has fought hard all year, and they are excited to kick off the championship season this weekend,” said Farden. "We expect to do well as long as we hit 24-24 routines."
Up next, Utah battles for the Pac-12 championship on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Stanford. Utah, UCLA and Oregon State are the only teams to claim Pac-12 titles, with the Red Rocks and Bruins winning two apiece.
National rankings
Oklahoma continued to dominate the rankings, remaining No. 1 for a ninth straight week. The returning champions are the only team with an RQS at 198.0. Second-ranked LSU, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Florida and No. 5 Utah round out the top five.